A zeppelin is a type of rigid airship, using lighter-than-air gases. Originally pioneered by the German Count von Zeppelin in the late 1800s, zeppelins entered service as the first commercial airlines prior to World War I. Civilian zeppelins became more popular in the 1920s and the 1930s, including transatlantic passenger travel. Despite the sensational Hindenburg disaster, commercial and military zeppelin use continued.
History[]
Indiana Jones encountered and rode on several zeppelins during his adventures, including:
- an imperial German military zeppelin which bombed London in May 1916. Jones was riding aboard Vicky Prentiss's bus and she helped him to seek shelter away from the bus in case it got hit by a zeppelin bomb.[1]
- an imperial German military zeppelin which bombed Paris in February 1917. Jones was writing a letter Thomas Edward Lawrence when it attacked.[2]
- an armed imperial German Prototype Zeppelin during World War I which, as a spy, Jones destroyed to undermine the German war effort.[3]
- a Nazi military zeppelin used by Colonel Albrecht Von Beck to transport Jones form Prague, through Belgrade, to Istanbul in 1935.[4]
- an unnamed Japanese zeppelin, used to move a frozen dragon from Nepal to Japan in 1936.[5]
- a zeppelin over Vatican City in 1937.[6]
- D-138, a commercial zeppelin operated by Deutsche Zeppelin-Reederei, which also operated the Hindenburg. Using aliases, Jones and his father took a flight from Berlin to Athens in 1938, but ended up stealing a German biplane to continue their journey.[7]
- D-LZ 127, a Nazi military zeppelin sent to South America to recover Mayan relics in 1939.[8]
- Odin (Registration: D-L276), a double-hulled Nazi military zeppelin commanded by Magnus Völler in his search for the Staff of Kings in 1939.[9]
Behind the scenes[]
In the real world, the Hindenberg disaster effectively killed the commercial passenger zeppelin industry, though in the world of Indiana Jones, zeppelin travel continued, and German zeppelins even started carrying planes, an innovation borrowed from US military airships, the USS Akron and USS Macon.[10]
Appearances[]
- The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles – "London, May 1916" → Love's Sweet Song
- The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones - "Attack of the Hawkmen"
- Instruments of Chaos starring Young Indiana Jones
- The Further Adventures of Indiana Jones – "Dragon by the Tail!!"
- Indiana Jones' Greatest Adventures
- Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
- Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
- Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (novel)
- Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (comic)
- Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: The Graphic Adventure
- Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: The Action Game
- Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb
- Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings
Non-canonical appearances[]
Sources[]
- From Star Wars To Indiana Jones - The Best of the Lucasfilm Archives
- The World of Indiana Jones
- The Last Crusade: Watch your step on IndianaJones.com (backup link on Archive.org)
- Indiana Jones: The Ultimate Guide
- "You Call This Archeology?" - Indiana Jones: The Official Magazine 3
- "The Thrill of the Chase!" - Indiana Jones: The Official Magazine 4
- "Indy's Top 10 Funniest Moments" - Indiana Jones: The Official Magazine 6
- 40 Great Indiana Jones Quotes on Lucasfilm.com (backup link on Archive.org)
Notes and references[]
- ↑ The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles – "London, May 1916" → Love's Sweet Song
- ↑ Young Indiana Jones and the Attack of the Hawkmen
- ↑ Instruments of Chaos starring Young Indiana Jones
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb
- ↑ The Further Adventures of Indiana Jones – "Dragon by the Tail!!"
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Great Circle
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings Wii version
- ↑ Indiana Jones: The Ultimate Guide