Image Unavailable, Please Login Maybe not a cool photo but some cool airplanes... World's fastest motorsports!
Albatros D.III (OAW) 2523/17 in Russia from Fritz Leitzow album again. Note the anemometer on the port strut. OAW stands for Ostdeutsch Albatros Werk. Russian/Eastern Front usually got second rate aircraft, so this state of the art aircraft in 1917 must have been really welcome. When Russia collapsed in 1917/18, many of the older type aircraft were abandoned in place. The Germans quickly moved forces west to try and win the war before America could really make an impact. Image Unavailable, Please Login
A great looking airplane as well as advanced. Molded plywood fuselage skin , a reliable wing skin radiator controlled from the cockpit and a great engine.
Can you believe people actually flew in these largely untested new fangled things while being shot at and not carrying a parachute? It seems impossible to me -- but they did it.
Bob- The Germans actually used parachutes late in the war that saved several aces, including Ernst Udet (62 victories).
My Dad loved the F-86 and said it was a real pleasure to fly compared to the underpowered early F-84 straight wings he was operational in.
