Osprey Aircraft of the Aces 32 : Albatros Aces of World War I

For practically the whole of the war, the German force was inferior in aircraft numbers in comparison with the Allies, which resulted in them remaining steadfastly defensive right through to the end of the conflict. Although having less aircraft overall, the Germans were not always outnumbered in the air - far from it, for their Jagdgeschwader and Jagdgruppe systems, which were adopted later in the war, could easily overwhelm the opposition in individual actions. The Albatros family of fighters were amongst the most effective aircraft employed by the Idlfieg (Imperial German Air Service) for much of World War 1, with the D.III and D.Va being flown by most of the 363 pilots who qualified as aces at some point in their often brief careers. The Albatros was the scourge of the RFC on the Western Front in 1916-17, with pilots of the calibre of von Richthofen, Boelke and Schleich cutting swathes through their opponents. Well over 4000 Albatros scouts were built between 1916 and 1918, and they were also extensively used by the Austro-Hungarians against Russian, Italian and British aircraft until war's end. Text by Norman Franks with illustrations by Harry Dempsey.

Contents

• Western Front
• Albatros D V and D Va
• The Fighter Groups
• Appendices