Flight Commander Douglas A. Oliver was concerned as he flew on through the fog over Germany. He and his observer, Chief Petty Officer Budds, had been flying in the thickening fog for almost 30 minutes. The weather on this Christmas Day in 1914 was calm and cold, but neither of the crewmen in their open cockpits felt the sting of the winter air. The thrill of carrying out a daring seaborne air attack on the enemy prevented them from noticing the cold.

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The single-engine, two-seat Short Type 74 float biplane droned on in the gray envelope of fog. The 100-hp Gnôme rotary engine was running smoothly despite the heavy load of fuel, the observer and pilot, plus three 20-pound bombs. It was a long way to the target, and fuel would be a major concern if they stayed in the air too long. They had enough fuel on board for a three-hour flight. This would give them sufficient time to fly to their target and return to their seaplane tenders located in the North Sea. If they became lost or disoriented, however, they might well never find their target–or worse, they might run out of fuel over enemy territory.

Visibility was decreasing, so Oliver decided to descend from his attack altitude of 2,000 feet to 700 feet to find a break in the fog. Suddenly the aircraft emerged from the fog over the Elbe River directly above five enemy destroyers of Half-Flotilla III. Signalmen on the enemy destroyers rushed to their blinker lights and flashed challenges to the unidentified aircraft. Oliver managed to quickly determine his position and disappear back into the fog, just as the enemy gunners delivered a barrage of anti-aircraft fire at his plane. Undamaged by the enemy fire, Oliver continued on his course. The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was about to bomb the German Zeppelin shed at Cuxhaven.

Prior to World War I, the only way to launch an attack on Great Britain was from the sea. The British, protected by their great naval fleet with its long tradition of victory, were confident that no enemy would dare approach the island nation by water. In the years just before the war, however, the creation of workable heavier-than-air machines and dirigibles opened a new avenue of possible attack on the British Isles. If one of the Continental powers could create a fleet of dirigibles or airplanes, as the heavier-than-air machines came to be called, they might well be able to strike the very heart of the British empire with impunity.

The great nations of Europe raced to develop airplanes, but the science of these machines was still in its infancy. The aircraft engines of prewar years could not attain the power or range to present anything other than a short-range threat of a few hundred miles.

Dirigibles were another matter entirely. The science of lighter-than-air craft had been around since the early 1800s. Most of these craft were simply large balloons filled with gases that were lighter than air. They had been used for observation during several wars and skirmishes. Although they proved effective, the early dirigibles were bulky, difficult to control, and usually remained tethered to a fixed point during operations.

Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin began conceptual work on a much improved adaptation of the balloon in 1873. Instead of using a single bag of gas, Zeppelin planned to build a rigid structure that would hold gas cells at various intervals within its framework. The new craft would have engines for propulsion and a gondola suspended below the rigid structure to house the engines, an aircrew and even passengers. Such a craft, Zeppelin reckoned, would be more of an airborne ship than a balloon. It could be controlled in the air by its engines, would have a long range, and be able to carry several tons of cargo.

Count Zeppelin solidified and refined his concept over the next few years. He gained supporters for his idea of creating a rigid lighter-than-air ship that would have wide commercial and military applications. He began serious design work on his first ship in 1892 after leaving the army. The first Zeppelin lighter-than-air ship flew in June 1900. These airships, commonly called 'Zeppelins, after their creator, were intended purely for commercial use. However, it did not take defense experts long to conclude that the airships had tremendous military potential.

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