Aviation / Aerospace

Kondor Dreidecker

Single-Seat, Single-Engine Triplane Fighter Prototype [ 1917 ]

Excessive vibrations, even after an engine change, doomed the Kondor Dreidecker triplane fighter attempt of World War 1.

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 07/31/2019 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site.

GO TO SPECIFICATIONS [+]

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Kondor Flugzeugwerke of Essen, Germany (then the German Empire) was committed to building Albatros B.II and B.IIa series biplane fighters during World War 1 until, in mid-1917, the company benefitted from the arrival of designers Walther Rethel and Paul G. Ehrhardt who, previously, had served with competing LVG (Luft-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft). The first original aircraft put forth by the company then became the Kondor "Dreidecker", a triplane-winged single-seat, single-engine fighter.

In prototype form, this aircraft recorded a first-flight during October 1917. However, the design underperformed with its original engine (unknown make and model) and was re-engined with a Mercedes D.III 6-cylinder liquid-cooled powerplant of 160 horsepower output (this still driving a two-bladed propeller at the nose). In this form, the triplane did no better for excessive vibrations, unable to be overcome, ultimately doomed the project to the single prototype.

The Kondor D.1, a more conventionally-arranged biplane fighter design, was being developed at the same time but even this model appears to have fared no better.©MilitaryFactory.com

Note: The above text is EXCLUSIVE to the site www.MilitaryFactory.com. It is the product of many hours of research and work made possible with the help of contributors, veterans, insiders, and topic specialists. If you happen upon this text anywhere else on the internet or in print, please let us know at MilitaryFactory AT gmail DOT com so that we may take appropriate action against the offender / offending site and continue to protect this original work.

Specifications

Service Year

1917

Origin

Imperial Germany

Status

CANCELLED
Development Ended.

Crew

1

Production

1
UNITS

Kondor Flugzeugwerke - German Empire

(View other Aviaton-Related Manufacturers)

German Empire (cancelled)

(OPERATORS list includes past, present, and future operators when applicable)

✓ Air-to-Air Combat, Fighter
General ability to actively engage other aircraft of similar form and function, typically through guns, missiles, and/or aerial rockets.

✓ X-Plane (Developmental, Prototype, Technology Demonstrator)
Aircraft developed for the role of prototyping, technology demonstration, or research / data collection.

Length

18.0 ft
(5.50 m)

Width/Span

23.0 ft
(7.00 m)

Height

9.7 ft
(2.95 m)

Empty Wgt

882 lb
(400 kg)

MTOW

1,213 lb
(550 kg)

Wgt Diff

+331 lb
(+150 kg)

(Showcased structural values pertain to the base Kondor Dreidecker production variant)

Installed: 1 x Mercedes D.III 6-cylinder liquid-cooled geared engine developing 160 horsepower and driving a two-bladed propeller at the nose.

Max Speed

96 mph
(155 kph | 84 kts)

Ceiling

18,045 ft
(5,500 m | 3 mi)

Range

155 mi
(250 km | 463 nm)

Rate-of-Climb

800 ft/min
(244 m/min)

♦ MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

♦

(Showcased performance specifications pertain to the base Kondor Dreidecker production variant. Performance specifications showcased above are subject to environmental factors as well as aircraft configuration. Estimates are made when Real Data not available. Compare this aircraft entry against any other in our database or View aircraft by powerplant type)

PROPOSED:
2 x 7.92mm machine guns over the nose synchronized to fire through the spinning propeller blades.

Supported Types

Graphical image of an aircraft medium machine gun

(Not all ordnance types may be represented in the showcase above)

Hardpoint Mountings: 0

Kondor Dreidecker - Base Series Name; single flyable example completed in 1917.

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