L 5 (LZ 28)

L 5, factory number LZ 28, was an M-class Zeppelin built by Luftschiffbau Zeppelin at Friedrichshafen for the Imperial German Navy; it was the 28th airship built by Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin and the fifth operated by the Navy. It made its first flight on 22 September 1914 and was used for reconnaissance over the North Sea, bombing the British submarine E11 during the Christmas Raid of 25 December 1914 and patrolling above the Battle of Dogger Bank on 24 January 1915, when it radioed reconnaissance data while under fire. It was particularly effective at finding minefields and marking them for minesweepers. In June 1915 it moved to the Baltic and flew reconnaissance missions and bombing raids against Russian targets from Seddin, and on 7 August 1915 it was severely damaged by Russian anti-aircraft fire and had to be dismantled.