Albatros D . III The Albatros D . III was a biplane fighter aircraft used by the Imperial German Army Air Service ( " Luftstreitkräfte " ) and the Austro - Hungarian Air Service ( " Luftfahrtruppen " ) during World War I . The D . III was flown by many top German aces , including Manfred von Richthofen , Ernst Udet , Erich Löwenhardt , Kurt Wolff , and Karl Emil Schäfer . It was the preeminent fighter during the period of German aerial dominance known as " Bloody April " 1917 . Design and development . Work on the prototype D . III started in late July or early August 1916 . The date of the maiden flight is unknown , but is believed to have occurred in late August or early September . Following on the successful Albatros D . I and D . II series , the D . III utilized the same semi - monocoque , plywood - skinned fuselage . At the request of the " Idflieg " ( Inspectorate of Flying Troops ) , however , the D . III adopted a sesquiplane wing arrangement broadly similar to the French Nieuport 11 . The upper wing was extended in span , while the lower wing was redesigned with reduced chord and a single main spar . " V " shaped interplane struts replaced the previous parallel struts . For this reason , British aircrews commonly referred to the D . III as the " V - strutter . " After a " Typenprüfung " ( official type test ) on 26 September 1916 , Albatros received an order for 400 D . III aircraft , the largest German production contract to date . " Idflieg " placed additional orders for 50 aircraft in February and March 1917 . Operational history . The D . III entered squadron service in December 1916 , and was immediately acclaimed by German aircrews for its maneuverability and rate of climb . Two faults with the new aircraft were soon identified . Like the D . II , early D . IIIs featured a Teves und Braun airfoil shaped radiator in the center of the upper wing , where it tended to scald the pilot if punctured . From the 290th D . III onward , the radiator was offset to the right on production machines while others were soon moved to the right as a field modification . At least one Albatros DIII in Palestine was captured by the British with twin radiators , on either side of the center section , to combat the effects of flying in Middle Eastern temperatures . More seriously , the new aircraft immediately began experiencing failures of the lower wing ribs and leading edge , a defect shared with the Nieuport 17 . On 23 January 1917 , a " Jasta " 6 pilot suffered a failure of the lower right wing spar . On the following day , Manfred von Richthofen suffered a crack in the lower wing of his new D . III . On 27 January , the " Kogenluft " ( " Kommandierenden General der Luftstreitkräfte " ) issued an order grounding all D . IIIs pending resolution of the wing failure problem . On 19 February , after Albatros introduced a reinforced lower wing , the " Kogenluft " rescinded the grounding order . New production D . IIIs were completed with the strengthened wing while operational D . IIIs were withdrawn to " Armee - Flugparks " for modifications , forcing " Jastas " to use the Albatros D . II and Halberstadt D . II during the interim . At the time , the continued wing failures were attributed to poor workmanship and materials at the Johannisthal factory . In fact , the cause of the wing failures lay in the sesquiplane arrangement taken from the Nieuport . While the lower wing had sufficient strength in static tests , it was subsequently determined that the main spar was located too far aft , causing the wing to twist under aerodynamic loads . Pilots were therefore advised not to perform steep or prolonged dives in the D . III . This design flaw persisted despite attempts to rectify the problem in the D . III and succeeding D . V . Apart from its structural deficiencies , the D . III was considered pleasant and easy to fly , if somewhat heavy on the controls . The sesquiplane arrangement offered improved climb , maneuverability , and downward visibility compared to the preceding D . II . Like most contemporary aircraft , the D . III was prone to spinning , but recovery was straightforward . Albatros built approximately 500 D . III aircraft at its Johannisthal factory . In the spring of 1917 , D . III production shifted to Albatros ' subsidiary , Ostdeutsche Albatros Werke ( OAW ) , to permit Albatros to concentrate on development and production of the D . V . Between April and August 1917 , " Idflieg " issued five separate orders for a total of 840 D . IIIs . The OAW variant underwent its " Typenprüfung " in June 1917 . Production commenced at the Schneidemühl factory in June and continued through December 1917 . OAW aircraft were distinguishable by their larger , rounded rudders . Peak service was in November 1917 , with 446 aircraft on the Western Front . The D . III did not disappear with the end of production , however . It remained in frontline service well into 1918 . As of 31 August 1918 , 54 D . III aircraft remained on the Western Front . Austro - Hungarian variants . In the autumn of 1916 , Oesterreichische Flugzeugfabrik AG ( Oeffag ) obtained a licence to build the D . III at Wiener - Neustadt . Deliveries commenced in May 1917 . The Oeffag aircraft were built in three main versions ( series 53 . 2 , 153 , 253 ) using the 138 , 149 , or 168 kW ( 185 , 200 , or 225 hp ) Austro - Daimler engines respectively . The Austro - Daimlers provided improved performance over the Mercedes D . IIIa engine . For cold weather operations , Oeffag aircraft featured a winter cowling which fully enclosed the cylinder heads . Austrian pilots often removed the propeller spinner from early production aircraft , since it was prone to falling off in flight . Beginning with aircraft 112 of the series 153 production run , Oeffag introduced a new rounded nose that eliminated the spinner . Remarkably , German wind - tunnel tests showed that the simple rounded nose improved propeller efficiency and raised the top speed by 14 km / h ( 9 mph ) . All Oeffag variants were armed with two 8 mm ( . 315 in ) Schwarzlose machine gun s . In most aircraft , the guns were buried in the fuselage , where they were inaccessible to the pilot . In service , the Schwarzlose proved to be somewhat less reliable than the 7 . 92 mm ( . 312 in ) LMG 08 / 15 , mainly due to problems with the synchronization gear . The Schwarzlose also had a poor rate of fire until the 1916 model was provided with a modification developed by Ludwig Kral . At the request of pilots , the guns were relocated to the upper fuselage decking late in the series 253 production run . This created a new problem ; the Schwarzlose operated via blowback and the weapon contained a cartridge oiler to prevent cases from sticking in the chamber while the extractor ripped their rims off . With guns mounted directly in front of the pilot , oil released during firing interfered with aim . Oeffag engineers noted the wing failures of the D . III and modified the lower wing to use thicker ribs and spar flanges . These changes , as well as other detail improvements , largely resolved the structural problems that had plagued German versions of the D . III . In service , the Oeffag aircraft proved to be popular , robust , and effective . Oeffag built approximately 526 D . III aircraft between May 1917 and the Armistice . Postwar . After the Armistice , Poland acquired 38 series 253 aircraft , as well as several OAW machines , and operated them in the Polish - Soviet War of 1919 - 20 . They were primarily employed in ground attack duties . The Poles thought so highly of the D . III that they sent a letter of commendation to the Oeffag factory . The newly formed Czechoslovakian air force also obtained and operated several Oeffag machines after the war . Modern reproductions . An Austrian aviation enthusiast , Koloman Mayrhofer , has constructed a pair of Albatros D . III ( Oeffag ) series 253 reproductions . Both are equipped with vintage Austro - Daimler engines . One aircraft will be flown and operated by a non - profit organization . The second aircraft is slated for static display at the " Flugmuseum AVIATICUM " , near Wiener - Neustadt , Austria .