[Paleo Conservative]

The Hindenburg crashed because its paint, made of thermite, caught on fire,

I think I saw something about that on the History Channel. But once the external fabric caught on fire, it was inevitable that the hydrogen gas bags would also ignite.

[Paleo Conservative]

It would be good if someone could develop safe hydrogen balloons, because hydrogen can lift about twice as much weight. H₂ has a molecular weight of 2 while helium He has a molecular weight of 4. According to the Ideal Gas Law:

PV=nRT

so the same volume occupied hydrogen at a given temperature and pressure is half as dense as helium.