The Fokker D.I (company designation M.18) was a development of the D.II fighter. The D.I was also flown in Austro-Hungarian service as a fighter trainer aircraft under the designation B.III. Confusing the matter further, both the D.II and D.I arrived at the Front in German service at similar times, in July–August 1916. The main designer was Martin Kreutzer.

Design and development

Similar to the D.II, the D.I was an unstaggered single-bay, or ''Einstielig'' equal-span biplane. The upper fuselage was initially parallel with the upper wing and was fitted with the

Mercedes D.I The Mercedes D.I (also known as the Type E6F) was a six-cylinder, water-cooled, SOHC valvetrain inline engine developed in Germany for use in aircraft in 1913. Developing 75 kW (100 hp), it powered many German military aircraft during t ...

six-cylinder water-cooled engine. Control was achieved using

wing-warping Wing warping was an early system for lateral (roll) control of a fixed-wing aircraft. The technique, used and patented by the Wright brothers, consisted of a system of pulleys and cables to twist the trailing edges of the wings in opposite direc ...

. The wings were also tested in twin-bay ''(Zweistielig)'' form. To improve visibility, the center section was cut back and the wings were slightly staggered and the top wing raised slightly. These improvements were retained, and the airplane was ordered into production with an

Mercedes D.II The Mercedes D.II was a six-cylinder, SOHC valvetrain liquid-cooled inline aircraft engine built by Daimler during the early stages of World War I. Producing about 110 to 120 hp, it was at the low-end of the power range of contemporary eng ...

inline engine and a single synchronized 7.92 mm (.312 in) lMG 08 machine gun. The Austro-Hungarian B.IIIs, serialled 04.11 to 04.27, retained the Mercedes D.I engine, and some were armed with a free-firing Schwarzlose MG M.07/12 machine gun mounted above the centre-section.

Operational history

Deliveries began in July 1916 and 90 D.I fighters were delivered to the German ''Fliegertruppen'' and 17 B.III fighter trainers to the Austro-Hungarian '' ''Luftfahrttruppen'''', eight of which were license-built by the Magyar Általános Gépgyár (MAG) in Hungary. One Austro-Hungarian B III was experimentally fitted with a Mercedes D.III engine. Another had ailerons instead of wing warping, and still another had long span, swept back wings. Compared with aircraft in service at that time, such as the

Albatros D.II The Albatros D.II was a German fighter aircraft used during World War I. After a successful combat career in the early '' Jagdstaffeln'', it was gradually superseded by the Albatros D.III. Design and development Albatros designers Robert Thelen ...

and the Nieuport 11, this Fokker's design and performance were decidedly unimpressive, and further production did not take place. The D.I was the basis for the Fokker D.IV.

Operators

Austro-Hungarian Imperial and Royal Aviation Troops The Austro-Hungarian Aviation Troops or Imperial and Royal Aviation Troops (german: Kaiserliche und Königliche Luftfahrtruppen or , hu, Császári és Királyi Légjárócsapatok) were the air force of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the e ...

;: ''

Luftstreitkräfte The ''Deutsche Luftstreitkräfte'' (, German Air Force)—known before October 1916 as (Flyer Troops)—was the air arm of the Imperial German Army. In English-language sources it is usually referred to as the Imperial German Air Service, alth ...

'' ; *

Ottoman Air Force The Aviation Squadrons of the Ottoman Empire were military aviation units of the Ottoman Army and Navy.Edward J. Erickson, ''Ordered To Die: A History of the Ottoman Army in the First World War'', "Appendix D The Ottoman Aviation Inspectorate an ...

Design and development

Operational history

Operators

Specifications (D.I)

See also

References

Further reading