Albatros D.XII

Here we go again, this time with the last Albatros fighter designed in the first World War.

The Albatros D.XII was a German single-seat fighter prototype that was flown for the first time in March 1918.

As we said, it was the last Albatros fighter that was completed and flown before the end of the Great War and shared the same slab-sided fuselage of its' predecessor, the Albatros D.X.

Two prototypes were built, the first onem completed in March 1918 was powered by a 180hp Mercedes D.IIIa engine and featured balanced parallel-chord ailerons, whilst the second one, completed just one month later, in April 1918 featured unbalanced inversely tapered ailerons and some relatively new feature in the undercarriage: pneumatic shock absorbers. This second prototype, was, at first, powered by the previous Mercedes D.IIIa engine but later was refitted with the 185hp BMW. IIIa in order to take part in the Adlershof Type-D contest held in October 1918. Due to the armistice, no further development was carried-out.

Sources:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albatros_D.XII
2. Salamander Books - The Complete Book of Fighters