Albatros D.III

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Albatros D.III

Type	Fighter
Manufacturer	Albatros-Flugzeugwerke
Designed by	Robert Thelen
Maiden flight	August 1916
Primary users	Luftstreitkräfte Luftfahrtruppen
Produced	1916 to 1917
Number built	approximately 1866

The Albatros D.III was a highly successful single seat, biplane fighter aircraft used by the Imperial German Army Air Service (Luftstreitkräfte) and the Austro-Hungarian Air Service (Luftfahrtruppen) during the First World War. The D.III was used by many top German aces, including Manfred von Richthofen, Ernst Udet, Erich Löwenhardt, Kurt Wolff, and Karl Emil Schaeffer. It was the preemininent fighter during the period of German aerial dominance known as "Bloody April" 1917.

1 Design and production
2 Austro-Hungarian variants
3 Postwar
4 Specifications (D.III)
5 Operators
6 References
7 Related content

Ernst Udet in front of his Albatros D.III (serial 1941/16)

Albatros D.III fighters of Jasta 11 at Douai, France

Work on the prototype D.III started in late July or early August 1916. Although the date of the maiden flight is unknown, it is thought to have occurred in late August or early September. Following on the successful Albatros D.I and D.II series, the D.III utilized the same semi-monocoque, plywood-skinned fuselage. At the request of the Idflieg (Inspektion der Fliegertruppen), however, the D.III adopted the sesquiplane arrangement of the French Nieuport 11. The upper wing was extended while the lower wing was given reduced chord and a single main spar. The interplane struts were of a "V" configuration, instead of the previous parallel struts. For this reason, British aircrews commonly referred to the D.III as the "V-strutter."

In October 1916, Albatros received an order for 400 D.III aircraft. The D.III entered squadron service in December 1916 and quickly replaced the older D.II. Two faults were identified. Early D.IIIs featured a Teeves and Braun radiator in the middle of the upper wing, where it was prone to scalding the pilot if punctured. The radiator was soon offset to the right.

More seriously, the new aircraft immediately began experiencing lower wing failures. In January 1917, Manfred von Richthofen suffered a crack in the lower wing of his new D.III. While he landed safely, the D.III was withdrawn from service for modifications. During the interim, Richthofen flew the Halberstadt D.II instead.

The cause of the wing failures lay in the sesquiplane arrangement taken from the Nieuport. While the lower wing had more than adequate 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. The D.III therefore could not perform steep or prolonged dives, which was a serious liability in combat. This design flaw persisted despite attempts to rectify the problem in the D.III and succeeding D.V.

Apart from the lower wing failures, the D.III was considered pleasant and easy to fly, if somewhat heavy on the controls. The sesquiplane arrangement offered improved climb, maneuverablity, 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 before production shifted to the D.V in the summer of 1917. Albatros's subsidiary, Ostdeutsche Albatros Werke (OAW), produced approximately 840 examples at its Schneidemühl factory between June and December 1917. OAW aircraft were recognizable by their larger, rounded rudders.

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 August 31, 1918, 54 D.III aircraft remained on the Western Front.

Albatros D.III (Oeffag) series 153.

Albatros D.III (Oeffag) series 253.

In the fall of 1916, Oesterreichische Flugzeugfabrik AG (Oeffag) obtained a licence to build the D.III at Wiener-Neustadt. Deliveries commenced in May 1917. The Oeffag aircraft were built in three main versions (series 53, 153, 253) using the 185, 200, or 225 hp Austro-Daimler engines respectively. The Austro-Daimlers provided improved performance over the Mercedes D.IIIa engine.

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 the German fighters. In service, the Oeffag aircraft proved to be very popular, robust, and effective.

Austrian pilots often removed the propeller spinner from their planes, since it was prone to falling off. Midway through the series 153 production run, Oeffag introduced a new rounded nose that eliminated the propeller spinner. Remarkably, German wind-tunnel tests showed that the simple rounded nose improved propeller efficiency and raised the top speed by 9 mph.

All Oeffag variants were armed with two 8 mm Schwarzlose machine guns. In most planes, the guns were buried in the fuselage. Late in the series 253 production run, the guns were relocated on top of the fuselage decking. In service, the Schwarzlose proved to be somewhat less reliable than the LMG 08/15, mainly due to problems with the synchronization gear. The Schwarzlose also had a poor rate of fire.

Oeffag built approximately 526 D.III aircraft between May 1917 and the Armistice.

After the Armistice, Poland acquired 38 series 253 aircraft, as well as several OAW machines, and operated them in the Polish-Soviet War of 1919-20. They were primarily employed in ground attack duties. The Poles thought so highly of the D.III that they sent a letter of commendation to the Oeffag factory. The newly formed Czechoslovakian air force also obtained and operated several Oeffag machines after the war.