Thursday 4 February 2016

Oeffag Va.53.2

We finish the Oeffag Albatros D.III saga with this entry.

The Oeffag Va.53.2 was the Austro-Hungarian license built version of the Albatros D.III.
Just like the differences between the D.III and the D.II, which had also been briefly manufactured in Austro-Hungarian soil,  the strut configuration and the engine were improved.

It was powered by a 185hp Austro-Daimler engine, instead of the original German Mercedes D.IIIa engine. It was armed with a twin 8mm Schwarzlose machine-guns buried in the front part of the fuselage which, unlike in the German version, it avoided the direct access to them in case of problems like machine-gun jamming or if the synchronization gear failed.

The Austro-Hungarian air Corps used this fighter in every front they fought on, and it was quickly improved into the Oeffag Va.153.










Sources:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albatros_D.III
2. Osprey - Aircraft of the Aces 110 - Austro-Hungarian Albatros Aces
3. Osprey - Air Vanguard 13 - Albatros D.III Johannisthal, OAW, and Oeffag Variants

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