Albatros D.III
D.III | |
---|---|
Role | Fighter |
National origin | German Empire |
Manufacturer | Albatros Flugzeugwerke |
Designer | Robert Thelen |
First flight | August 1916 |
Retired | 1923 (Polish Air Force) |
Status | Retired |
Primary users | Austro-Hungarian Air Service
|
Produced | 1916–1918 |
Number built | 1,866 |
Developed from | Albatros D.II |
Developed into | Albatros D.V |
The Albatros D.III was a
Design and development
Development of the prototype D.III started in late July or early August 1916.
After a Typenprüfung (official type test) on 26 September 1916, Albatros received an order for 400 D.III aircraft, the largest German production contract to date.[2] Idflieg placed additional orders for 50 aircraft in February and March 1917.[3]
Operational history
The D.III entered squadron service in December 1916, and was immediately acclaimed by German pilots for its maneuverability and rate of climb.[3] Two faults with the new aircraft were soon identified.
Like the later models of the D.II, early D.IIIs featured a Teves und Braun airfoil-shaped radiator in the center of the upper wing, where it tended to scald the pilot if punctured. From the 290th D.III onward, the radiator was offset to the right on production machines while others were soon moved to the right as a field modification. Aircraft deployed in Palestine used two wing radiators, to cope with the warmer climate.
More seriously, the new aircraft immediately began experiencing failures of the lower wing ribs and leading edge,[3] a defect shared with the Nieuport 17. On 23 January 1917, a Jasta 6 pilot suffered a failure of the lower right wing spar.[3] On the following day, Manfred von Richthofen suffered a crack in the lower wing of his new D.III.[3] On 27 January, the Kogenluft (Kommandierender General der Luftstreitkräfte) issued an order grounding all D.IIIs pending resolution of the wing failure problem.[4] On 19 February, after Albatros introduced a reinforced lower wing, the Kogenluft rescinded the grounding order.[5] New production D.IIIs were completed with the strengthened wing while operational D.IIIs were withdrawn to Armee-Flugparks for modifications, forcing Jastas to use the Albatros D.II and Halberstadt D.II during the interim.[6][7]
At the time, the continued wing failures were attributed to poor workmanship and materials at the Johannisthal factory. In fact, the real cause lay in the sesquiplane arrangement taken from the Nieuport. While the lower wing had sufficient strength in static tests, it was subsequently determined that the main spar was located too far aft, causing the wing to twist under aerodynamic loads. Pilots were therefore advised not to perform steep or prolonged dives in the D.III. This design flaw persisted despite attempts to rectify the problem in the D.III and succeeding D.V.
Apart from its structural deficiencies, the D.III was considered pleasant and easy to fly, if somewhat heavy on the controls. The sesquiplane arrangement offered improved climb, maneuverability, and downward visibility compared to the preceding D.II. Like most contemporary aircraft, the D.III was prone to spinning, but recovery was straightforward.
Albatros built approximately 500 D.III aircraft at its Johannisthal factory. In the spring of 1917, D.III production shifted to Albatros' subsidiary, Ostdeutsche Albatros Werke (OAW), to permit Albatros to concentrate on development and production of the D.V.[8] Between April and August 1917, Idflieg issued five separate orders for a total of 840 D.IIIs. The OAW variant underwent its Typenprüfung in June 1917.[9] Production commenced at the Schneidemühl factory in June and continued through December 1917. OAW aircraft were distinguishable by their larger, rounded rudders.[10]
Peak service was in November 1917, with 446 aircraft on the Western Front. The D.III did not disappear with the end of production, however. It remained in frontline service well into 1918. As of 31 August 1918, 54 D.III aircraft remained on the Western Front.
Austro-Hungarian variants
In the autumn of 1916, Oesterreichische Flugzeugfabrik AG (Oeffag) obtained a licence to build the D.III at
The Oeffag aircraft were built in three main versions (series 53.2, 153, 253) using the 138, 149, or 168 kW (185, 200, or 225 hp) Austro-Daimler engines respectively. The Austro-Daimlers provided improved performance over the Mercedes D.IIIa engine. For cold weather operations, Oeffag aircraft featured a winter cowling which fully enclosed the cylinder heads.
Austrian pilots often removed the
All Oeffag variants were armed with two 8 mm (.315 in)
Oeffag engineers noted the wing failures of the D.III and modified the lower wing to use thicker ribs and spar flanges. These changes, as well as other detail improvements, largely resolved the structural problems that had plagued German versions of the D.III.[13] In service, the Oeffag aircraft proved to be popular, robust, and effective. Oeffag built approximately 526 D.III aircraft between May 1917 and the Armistice (586 in total[11] according to other publications).
Postwar
After the Armistice, in early 1919 Poland bought 38 series 253 aircraft from the factory, ten more were rebuilt from wartime leftovers.
The newly formed Czechoslovak Air Force also obtained and operated several Oeffag machines after the war.
Modern reproductions
An Austrian aviation enthusiast, Koloman Mayrhofer, has completed a pair of Albatros D.III (Oeffag) series 253 reproductions. Both are equipped with vintage Austro-Daimler engines. One aircraft will be flown and operated by a non-profit organization. The second aircraft is slated for static display at the Flugmuseum AVIATICUM, near Wiener-Neustadt, Austria.
Operators
- Luftfahrtruppen
- Austro-Hungarian Navy
- Czechoslovak Air Force - (postwar)
- Luftstreitkräfte
- Kaiserliche Marine
- Lithuanian Air Force - (postwar)
- Polish Air Force (postwar)
- Ottoman Air Force and Turkish Air Force(postwar)
- Yugoslav Royal Air Force(postwar)
Specifications (D.III (Oef) Series 153)
Data from Austro-Hungarian Army Aircraft of World War One [15]
General characteristics
- Crew: 1
- Length: 7.35 m (24 ft 1 in)
- Upper wingspan: 9 m (29 ft 6 in)
- Lower wingspan: 8.73 m (28 ft 8 in)
- Height: 2.8 m (9 ft 2 in)
- Wing area: 20.56 m2 (221.3 sq ft)
- Empty weight: 710 kg (1,565 lb)
- Gross weight: 987 kg (2,176 lb)
- Powerplant: 1 × Austro-Daimler 200hp6-cylinder water-cooled in-line piston engine, 150 kW (200 hp)
- Propellers: 2-bladed fixed-pitch wooden propeller
Performance
- Maximum speed: 188 km/h (117 mph, 102 kn)
- Time to altitude:
- 1,000 m (3,300 ft) in 2 minutes 35 seconds
- 2,000 m (6,600 ft) in 6 minutes 35 seconds
- 3,000 m (9,800 ft) in 11 minutes 20 seconds
- 4,000 m (13,000 ft) in 18 minutes 50 seconds
- 5,000 m (16,000 ft) in 33 minutes
- Wing loading: 48.1 kg/m2 (9.9 lb/sq ft)
- Power/mass: 0.20 hp/kg
Armament
- Guns: 2 × 8 mm (0.315 in) Schwarzlose machine guns
See also
Related development
References
Notes
- ^ a b Grosz 2003, p. 6.
- ^ Grosz 2003, p. 8.
- ^ a b c d e VanWyngarden 2007, p. 19.
- ^ Grosz 2003, p. 11.
- ^ Grosz 2003, p. 13.
- ^ Grosz 2003, pp. 11, 13.
- ^ Franks, Giblin, McCrery 1998, p. 59.
- ^ Grosz 2003, p. 18.
- ^ Grosz 2003, p. 19.
- ^ Grosz 2003, pp. 21–22.
- ^ a b c d e f g Morgała (1997), pp. 154-156
- ^ a b c d e Grosz, Haddow, Schiemer 2002, p. 251.
- ^ Grosz, Haddow, Schiemer 2002, p. 249.
- ^ Morgała (1997), pp. 125-126
- ^ Grosz, Haddow, Schiemer 2002, pp. 248-259.
Bibliography
- Connors, John F. Albatros Fighters In Action (Aircraft No. 46). Carrollton, TX: Squadron/Signal Publications, Inc., 1981. ISBN 0-89747-115-6.
- Franks, Norman, Hal Giblin and Nigel McCrery. Under the Guns of the Red Baron: Complete Record of Von Richthofen's Victories and Victims. London: Grub Street, 1998. ISBN 1-84067-145-9.
- Grosz, Peter M. "The Agile & Aggressive Albatros". Air Enthusiast Quarterly, No. 1, n.d., pp. 36–51. ISSN 0143-5450
- Grosz, Peter M. Albatros D.III (Windsock Datafile Special). Berkhamsted, Herts, UK: Albatros Publications, 2003. ISBN 1-902207-62-9.
- Grosz, Peter M., George Haddow and Peter Schiemer. Austro-Hungarian Army Aircraft of World War I. Boulder, CO: Flying Machines Press, 2002. ISBN 1-891268-05-8.
- Klaauw, Bart van der (March–April 1999). "Unexpected Windfalls: Accidentally or Deliberately, More than 100 Aircraft 'arrived' in Dutch Territory During the Great War". Air Enthusiast (80): 54–59. ISSN 0143-5450.
- Mikesh, Robert C. Albatros D.Va: German Fighter of World War I. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1980. ISBN 0-87474-633-7
- Miller, James F. Albatros D.III: Johannisthal, OAW, and Oeffag Variants (Air Vanguard 13). Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2014. ISBN 978-1-78200-371-7
- Morgała, Andrzej. Samoloty wojskowe w Polsce 1918-1924 [Military Aircraft in Poland 1918-1924] (in Polish). Warsaw: Lampart, 1997. ISBN 83-86776-34-X.
- VanWyngarden, Greg. Albatros Aces of World War I Part 2 (Aircraft of the Aces No. 77). Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2007. ISBN 1-84603-179-6.
Further reading
- Nicolle, David (March–April 1999). "Young Turks: Ottoman Turkish Fighters 1915–1918". Air Enthusiast. No. 74. pp. 40–45. ISSN 0143-5450.