Albatros B.I

B.I
Albatros B.I
General information
TypeReconnaissance aircraft
ManufacturerAlbatros Flugzeugwerke
Primary userLuftstreitkräfte

The Albatros B.I, (post-war company designation L.1) was a German military reconnaissance aircraft designed in 1913 and which saw service during World War I.[1]

Design and development

[edit]

The B.I was a two-seat biplane of conventional configuration that seated the observer and the pilot in separate cockpits in tandem. The wings were originally of three-bay design, but were later changed to a two-bay, unstaggered configuration; featuring a typical aileron control cable system for German aircraft of the time, that allowed for a horizontal control horn that fitted into a structural pocket in the wing structure at neutral. A floatplane version was developed as the Albatros W.I.

Variants

[edit]
German Albatros B.I interned by the Dutch in April 1915.
B.I
German production aircraft for the Luftstreitkräfte
Phönix 20.01
First prototype for Austrian production.[2]
Phönix 20.02
second prototype for Austrian production.
B.I(Ph) series 21
Production by Phönix Flugzeug-Werke AG at Vienna for the Austro-Hungarian Imperial and Royal Aviation Troops.
B.I(Ph) series 24
Production by Phönix Flugzeug-Werke AG at Vienna for the Austro-Hungarian Imperial and Royal Aviation Troops.
B.I(Ph) series 25
Production by Phönix Flugzeug-Werke AG at Vienna, with the KNV (Knoller Verspannung) for the Austro-Hungarian Imperial and Royal Aviation Troops; 48 ordered, reduced to 16 due to delays and persistent problems.

Operational history

[edit]

The B.Is were withdrawn from front line service in 1915 but some examples served as trainers for the remainder of the war.

Operators

[edit]
The apparent crash landing of an Albatros B.I of the Dutch Luchtvaartafdeeling (air force).
 Austria-Hungary
 Bulgaria
 German Empire
 Netherlands
 Poland
 Romania
 Turkey

Surviving aircraft

[edit]

The Phönix 20.01, prototype for Austrian production of the Albatros B.I(Ph), is preserved at the Heeresgeschichtliches Museum in Vienna.

Specifications (B.I)

[edit]
Phönix 20.01:Prototype for Austrian production of the Albatros B.I(Ph)

Data from German aircraft of the First World War [4]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 2
  • Length: 8.57 m (28 ft 1 in)
  • Wingspan: 14.48 m (47 ft 6 in)
  • Height: 3.15 m (10 ft 4 in)
  • Empty weight: 747 kg (1,647 lb)
  • Gross weight: 1,080 kg (2,381 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Mercedes D.I 6-cylinder water-cooled in-line piston engine, 75 kW (100 hp)
  • Propellers: 2-bladed fixed-pitch wooden propeller

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 105 km/h (65 mph, 57 kn)
  • Range: 650 km (400 mi, 350 nmi)
  • Endurance: ca 4 hours
  • Time to altitude: 800 m (2,600 ft) in 10 minutes

See also

[edit]

Related development

Related lists

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. p. 51.
  2. ^ Treadwell, Terry C. (2010). German & Austro-Hungarian aircraft manufacturers 1908–1918. Stroud: Amberley Publishing. pp. 236–244. ISBN 978-1-4456-0102-1.
  3. ^ Valeriu Avram (2013). "Din Istoria Aripilor Românești 1910-1916" (PDF). Buletinul Arhivelor Militare Române (in Romanian). No. 61/2013. pp. 2–17. ISSN 1454-0924.
  4. ^ Gray, Peter; Owen Thetford (1970). German aircraft of the First World War (2nd ed.). London: Putnam. p. 252. ISBN 0-370-00103-6.

Bibliography

[edit]
  • Herris, Jack (2016). Albatros Aircraft of WWI: Volume 1: Early Two-Seaters: A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes. Great War Aviation Centennial Series. Vol. 24. n.p.: Aeronaut Books. ISBN 978-1-935881-47-6.
  • Klaauw, Bart van der (March–April 1999). "Unexpected Windfalls: Accidentally or Deliberately, More than 100 Aircraft 'arrived' in Dutch Territory During the Great War". Air Enthusiast (80): 54–59. ISSN 0143-5450.