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| Pflalz D.XII (NASM) |
The Pfalz Aircraft Company (Pfalz Flugzeugwerke) was one of Germany’s first aircraft manufacturers, but its designs were overshadowed throughout World War I by the more famous designs of manufacturers such as Fokker and Albatros.The Pfalz D.XII first appeared on the western front in the First World War shortly after the June 1918 fighter trials held at Adlershof, Germany, where a number of aircraft were accepted for production by Idflieg (Inspektion der Fliegertruppen). It was built as a replacement for the outdated Albatros and Pfalz D.III scouts and the outclassed Fokker Dr.I triplane. The Pfalz D.XII was a single-seat, two-bay biplane fighter of all-wood construction with a semi-monocoque plywood fuselage. It carried two forward-firing Maxim machine guns synchronized to fire through the propeller arc. The airplane was powered by a six-cylinder, 180-hp, water-cooled, in-line Mercedes D.IIIa engine. It had a top speed of 170 km/h (106 mph) and a ceiling of 5,640 m (18,500 ft).
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| Depiction of the D.XII Cockpit (Rise of Flight) |
The Pfalz D.XII climbed satisfactorily and its performance in level flight was comparable to that of the Fokker D.VII. Because of its sturdy construction, it could dive faster and steeper than the D.VII, but it could not turn as well and was sluggish in combat. Furthermore, it tended to "float" when landing, and many accidents occurred because of the weakness of the landing gear.
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| D.XII at the French Air and Space Museum |
Despite these problems, the Pfalz D.XII performed well enough to relieve the German Air Service of its shortage of competitive fighters late in the war. By the time of the Armistice, nearly 800 aircraft had been delivered to frontline service. After the war a substantial number were turned over to the Allies, perhaps as many as 175. Four of those aircraft survive. One is on display at the Musée de l'Air in Paris, another is in the Australian War Memorial in Canberra. The two other examples are former Hollywood movie performers. One of these resides at the Seattle Museum of Flight, and another [shown at the top of the page] at the National Air and Space Museum.
Source: The National Air and Space Museum Website; Rise of Flight Video; Wikipedia
***Revisions made 26 April 2024 to the original article.
The cockpit picture is from a video game. That's part of the standard now? Video games?
ReplyDeleteThank you Robert. I've adjusted the text accordingly.
DeleteMore misinformation from "Roads to the Great War." Champlin Fighter Museum hasn't been in Mesa, AZ since 2003. Here's a clip from Wikipedia if you had bothered to check: "The Champlin Fighter Museum was an aircraft museum located at Mesa, Arizona. It specialized in airworthy World War I and World War II fighters. After 22 years of operation, the Museum was closed on May 26, 2003, and its collection was moved to the Museum of Flight at Seattle's Boeing Field." However, the former Champlin site at 2017 N. Greenfield Rd. in Mesa has since been replaced by the Arizona Commemorative Air Force Museum, which has 15 aircraft (WWI thru Vietnam eras), less than half the size of the former Champlin collection. The Pfalz D.XII went to Seattle.
ReplyDeleteAlan, thanks as always for your considerate and helpful comments. I've corrected the location of the D.XII in question from Arizona to Washington state. Now, if I can make an equally well-intended suggestion—perhaps you can use your influence as a prominent WWI aviation expert and author with the National Air and Space Museum in encouraging them to correct their misinformation on their web page on the D.XII, which, alas, still places one of the surviving aircraft in Arizona. For me, I may never believe the Smithsonian again.
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