Pfalz D.III

Pfalz had gained enough experience building the L.F.G. Roland D.II to put together a fighter design of their own, and the result was the well-streamlined Pfalz D.III. The ply-wrapped oval fuselage was very strong. While the lower wing was smaller in chord than the upper, its twin spars kept it from suffering the twisting problems of the Nieuport and Albatros sesquiplane designs, and the Pfalz had a reputation of being stable and strong in a fast dive.

Early D.IIIs had the machine guns buried in the fuselage, but later ones, in the form of the Pfalz D.IIIa, moved them to the upper decking where they could be serviced in case of a jam. By early 1918, with the D.IIIa coming into full play, the D.III had started to be moved into more of a training role or supplied to ally Turkey.

The D.III was a good aeroplane, but it was overshadowed by the Albatros D.Va and Fokker D.VII, and prejudice against Bavarian Pfalz decreased its stature with front-line pilots. It was used with success by pilots such as Werner Voss (before switching to the Fokker Dr.I) and Paul Baümer.

Card Links

 * Jasta 7 - Dagelow
 * Jasta 10 - Heldmann
 * Jasta 18 - Berthold
 * Jasta 18 - Muller
 * Blue tail
 * Red &amp; White tail
 * Green &amp; Mauve

Aircraft Chart

1:144 Scale

 * Shapeways: Columbia Aerodrome, Decapod, Reduced Aircraft Factory
 * Metal kit: ,
 * Wings of War: WW23D Höhn; WW23E Klein

1:200 Scale

 * Shapeways: Reduced Aircraft Factory

1:285/6mm/1:288 Scale

 * Shapeways: Reduced Aircraft Factory
 * Metal Cast:

1:300 Scale

 * Metal kit: Heroics & Ros GWA308