[Note: Here is an (ambitious) history lesson for me and those who are interested (I'm sure there are many folks here...who are quite familiar with the topic)...this is the timeless story of Manfred von Richthofen, the Ace of Aces, the legendary pilot of WW I. Personally speaking, Richthofen's story has intrigued me for many years...But, I admit, before I had come to know the "A" of "Aviation", my only exposure to "Red Baron"...was via the box-covers of a popular (Frozen) Pizza Brand...in the U.S...🙂...a namesake and coincidental similarity with the "original" Red Baron, that is the subject of this post. Anyway, two coincidences, this week, prompted me for the post (1) My discovery that I've long possessed A2A's Albatros D.III, purchased, sometime, in the past, but never used and (2) A grocery item request...🙂...arising out of the family today for a RED BARON ("Cheese" only, nothing else, on it, forewarned...🙂...) Pizza...Anyway, I connected the two dots, today, with the realization that it was the Albatros that had played a significant role in the career of the (real) "Red Baron"...so here we go...hope you enjoy this account and the SIM images below...]

Known in English as Baron von Richthofen, and most famously as the "Red Baron", was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. His fighter wing unit was better known as "The Flying Circus" or "Richthofen's Circus" because of the bright colors of its aircraft, and perhaps also because of the way the unit was transferred from one area of air activity to another, to hotspots along the battlefront - moving like a traveling circus, with the help of trains and caravans etc., and frequently setting up in tents on improvised airfields. Manfred had started his combat career, in March of 1916, flying a two-seater Albatros C.III. Initially, he appeared to be a below-average pilot. He struggled to control his aircraft, and, in fact, he crashed during his first flight at the controls. Despite this poor start, under the tutelage of his (famous) mentor Boelcke, he rapidly became attuned to his aircraft, and would evolve into a seasoned fighter pilot, to become the deadliest of WW I, on either side...! Richthofen was not a spectacular or aerobatic pilot; however, he was a highly experienced and skilled fighter pilot. He was also a brilliant tactician and a fine marksman. His characteristic style was to dive from above to attack with the advantage of the sun behind him, and with other pilots of his squadron covering his rear and flanks. He became the leader of Jasta 11, which ultimately included some of the most elite German pilots, many of whom he trained himself. He led by example. Here is the basic rule (sounds simple enough, put this way), he taught them, and which he wanted them to fight by: "Aim for the man and don't miss him. If you are fighting a two-seater, get the observer first; until you have silenced the gun, don't bother about the pilot"...

Richthofen also took the flamboyant step, contrary to prevailing intelligence, of having his aircraft painted red when he became a squadron commander. His autobiography states, "For whatever reasons, one fine day I came upon the idea of having my crate painted glaring red. The result was that absolutely everyone could not help but notice my red bird...". Thereafter he usually flew in red-painted aircraft. It was his Albatros D.III Serial No. 789/16 that was first painted bright red, in late January 1917, and in which he first earned his name and reputation. The subject Albatros of this post is also repainted in Richthofen's red (with No. 629/17). This distinctive paint scheme gave rise to the immortal nickname the "Red Baron”, and his reputation as the most fearsome (WW I) flier in the skies over Europe.

On 6 July 1917, Richthofen sustained a serious injury, during combat near Wervik, Belgium (there is a theory linking this injury with his eventual death, next year). During his convalescent leave, and, shortly before his death, he completed an autobiographic sketch, Der rote Kampfflieger (The Red Fighter Pilot), in which he states, "I honoured the fallen enemy by placing a stone on his beautiful grave....". Thus, the honor and respect he paid to a fallen enemy pilot shows a remarkable aspect of his character.

On the morning of 21 April 1918, at (49°56′0.60″N 2°32′43.71″E), engaged in a dogfight over northern France, he was flying a Fokker Dr. I (please note this is the equally famous, triple-winged, Fokker that was the successor aircraft to Albatros, and is the one most associated with Richthofen, and also in which the Red Baron would end his life). While in (low-altitude) pursuit of a Sopwith Camel, over Morlancourt Ridge near the Somme River, Richthofen received a fatal (bullet) wound just after 11:00am. In the last seconds of his life, he managed to retain sufficient control of the aircraft, to make a rough landing, at (49°55′56″N 2°32′16″E), in a field near a hill, just north of the village of Vaux-sur-Somme. Controversy and contradictory hypotheses continue to surround the identity of the person who fired the shot that actually killed Richthofen. Nonetheless, the Allied air officers, regarded the Red Baron with great respect, and organized a full military funeral, for his body, with six of the Squadron's officers serving as pallbearers. Allied squadrons stationed nearby also presented memorial wreaths, one of which was inscribed with the words, "To Our Gallant and Worthy Foe". Richthofen was only 25-years-old at the time. Recognized as the deadliest flying ace of World War I, during a (short) 19-month period between 1916 and 1918, Richthofen shot down 80 Allied aircraft (unconfirmed victories would put his actual total as high as 100 or more) and won widespread fame for his scarlet-colored airplanes and his fearsome flying style.

The subject aircraft of this post, Albatros D.III, was a biplane fighter built in Germany, and first flown in August 1916. The D.III was flown by many top German aces, and was the preeminent fighter during 1917. Though highly successful, it was identified as susceptible to a failure, in its lower wing ribs. A modified license model was later built by Oeffag (same model used on this post) for the Austro-Hungarian Air Service, that would eventually resolve this structural defect. Here, I'm flying the Albatros D.III, in the color of Manfred von Richthofen's original aircraft, but, on an exploratory (and pleasurable) trip along the southern border of Germany (with Austria). Lifting off Munich (EDDM), and heading southward, I've then skirted the Bavarian Alps mountain ranges (see screenshots), from west to east. Hope you enjoy all these images, however, the three mostly (and purely) symbolic (but haunting) images, pertaining to the legend of Red Baron, are my last three screenshots. Those three snapshots are taken, in the virtual sky, over northern France, at (approximate) Latitude 49,56N and Longitude 002,32E, where Richthofen had suffered his fatal injury on 21 April 1918 (per details stated above). Below these (virtual) clouds, somewhere, on the ground, lies the village of Vaux-sur-Somme, near which he had managed to land his fighter aircraft (please note it was his beloved Fokker Triplane, not an Albatros) for the very last time..., and where the immortal "Red Baron" had taken his last breath....(there are many reported various versions of Richthofen's last words, but, generally including the word "kaputt")...

Thanks for your interest, and any comments, and notes...!! Good rest of Sunday...!!

[A2A(Albatros D.III/Oeffag), Orbx(Germany), REX]

Most interesting story and pictures, P_7878 !! Many thanks for posting.

Btw, if you are interested, there is a very nice freeware Fokker Triplane available for FSX. I couldn't find it here on avsim, but if you google NeoQB Fokker Dr1, you will find it, plus more liveries, among them the one of the Red Baron 😉

 

 

It was Snoopy who fired the fatal shot... 

Love the screenshots showing the early evening!

Bernd and Mark: Thanks for the comments

 

Mark:

Sometimes a bit of "ignorance is bliss"..., indeed, I knew, long before, of the Peanuts comics, where, Snoopy not only pretends his doghouse to be a Sopwith Camel, but also pretends to fight the Red Baron with it, but, at that time, I didn't know what a Sopwith Camel was, nor who the Red Baron was, just as, here, I didn't know about the (real) Red Baron while enjoying the RED BARON (brand) Pizza....🙂...

 

Bernd:

Yes, thanks for the reminder about Neoqb Fokker, I did recall that (freeware) "Neoqb" Fokker Dr. I. It was, in fact, already, in my FSX Warehouse...🙂...so I brought it over to FSX/SE now. However, I see that I'd, before, only one all-red repaint, called "Franz Wolferd Flyboys" from the Movie Flyboys, but, not of Manfred von Richthofen...so, I looked again in the Library today, and did find, as you'd indicated, a repaint for his Fokker aircraft. It is not all-red, but, a curious mixture of three colors: Red (rear/nose/wheels), Blue (the three wings), and Green (front fuselage). In fact, I read that, in most cases his Dr.1 was not painted all-red. From the seven Fokker Dr.Is, from which it is known he has flown, only two were actually painted completely red.

I just made a separate post, showing both Franz Wolferd's all-red paint, and MVR's three-color paint schemes for Fokker Dr. I. I also found several other (attractive) freeware repaints for my (payware) A2A's Albatros D. III. I've posted a selection of repaints of it also in the same post.

Fokker Dr. I, a Triplane, was clearly built in answer to the Sopwith Triplane (which had the distinction of being the first military triplane to see operational service). Interesting history on the design mind-game between Fokker and Sopwith, which had, earlier, proved itself superior to the more heavily armed Albatros. It appears that Fokker Dr. I, in spite of many corrective measures, continued to suffer from wing failures. So, in mid-1918, the Dr.I was eventually withdrawn from front-line service as the (newer) Fokker D. VII entered widespread service...but, it goes without saying, the Fokker Dr.I (Triplane) remains a very interesting German design, of WW I...good to recall, see, and fly...🙂....in the virtual world...!