Hansa-Brandenburg W.20

Hansa-Brandenburg W.20 The Hansa-Brandenburg W.20 was a German submarine-launched reconnaissance flying boat of the World War I era, designed and built by Hansa-Brandenburg. Due to the need to be stored and launched from a submarine aircraft carrier, the W.20 was a small single-seat biplane flying boat that was designed to be assembled and dismantled quickly. It had a slender hull on which was mounted a biplane wing and a conventional braced tailplane. It was powered by a seven-cylinder, 80 PS Oberursel U.0 rotary engine — basically a German-made near-clone of…

GOTHA G.I – Germany

GOTHA G.I – Germany The Gotha G.I was a heavy bomber used by the Luftstreitkräfte (Imperial German Air Service) during World War I. It was the first of the Gotha Bomber series, eventually ending with the larger Gotha G.V The design had a snub-nosed fuselage attached to the upper wing, and twin engine nacelles mounted on the lower one. The purpose of this arrangement was to allow the engines to be kept close together thereby minimizing asymmetrical thrust in the event of an engine failure. The aircraft’s unorthodox layout provided…

Hansa-Brandenburg W.29

SPAD V11 The Hansa-Brandenburg W.29 was a German monoplane fighter floatplane which served in the closing months of World War I, from bases on the North Sea coast. Its design was based on the W.12 The W.29 was a two-seater low wing monoplane. The monoplane configuration created less drag, and thus gave greater speed. The first batch, Nos. 2201 2206, were ordered in December and reached the operational units in the following spring and summer; they had 195 h.p. Benz engines with frontal radiators. Six exhaust stubs discharged above and…

HANNOVER CL.III

Hannover CL.III The Hannover CL.III was a German military aircraft of World War I. It was a two-seat multi-role aircraft, primarily used as a ground attack machine. Like the other Hannover “light-C-class”, or “CL” designated aircraft designed by Hermann Dorner, it included an unusual biplane tail, allowing for a greater firing arc for the tail gunner. Until the introduction of the aircraft, such tails had only been used on larger aircraft. Compared to the preceding CL.II, the CL.III had redesigned ailerons with aerodynamic balances that overhung the wingtips, a modification…

HALBERSTADT D.II

Halberstadt D.II The Halberstadt D.II was a biplane fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by German aircraft company Halberstädter Flugzeugwerke. It was adopted by the Imperial German Army Air Service and served through the period of Allied air superiority in early 1916. The D.II was the production version of the experimental D.I. Key differences between the D.I and D.II included a substantial effort to lighten the aircraft in order to improve its performance; the latter also featured staggered wings and the adoption of a more powerful 120 hp Mercedes D.II engine.…

Fokker E.V / D.V111

SPAD V11 The Fokker E.V was a German parasol-monoplane fighter aircraft designed by Reinhold Platz and built by Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. The E.V was the last Fokker design to become operational with the Luftstreitkräfte, entering service in the last months of World War I. After several fatal accidents due to wing failures, the aircraft was modified and redesignated Fokker D.VIII. Dubbed the Flying Razor by Allied pilots, the D.VIII had the distinction of scoring the last aerial victory of the war. The first production E.V aircraft were shipped to Jasta 6 in…

LVG C.VI

LVG C.VI The LVG C.VI was a German two-seat reconnaissance and artillery spotting aircraft used during World War I. The aircraft was designed by Willy Sabersky-Müssigbrodt and developed by Luft-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft (LVG) in 1917. The C.VI was a further development of the C.V, which Sabersky-Müssigbrodt had made for his former employer DFW. It was lighter, smaller and aerodynamically refined, although its fuselage seemed more bulky. It was a biplane of mixed, mostly wooden construction. It featured a semi-monocoque fuselage, plywood covered. Rectangular wings of wooden and metal construction, canvas covered. Upper…

PFALZ A. 1 (A.11)

SPAD V11 The early phases of World War 1 involved several notable monoplane-winged aircraft prior to the switch to more maneuverable and stable biplane-arranged designs. One of the more quantitative types on hand became the French-originated Morane-Saulnier “Type L”, a monoplane produced in about 600 examples from 1914 onward. It was adopted by many world powers prior to the war including Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Russia, Sweden and the United Kingdom. A first-flight of the design was had back in August 1913. The Pfalz A1 aircraft was based on the…

ALBATROS B.I

ALBATROS B.I The Albatros B.I, was a German military reconnaissance aircraft designed in 1913 and which saw service during World War I. The Albatros B.I was a large three-bay biplane designed with some input by Ernst Heinkel, who at the time was working for Albatros. It was taken into German service after the outbreak of war. It used the composite construction that would be the hallmark of Albatros aircraft. The fuselage had a wooden frame and was covered with plywood. The wings had wooden spars and ribs and were fabric…

ZEPPELIN-STAAKEN R.VI

Zeppelin-Staaken R.VI The Zeppelin-Staaken R.VI was a four-engined German biplane strategic bomber of World War I, and the only Riesenflugzeug (“giant aircraft”) design built in any quantity. In September 1914, at the start of World War I, Ferdinand von Zeppelin visualised the concept of a Riesenflugzeug (R) bomber. Almost all of these Zeppelin-Staaken Riesenflugzeug designs used some variation of either pusher configuration and/or push-pull configuration in their engine layout, orientation and placement of their powerplants. The R.VI was the most numerous of the R-bombers built by Germany, and also among…