Neville Usborne

1 being built by Vickers,[7] and was posted to HMS Hermione, a cruiser acting as the tender for the airship, in September 1910.

On 1 July 1914 Neville was promoted to Wing-Commander, and on 13 August 1915 he was appointed Inspector Commander of Airships at the Admiralty.

As a defence against the German Zeppelin bombing raids Usborne and Squadron Commander de Courcy Ireland (of RNAS Great Yarmouth) had developed a method of suspending a B.E.2c airplane from an envelope: this would be able to reach altitude quickly and patrol as an airship, the airplane being detached once a Zeppelin had been found.

This trial, however, ended in disaster: the "airship-plane" had lifted off from RNAS Kingsnorth with Usborne and Ireland in the cockpit.

Then the overloaded rear cables also failed, and the airplane began to fall in a slideslip: it then flipped, ejecting Ireland who fell 15 seconds to his death:[13] Usborne remained with the plane until it crashed in Strood railway station goods yard, killing him.