Fokker E.III
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| Fokker E.III | |
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 Fokker E.III taking off |
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| Type | Fighter |
| Manufacturer | Fokker |
| Designed by | Anthony Fokker |
| Maiden flight | 1915 |
| Introduced | December 1915 |
| Primary user | Imperial German Army Air Service |
| Produced | 1915-1916 |
| Number built | 249 |
| Variants | Fokker E.I - Fokker E.II |
The Fokker E.III was the main variant of the Dutch Fokker Eendekker (monoplane) fighter aircraft of the First World War. It entered service on the Western Front in December 1915 and was also supplied to the Austria-Hungary andTurkey.
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[edit] Design and development
The E.III was basically an E.II fitted with larger, newly designed wings and it was a far greater success than the E.II. It retained the same 100 hp Oberursel U.I engine but had a larger 21.5 gal main fuel tank which increased the Eindecker's endurance to about 2½ hours; an hour more than the E.II. Most E.IIIs were armed with a single Spandau LMG 08 machine gun with 500 rounds of ammunition however after the failure of the twin-gun Fokker E.IV as a viable successor, some E.IIIs were fitted with twin guns.
Fokker production figures state that 249 E.IIIs were manufactured however a number of the 49 E.IIs were upgraded to E.III standard when they were returned to Fokker's Schwerin factory for repairs.
[edit] Operational history
It was the first type to arrive in sufficient numbers to form small specialist fighter units, Kampfeinsitzer Kommandos (KEK) in early 1916 — previously Eindeckers were allocated singly to the front-line Feldflieger Abteilungen that carried out reconnaissance duties. On 10 August, 1916, the first German Jagdstaffeln (single-seat fighter squadrons) were formed, initially equipped with various early fighter types, including a few E.IIIs, which were by then outmoded and being replaced by more modern fighters. Standardisation in the Jagdstaffeln (and any real success) had to wait for the availability in numbers of the Albatros D.I and Albatros D.II in early 1917. Turkish E.IIIs were based at Beersheba in Palestine while others operated in Mesopotamia during the Siege of Kut-al-Amara.
[edit] Operators
- Turkish Air Force was supplied with 22 E.III aircraft.
[edit] Specifications (E.III)
This aircraft article is missing some (or all) of its specifications. If you have a source, you can help Wikipedia by adding them.Data from [1]
General characteristics
- Crew: one, pilot
- Length: 7.30 m (23 ft 11 in)
- Wingspan: 10.04 m (32 ft 11 in)
- Height: 2.49 m (8 ft 2 in)
- Loaded weight: 349 kg (770 lb)
- Powerplant: 1× Oberursel U.I 9-cylinder air-cooled rotary engine, 100 hp (75 kW)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 150 km/h (93 mph)
- Range: 220 mi (360 km)
- Service ceiling 3,600 m (11,810 ft)
- Endurance : 2 hr 45 min
Armament
- 1 × 7.92 mm (0.31 in) MG 08 machine gun
[edit] References
- ^ Winchester, 12
- Winchester, Jim. Fighter - The World's Finest Combat Aircraft - 1913 to the Present Day. barnes & Noble Publishing, Inc. and Parragon Publishing. ISBN 0-7607-7957-0.
[edit] See also
Related development Fokker E.II - Fokker E.IV
Comparable aircraft Morane-Saulnier Type N
Related lists
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