The Dornier-Zeppelin D.I was the first fighter to feature such all-metal monocoque and stressed skin, which made the fighter a true millestone for aviation. Even if production was cancelled before any production version could be completed, it was the first aircraft with such features to enter into production. In order to reduce risks of inflight fires, it featured an external fuel tank which, apparently, and according to some sources, could be jettisoned. It also had a thick-section cantilevered wings for improved aerodynamics. It was armed with two forward-firing Spandau machine-guns.
Seven prototypes were built in order to develop the type and it was never used operationally due to the end of the World War I. It was evaluated by Luftstreitkräfte pilots in May, June and October 1918. One of the German aces, Wilhelm Reinhard was killed on 3rd July 1918 after a structural failure when this aircraft was grounded to get structural improvements. Apparently there were reports of heavy aileron controls and poor climb performance at higher altittudes. In order to fix those flaws it was fitted with a more powerful 185hp BMW IIIa water-cooled 6-cylinder inline engine that boosted the climb rate to 5000m (16000ft) from 25 minutes to 13 minutes so, thanks to that achievement, a production order was placed for 50 aircraft to be released either in October or November 1918, however airframes for that production batch were roughly 50% completed when production was halted in early 1919. US Navy and US Army Air Service bought one prototype each in 1921, which were delivered in 1922 and were used for evaluation and novel construction methods. However, as we couldn't find graphical evidence of this aircraft in American colours, we didn't drawn it.
Sources:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dornier-Zeppelin_D.I
2. Salamander Books - The Complete Book of Fighters
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