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This is grand old Point Sur, and the lighthouse is on the other side of the rock. There’s been a lighthouse here for a hundred and thirty years. Lots of shipwrecks before it was installed in 1889. But in 1935, everyone was cooler than mere shipwrecks, so Point Sur was the location of an air-shipwreck. More specifically a zeppelin wreck.

The US Navy’s USS Macon en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Maco… , along with its fearsome sister ship patrolled the skies for two whole years before it went up in a fiery inferno. They were based out of Moffet Field just south of San Francisco, and you can still see the awesomely cool enormous Zeppelin hangars sitting out amid the marsh reeds of the bay. I cannot find any pictures of these ships with enormous shark teeth painted on their sides, but I assume this is merely an oversight by the historical photographers.

The Macon was a Helium-filled zeppelin, and while shorter than the Hindenburg, it was actually bigger, and holds the world record for BIGGEST ZEPPELIN EVER. Airships were always finicky pieces of equipment, and this one was damaged a week before the big crack-up, flying over the high mountains in Arizona. (was really exciting they had to jettison 1000 gallons of gasoline and all the roulette tables all over the surrounding countryside in order not to crash) But that was the previous week’s adventure, and like good zeppelin captains, incomplete repairs weren’t getting in the way of steaming orders for Commander Herbert V. Wiley, who had catastrophically wrecked aforementioned sister ship USS Akron en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Akro… two years before and had lots of practice.

Some big important part of the zeppelin collapsed under a sudden gust of wind just off Point Sur, and this big important part was the bit that controlled the steering. So adrift, leaking gas, and in the middle of a vicious storm, they tossed all ballast, got the thing under relative control, and nestled gently down into the tossing waves.

Crewman Pulliam had this to say about what happened next. “There sure was plenty excitement on board here that night. Everybody was trying to see what had happened. When the thing hit the water, the gas caught on fire and burned almost all night on the surface of the water after the bulk of the wreckage had sank.”

Commander Wiley, true to his name, had learned a few things from his previous experience being one of three survivors of the worst zeppelin wreck in history. The Macon was outfitted with plenty of lifejackets and rubber lifeboats and the crew was well disciplined, and Wiley had the sense to send out accurate position locations with his SOS. Three ships quickly picked up the crew from the very dangerous and freezing pacific ocean, and most of the guys escaped none the worse for wear. Two sailors died, one from jumping out too soon, while the ship was too high above the water, and one from swimming back into the burning wreckage to get some of his personal belongings. Wiley was promoted to Rear Admiral, and the US Navy gave up on airships.

Xander would not have given up on zeppelins after mere fiery infernos and catastrophic going down with all hands, but they didn’t ask him because he was in the Army not the Navy.

Description

This is grand old Point Sur, and the lighthouse is on the other side of the rock. There’s been a lighthouse here for a hundred and thirty years. Lots of shipwrecks before it was installed in 1889. But in 1935, everyone was cooler than mere shipwrecks, so Point Sur was the location of an air-shipwreck. More specifically a zeppelin wreck.

The US Navy’s USS Macon en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Maco… , along with its fearsome sister ship patrolled the skies for two whole years before it went up in a fiery inferno. They were based out of Moffet Field just south of San Francisco, and you can still see the awesomely cool enormous Zeppelin hangars sitting out amid the marsh reeds of the bay. I cannot find any pictures of these ships with enormous shark teeth painted on their sides, but I assume this is merely an oversight by the historical photographers.

The Macon was a Helium-filled zeppelin, and while shorter than the Hindenburg, it was actually bigger, and holds the world record for BIGGEST ZEPPELIN EVER. Airships were always finicky pieces of equipment, and this one was damaged a week before the big crack-up, flying over the high mountains in Arizona. (was really exciting they had to jettison 1000 gallons of gasoline and all the roulette tables all over the surrounding countryside in order not to crash) But that was the previous week’s adventure, and like good zeppelin captains, incomplete repairs weren’t getting in the way of steaming orders for Commander Herbert V. Wiley, who had catastrophically wrecked aforementioned sister ship USS Akron en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Akro… two years before and had lots of practice.

Some big important part of the zeppelin collapsed under a sudden gust of wind just off Point Sur, and this big important part was the bit that controlled the steering. So adrift, leaking gas, and in the middle of a vicious storm, they tossed all ballast, got the thing under relative control, and nestled gently down into the tossing waves.

Crewman Pulliam had this to say about what happened next. “There sure was plenty excitement on board here that night. Everybody was trying to see what had happened. When the thing hit the water, the gas caught on fire and burned almost all night on the surface of the water after the bulk of the wreckage had sank.”

Commander Wiley, true to his name, had learned a few things from his previous experience being one of three survivors of the worst zeppelin wreck in history. The Macon was outfitted with plenty of lifejackets and rubber lifeboats and the crew was well disciplined, and Wiley had the sense to send out accurate position locations with his SOS. Three ships quickly picked up the crew from the very dangerous and freezing pacific ocean, and most of the guys escaped none the worse for wear. Two sailors died, one from jumping out too soon, while the ship was too high above the water, and one from swimming back into the burning wreckage to get some of his personal belongings. Wiley was promoted to Rear Admiral, and the US Navy gave up on airships.

Xander would not have given up on zeppelins after mere fiery infernos and catastrophic going down with all hands, but they didn’t ask him because he was in the Army not the Navy.