Albatros C.IX

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Albatros C.IX
Albatros C.IX.jpg
Role Reconnaissance aircraft
National originGermany
ManufacturerAlbatros
First flight1917
Number built3

The Albatros C.IX was a two-seated German military reconnaissance biplane from 1917. It was built by Albatros Flugzeugwerke. It did not have a central strut between the upper wing and the fuselage, which was uncommon during the time. Also unusual was that the top wing was swept, while the lower wing was straight. [1] Only three of these aircraft were built.

Albatros-Flugzeugwerke GmbH was a German aircraft manufacturer best known for supplying the German airforces during World War I.

Contents

Manfred von Richthofen used one for personal transport, [2] including going to meet Kaiser Wilhelm II in May 1917. [3]

Manfred von Richthofen German World War I flying ace, popularly known as the Red Baron

Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen, also known as the "Red Baron", was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. He is considered the ace-of-aces of the war, being officially credited with 80 air combat victories.

Specifications

General characteristics

Mercedes D.III I-6 liquid-cooled aircraft engine of Germany

The Mercedes D.III, or F1466 as it was known internally, was a six-cylinder, SOHC valvetrain liquid-cooled inline aircraft engine built by Daimler and used on a wide variety of German aircraft during World War I. The initial versions were introduced in 1914 at 160 hp, but a series of changes improved this to 170 hp in 1917, and 180 by mid-1918. These later models were used on almost all late-war German fighters, and its only real competition, the BMW III, was available only in very limited numbers. Compared to the Allied engines it faced, the D.III was generally outdated.

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 155 km/h (96 mph; 84 kn)
  • Range: 385 km (239 mi; 208 nmi)

Armament

  • Guns: 2×7.9mm machine guns

Notes

  1. Gray, Peter Lawrence; Owen Gordon Thetford (1962). German aircraft of the First World War. Putnam. p. 256.
  2. Nowarra, Heinz J.; Kimbrough S. Brown; Bruce Robertson (1964). Von Richthofen and the Flying Circus. Aero Publishers. p. 62.
  3. Kilduff, Peter (2007). Red Baron: the life and death of an ace. David & Charles. p. 98. ISBN   978-0-7153-2809-5.

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References

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