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With its mid-wing monoplane design and distinct comma tail, Fokker's E-series fighter is one of the most recognizable aircraft of World War I. The Fokker E.III Eindecker ("single wing") deserves a significant place in aviation history, not necessarily because of its aerial prowess, but because it was the first combat aircraft in the world to be equipped with a forward-firing, fixed machine gun synchronized to fire between the propeller blades. No more than 150 E.III's were built, but the design changed aerial warfare and became a platform for the development of long-lasting fighter tactics and unit organization.
Not particularly fast or strong, the Eindecker's success came mainly against unsuspecting Allied observation types in late 1915 and early 1916. Early German aces such as Max Immelmann and Oswald Boelcke achieved great notoriety flying the type. Immelmann developed a diving attack followed by a climb and rapid direction reversal to quickly attack again, a maneuver which still bears his name. Boelcke established the fighter squadron concept and basic air-to-air combat tactics which became emulated by air forces worldwide. As for the Eindecker, its interrupter gear could be unreliable, with sometimes catastrophic results for its pilot. By mid-1916, the Eindecker was obsolete.
Eindecker armament consisted of a single 7.92mm Maschinengewehr (MG) 08/15 machine gun, with the previously noted innovative interrupter gear to fire through the propeller arc. This gun were sometimes referred to as "Spandau," in reference to the arsenal where much of the German small arms development and production occurred.
The Museum’s aircraft was commissioned by Doug Champlin and built during 1981 by Jim and Zona Appleby, then of Riverside, California. Typical of an Appleby reproduction, it is extremely accurate in virtually every detail. It is equipped with an authentic World War I-vintage Oberursel rotary engine and an authentic Spandau machine gun offset to the starboard side of the engine cowling.
With its mid-wing monoplane design and distinct comma tail, Fokker's E-series fighter is one of the most recognizable aircraft of World War I. The Fokker E.III Eindecker ("single wing") deserves a significant place in aviation history, not necessarily because of its aerial prowess, but because it was the first combat aircraft in the world to be equipped with a forward-firing, fixed machine gun synchronized to fire between the propeller blades. No more than 150 E.III's were built, but the design changed aerial warfare and became a platform for the development of long-lasting fighter tactics and unit organization.
Not particularly fast or strong, the Eindecker's success came mainly against unsuspecting Allied observation types in late 1915 and early 1916. Early German aces such as Max Immelmann and Oswald Boelcke achieved great notoriety flying the type. Immelmann developed a diving attack followed by a climb and rapid direction reversal to quickly attack again, a maneuver which still bears his name. Boelcke established the fighter squadron concept and basic air-to-air combat tactics which became emulated by air forces worldwide. As for the Eindecker, its interrupter gear could be unreliable, with sometimes catastrophic results for its pilot. By mid-1916, the Eindecker was obsolete.
Eindecker armament consisted of a single 7.92mm Maschinengewehr (MG) 08/15 machine gun, with the previously noted innovative interrupter gear to fire through the propeller arc. This gun were sometimes referred to as "Spandau," in reference to the arsenal where much of the German small arms development and production occurred.
The Museum’s aircraft was commissioned by Doug Champlin and built during 1981 by Jim and Zona Appleby, then of Riverside, California. Typical of an Appleby reproduction, it is extremely accurate in virtually every detail. It is equipped with an authentic World War I-vintage Oberursel rotary engine and an authentic Spandau machine gun offset to the starboard side of the engine cowling.
