The story begins with a vision that stretched beyond a single generation. A daring idea imagined a regular two-week air service linking Seville with Buenos Aires, with a deliberate stopover in the Canary Islands. Newsrooms across the country welcomed the prospect with enthusiasm, yet economic turmoil and the onset of civil conflict in 1936 soon halted the Spanish initiative from taking flight. Still, the tale of the Canary Islands and the giant airships did not vanish. The archipelago’s strategic position on the Europe–Americas corridor kept it in the spotlight during the transitional years. In the 1920s and 1930s the islands emerged as a crucial transit point, offering a steady reference point for navigation and a front-row seat as enormous airships traversed the island skies. Local residents repeatedly witnessed these remarkable craft passing overhead, turning the archipelago into a stage for airborne spectacle.
A century ago, in October 1924, the LZ 126 model crossed the Atlantic from Friedrichshafen, Germany, to New York in a journey that took about 30 hours. The airship was handed to North American authorities and renamed Angels. It passed Tenerife and earned a place in the documentary I Am Zepplin Über’s Atlantic III, produced by Telil for Neumann Production. The film helped to publicize aerial footage of the Canary Islands to viewers around the world.
Although a weekly Seville–Buenos Aires line with stops in the Canary Islands began to be planned in the early 1920s, formal authorization for the Colón Transaérea Española company came in January 1927. Monarch Alfonso XIII showed strong personal interest in the venture, but the 1929 crisis limited the investment needed to push the project forward. Eventually the German aviation network adapted the route to its own needs and pressed ahead.
“No dizziness”
The project under discussion, commonly associated with Graf Zeppelin, called for a vessel with a capacity around 135,000 cubic meters and nine engines, seven in use and two as reserves. It would stretch roughly 250 meters in length, boast a diameter of 22 meters, and rise about 30 meters high. Passenger capacity would accommodate roughly 60 travelers who could enjoy cabins, bedrooms, lounges, and even a kitchen aboard. Advertisements of the era claimed that the voyage would take about four days, a fraction of the time a sea voyage would require. The pitch was simple: shorter travel times, greater comfort, and a sense of modern awe.
The Graf Zeppelin made its first flight in 1928. On May 18, 1930, the General Directorate of Communications authorized mail to be parachuted over Santa Cruz de Tenerife, resulting in 92 letters and 131 postcards sent from Seville to the archipelago. Launch plans for the airship were cautiously discouraged when it became clear that its passage over the capital would occur in the pre-dawn hours of May 21. The operational reality of the route required precise timing and careful coordination with local authorities and airport facilities.
There is evidence that the airship crossed over Tenerife and Gran Canaria on May 30, 1932, and again in August and September of the same year. A few years later, in 1935, the airship not only flew over Santa Cruz de Tenerife but also dropped mail by parachute. Newspapers of the period conveyed the buzz and anticipation surrounding these flights, especially when they occurred during daylight and could be documented with clear photographs. Rooftops crowded with curious spectators, and travelers could be seen tipping their hats or waving handkerchiefs as the passengers returned the greeting.
The ascent of these large aircraft did not endure long. The LZ-129 Hindenburg disaster near New York on May 6, 1937, when the airship caught fire, caused the fleet to be grounded. The tragedy eroded public trust in giant flying machines. In the aftermath, Adolf Hitler ordered the suspension of commercial airship operations. The Graf Zeppelin and its sister craft, the LZ-130 Graf Zeppelin II, were eventually retired from regular service and repurposed for limited military use for a short period.