The mystery airship or phantom airship was a phenomenon that thousands of people across the United States claimed to have observed from late 1896 to mid 1897. Typical airship reports involved night time sightings of unidentified lights, but more detailed accounts reported flying objects comparable to an airship or dirigible. Mystery airship reports are seen as a cultural predecessor to modern claims of extraterrestrial-piloted flying saucer-style UFOs.

Robur the Conqueror is a science fiction novel by Jules Verne, published in 1886. It is also known as The Clipper of the Clouds. It has a sequel, Master of the World, which was published in 1904.