Description
Physical description
distorted by impact, bullet noses have made an impression in the side of the box.
Label
This machine-gun ammunition belt box was recovered from the crash site of the German airship L31, after it was shot down on the night of 1 October 1916. In common with other Zeppelin equipment it is constructed with lightness in mind, being made of aluminium. Due to the impact of the crash, the noses of the bullets contained within it have formed an impression in the side of the box.
L31 was commanded by the most renowned officer of the German Naval Airship Service, Kapitanleutenant Heinrich Mathy - veteran of numerous raids over Great Britain. During an attempted attack on London the L31 was attacked by 2nd Lieutenant Wulfstan Tempest in a BE2c aeroplane. Tempest succeeded in igniting the gas in the airship, which crashed in flames near Potters Bar.
The death of Mathy emphasised the growing efficiency of British air-defences and marked an end to German attempts to attack London with airships.
History note
This machine-gun ammunition belt box was recovered from the crash site of the German airship L31, after it was shot down on the night of 1 October 1916. In common with other Zeppelin equipment it is constructed with lightness in mind, being made of aluminium. Due to the impact of the crash, the noses of the bullets contained within it have formed an impression in the side of the box.
L31 was commanded by the most renowned officer of the German Naval Airship Service, Kapitanleutenant Heinrich Mathy - veteran of numerous raids over Great Britain. During an attempted attack on London the L31 was attacked by 2nd Lieutenant Wulfstan Tempest in a BE2c aeroplane. Tempest succeeded in igniting the gas in the airship, which crashed in flames near Potters Bar.
The death of Mathy emphasised the growing efficiency of British air-defences and marked an end to German attempts to attack London with airships.