Fokker Dr I Aces of World War 1 (Osprey Aircraft of the Aces No 40)

Undoubtedly the most famous fighter type to see service on either side during World War 1, the Fokker Dr I was a revelation when it entered service on the western front in 1917. Manfred von Richthofen’s JG 1 ‘circus’ was the first Jasta to completely re-equip with the new fighter, and in the skilled hands of its numerous aces the Dr I proved a formidable opponent. The Dr I remained in service on the Western Front until replaced by the superior Fokker D VII in May 1918. Just weeks prior to that, however, Germany’s leading ace, the great ‘Red Baron’, had been killed at the controls of a Dr I. Undoubtedly the most famous fighter type to see service on either side during World War 1, the Fokker Dr I was inspired by Sopwith's Triplane of 1916-17. Boasting three superimposed wings, the German scout enjoyed much better manoeuvrability than any other fighter then in combat over the front. Entering service on the Western Front in the autumn of 1917, the Dreidecker (hence 'Dr') enjoyed immediate success with Germany's elite fighter unit, Manfred von Richthofen's JG I. Although the triplane was not particularly fast in comparison with other fighting scouts of the time, and it remained prone to wing failures throughout its brief career, the Dr I nevertheless proved a formidable opponent in the hands of skilled aces such as Manfred von Richthofen, Josef Jacobs and Ernst Udet. Although finally replaced from the spring of 1918 onwards by Fokker's far superior D VII, the triplane came to symbolise the German fighter force in the Great War. The revolutionary triplane design adopted by Fokker was inspired by Sopwith's Triplane. Here, the Dr I is examined in detail, including 40 profiles along with scrap views and planforms of a remarkable craft which saw the "Red Baron" killed at the controls. The brilliant Dutch aircraft designer Anthony Fokker had first gained international fame with the success of his series of Eindecker (monoplane) fighters, armed with the new synchronised machine gun firing through the airscrew arc, in 1915. Undoubtedly the most famous fighter type to see service on either side during World War I, the Fokker Dr I was a revelation when it entered service on the western front in 1917