KMS Graf Zeppelin, a brief account of her life.

[KlunkerRider]

The Nutzie military complex, like the Ruskies, was almost entirely oriented to land based forces, organized surface sea power was mostly aimed at securing the Baltic, anti-convoy tactics were deligated almost 100% to the U-boats, the only remaining surface capital ships, like the Graf Spee, Bismark, or Scharnhorst were entirely oriented to operate as stand alone raiders, the notion of projecting air power overseas was completely lost on their planners, unlike the US, UK or Japan, it cost them.

[falcon3268]

actually funding was cut for building the carrier. The design group called for two carriers to be built.

[clama79]

she was never in service

[benitofinito]

It's good thing this was never completed as with hindsight we know aircraft carriers were the future.

This would have given the Germans air superiority at sea in the Atlantic before 1941.

[vv55sst]

@benitofinito - Or not.  Had she been finished and set to sea, the Royal Navy would have put her at the top of the "hit list". Like Bismark, she would have been run down and sunk. she might have caused some damage before that, but given the nature of the Atlantic (and the proposed aircraft) her flying group would have suffered pretty serious attrition in any kind of campaign.

[fluffy1931]

@benitofinito keep sniffing glue dude. The US & UK both had either a history of aircraft carriers or aircraft taking off and being recovered from naval vessels dating back to 1918'.

How much experience did Germany have. Very little to none.

The only german air superiority at sea, at anytime would be in your dreams.

[benitofinito]

@fluffy1931 Launching a scout plane doesn't mean it's an aircraft carrier fucknuts. Also meant it would have been effective before 1941 as nothing the royal navy had could have stopped it.

[fluffy1931]

@benitofinito In 1918, HMS Argus became the world's first carrier capable of launching and landing naval aircraft.

pls gtfoh

[benitofinito]

@fluffy1931 you a such a fag lol

[fluffy1931]

@benitofinito lol, and your a nazi fagtard.

[benitofinito]

@fluffy1931 Nazi?? and why do fav videos of gay people lol

[fluffy1931]

@benitofinito embrace your gayness!

[benitofinito]

@fluffy1931 I'll embrace your face with my knuckles.

[fluffy1931]

@fluffy1931 ..,lol. return to updating your face book page for butt-pirates.

[crpdst2003]

@fluffy1931 have to go back to US Civil War and the mobile barge used to launch recon Balloons over the confederate forces in Virginia......or the US Brimingham experiments with Pilot Eugen Ely fly off and on to a platform built on the ship.... Professor Langely pilotless experiment successfully launched off a barge too but his manned attempt before the Wright brothers failed....

[jakemachon]

@koelschwolf Just so you are aware, My new book on the Graf Zeppelin is now ready. We ended up with over 150 images and an account of life on the ship by a guy who sailed on her in 1942 and 43.

mail me at: contact@stephenburkebooks.co.u­k for more information.

I'll offer a 10% discount to anyone who tells me they saw this presentation!!!

[jakemachon]

@koelschwolf Just so you are aware, My new book on the Graf Zeppelin is now ready. We ended up with over 150 images and an account of life on the ship by a guy who sailed on her in 1942 and 43.

mail me at: contact@stephenburkebooks.co.u­k for more information.

I'll offer a 10% discount to anyone who tells me they saw this presentation!!!

[ugslamma]

thought the graf zeppelin was an airship

[Steve17010]

@ugslamma There were two airships named "Graf Zeppelin". But the Germans' almost completed aircraft carrier was also named "Graf Zeppelin".

[ugslamma]

@Steve17010 My last name and thanks for the info

[jers59]

@koelschwolf And Val was hopefully outclassed by 1943 infact many were l;ost in battle of santa cruz by the end of the war they were only good for kamikaze missions

[jakemachon]

@jers59 Lets remember, the real thought provoking thing is what if the Graf Had been completed in 1941 as was planned - and as would have happened had the range finders not been traded with the Soviet Union in August 1939.

There might not have been a war by 1943!

In 41, the Graf's aircraft would have been up against Royal Navy Fairey swordfish!!!

I have seen the original documents, the Royal Navy did not fear the Bismarck as is commonly believed...it was the Graf Zeppelin that feared them.

[jers59]

@jakemachon Why fear the Graf Zepplin first germany had 0 pilots trained in carrier operations by 1941 UK, US, Japan have had carriers for 20 years, Second germany had 0 carrier capable aircraft the stuka was obsolete by 1940, slow, fized landing gear poor defensive armaments unlike the Douglas Dauntles the best dive bomber of WW2

[leiern83]

Stuka was obsolete??? What planet are u on??

[jers59]

@leiern83 Yes the stuka was obsolete by 1940 it was total failure during the battle of Britain and withdrawn from the western front slow, fixed landing gear, poor defensive armaments made it sitting duck

[jers59]

@koelschwolf fixed landing gear is problem, slow speed, lack of aerodynamics the stukas lack of good defensive protection is another problem

[jakemachon]

@koelschwolf please send me an email address I can contact you on.

It is best if you mail contact@stephenburkebooks.co.u­k so I can contact you when the book is ready.

thanks for your interest.

[1bearcatf8f]

Id love to see pictures of it if it was used in WW2.Like seeing the stukas on it.

[jakemachon]

@1bearcatf8f

Send me your email address and I'll forward you a photograph of a model of the carrier. The model's builder is Richard Wagner. The project, in scale 1:100 took him 20 years and is very realistic; he also wrote a German language book about it.

My address is contact@stephenburkebooks.co.u­k

I am about to publish a book about the carrier. The book will contain 100+ images and plans- many images obtained from an ex-kriegsmarine AA gunner who served on board her during her.

Thanks

[jers59]

@koelschwolf There was nothing advanced about GZ the proff is that no other country built carrier in 70 years after GZ launch it could only launch 9 aircraft then had to wait almost hour to launch another aircraft , guns below the flight deck made them useless , bad design all the way around, The Essex class carrier was king of warship classes in WW2, 90 to 100 aircraft, 3 elevators, fast, good endurance

[chloe7829]

I saw the G. Zeppelin at the Hakenterasse in the early war years, and prior to building a 200 sclae RC model I corresponded with Capt Hadeler, the ships chief Architect. In its 1941 design, the ship would have been superior to British carriers, primarily due to heavy use of radar in their launching and recovering operations. The installation of light artillery was due to the plan of her being a Handelsstoerer, destroyer of merchant ships

[jers59]

@chloe7829 How can you say the graf zepplin would have been superior to RN carriers first by 1941 UK, US, Japan had been operating carriers for 20 years germany 0, It takes years to train good carrier pilots and deck crew to run the flight deck, again germany had 0 experiance. This ship would have been training ship nothing more. German radar was poor subsitute compared to RN or USN radar

[jakemachon]

@jers59 Graf Zeppelin would have been superior to RN carriers in many aspects and the RN knew it. There is documentation at the National archive that demonstrates RN concern. Remember, though the RN operated many carriers almost all were inferior to GZ in the number of aircraft they could operate, and the speed they could sail - Graf Zeppelin was10 knots faster than some of the carriers being operated than the RN.

Also you make a mistake on the number of aircraft she could catapult off her...

[jakemachon]

@jers59 ...deck, the true figure was actually 16 aircraft catapulted between recharging of the ships gas bank - I presume your aware that 1. the US did not enter into the war until the end of 41 and 2. the Essex class were not commissioned until 1942.

catapulting was primarily to get fighters in the air for defence of the carrier. The other aircraft were intended to take a running take off.

[jers59]

@jakemachon The US had Lexington and Yorktown class carriers in 1941 both of which were better then graf zepplin

[jakemachon]

@jers59 but it would be 1942 before these ships were involved in the same war Graf Zeppelin would have been fighting in - potentially over a year after GZ entered service. Also, by this point I believe these ships were kind of needed elsewhere.

Graf Zeppelin represented a missed oportunity. She was not the greatest ship ever built, but had she sailed in 1941 with Bismarck, Activities in the Atlantic would have panned out very differnetly.

[jers59]

@jakemachon 1941-42 US, UK, Japan have had carriers for 20 years it takes  years to train carrier pilot and no german pilot was carrier trained. Also stuka and ME109 were not carrier capable, stuka fixed landing gear slow speed poor defensive armaments, ME109, weak landing gear makes it not carrier capable. Also germany had no sailors trained in carrier operations aircraft handling.

[jakemachon]

@jers59 I agree with the Bf 109 and the potential trouble with its landing gear, but I dont see what the Stuka's fixed landing gear has to do with anything - I'm thinking of Fairey's swordfish and Albacore aircraft.

with regards to trained crew; as this is clearly a' what if' type question - as ultimately she never was commissioned - we have to look at this as if she had been completed on target, being commission by mid 1940. The ship and her air crew would have had a full twelve months to work

[jers59]

@jers59 It takes more then 12 months to train pilot to operated from carrier and germany had 0 experiance in operating carriers so it will take lot longer also germany lack of refuelling ships, no torpedo bombers, plenty of destroyer escorts and good radar

[ghostdivision7]

Hitler never understood the importance of naval warfare. In 1941 a German task force consisting of Bismarck, Gneisenau, Prinz Eugen, Scharnhorst and Graf Zeppelin could have given the Royal Navy a good blow and seriously messing up the convoys. This was certainly possible, but because of limited support from the nazi governement Admiral Raeder was forced to throw his surface ships peacemeal at the Royal Navy!

Herman Goering even actively worked against a naval air arm!

[jakemachon]

I believe there was a rief period in 1941 (i.e. had she sailed with Bismarck) when her impact on the Second World War could have been enormous.

[Excelsior2007]

When I first heard about the Graf Zeppelin, I was very surprised, because I didn't even know that the Kriegsmarine and the Third Reich had a carrier. Now though, have been doing research into the ship and I think she could have proven to be a formidable ship if she'd entered service.