This painting is an accurate portrayal of the only (officially) acknowledged battle between a US Navy airship and a German U-Boat. On July 18, 1943, the US Naval Blimp K-74 attacked and damaged the German U-Boat U-134 off the Florida straits and saved nearby merchant ships from probable sinking. The K-74 was shot down with the loss of its bombardier. The German U-Boat, its diving tanks badly damaged by the K-74's attack, was forced to limp across the Atlantic for its home base. It was discovered, bombed and sunk by allied aircraft 30 days later.