Watching the Spielberg documentary on HBO which features the Normandy beach scenes from “Saving Private Ryan” and zeppelins afloat across the boats and on the beach. I’ve seen them in other TV/movie/documentary footage too. Seems like anything involving London in WW1/2 times always shows zeppelins flying all over the city.
Why? What is their purpose? Wouldn’t they risk giving away positions to the enemy because so visible?
Do the have a long-standing history of use by militaries across the years? Are they still used today? In the same way or has their usage changed?
Just curious so any historical information or commentary is appreciated. Thanks!
These are Barrage Balloons, not Zeppelins. A zeppelin was manned and had a rigid frame, and were used exclusively during WWI, for maritime patrol and strategic bombing. Barrage balloons, meanwhile, had no frame, and were limp when uninflated. They were unmanned, controlled from the ground by a steel cable. This cable was also their main and only weapon. They were deployed around fixed targets, like airbases, ports and factories as a form of defence against air attack. Any aircraft trying to attack the target at low level would have to run the risk of colliding with the cable. While they were generally quite obvious in recon photos, so were the facilities or positions they were intended to protect. Balloon barrages were widespread, used by all the belligerent powers during WW2, but were rapidly made obsolete by the development of more effective anti-aircraft weaponry.