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Kondor E.3 (D.I)

1918 WORLD WAR 1

The Story of Condor E. 3 (D. I)

For the last attempt by the Luftwaffe for a viable front-line fighter in the First World War (1914-1918), Kondor Flugzeugwerke devoted their efforts to the "E.3" - "Eindecker" or "single-winged" ", Combat Platform - to secure a potentially lucrative production contract for the final months of the war. The E.3, although ordered with a number, arrived too late to have any effect on the Germans, and it is believed that only about ten were eventually actually built before the end of the war.

During the postwar period, a few worked as aerobatic artists in foreign political parties for an extended period of time.

Walter Rethel von Kondor led the adventure, which picked up speed in July 1918. The company missed several early attempts to develop fighter jets during the conflict, from the Dreidecker triplane in summer 1917 to the D.7 biplane in late spring 1918. With the E.3, Fokker E.V (D.

VIII) influence, so the concept of a single wing arranged around a parasol shaped the E.3. With this arrangement, the main-wing aircraft was positioned over the entire fuselage (rather than touching it) to provide as much lift as possible, thereby increasing maneuverability, which proved to be very important in the turning dogfights of World War I important.

A board-side fuselage was built around these fuselages, and an open-air single-seat cockpit was installed below and aft of the main aircraft. The engine is located in the nose as usual, and the tail is in a traditional single vertical tail configuration.

A "trailer" landing gear was installed for ground operation, consisting of two wheeled main beams and a tail skid. Weapons are 2 x 7.92mm LMG 08/15 machine guns, firing synchronised through rotating propeller blades.

The aircraft will be 18 feet long when built, with a wingspan of 29.5 feet and a height of 9 feet. The curb weight is 1,015 pounds and the MTOW is 1,415 pounds. Electricity comes from an Oberursel Ur.

Series III 160 hp 14-cylinder in-line rotary engine driving a two-bladed wooden propeller on the nose.

The wings of this plane are particularly important because they feature Kondor's patented design, which places thin veneers longitudinally around the main plane. Place the sheet between the protruding ribs and secure with L-shaped bars. This reportedly resulted in a more powerful, highly reinforced wing unit that could go its way in the heat of battle.

The company also claims it provides better airflow above and below the component - improving straight-line speed, handling and maneuverability.

The E.3 was prepared for the official Luftwaffe "Third D-Type" competition in September 1918, and with its new wing test sound demonstrated the outstanding performance and handling expected by its designers. In fact, some pundits in the race considered the E.3 to be one of the best cars on display, with few reservations. Since then, the E.3 has received the military designation "D.I" in preparation for serial production and use, with approximately 100 prototypes ordered before the end of the armistice in November 1918.

The end of the war meant that less than a dozen (perhaps eight or ten) examples were completed.

During the flight, the E.3 was able to record a top speed of 118 mph in 16 minutes with a service ceiling of 20,280 feet and an altitude of 16,405 feet.

Another E. 3 form, known internally as "E. 3a" (or "E. IIIa"), is equipped with a Goebel Goe. III 160-200 hp rotary engine under full fairing (as opposed to original E.3's partial fairing). The variant reportedly hit 124 mph in testing and hit 16,405 feet in 11 minutes.

The fate of the plane is unknown.

In the post-war years, some E.3s were adopted by foreign players (i.e. players from the Netherlands and Switzerland) who performed them as stunt performers. The Netherlands-based anti-communist group NAVO claims at least two, with one example falling to Swiss Comte Mittelholzer.

These flew into the 1920s until their time came.