A Museum Tour Through Aviation History

The Great War in the Air (Gallery 206)

The "Great War" -- World War I -- saw the first widespread use of airplanes in combat. In that arena, the Germans, French, and British were at the forefront of military aircraft design. Some of the best known aircraft of this period are on display in the "Great War in the Air" gallery.

Voison VIII Bomber
(1915)

The Voison brothers, Gabriel and Charles, were among the first aviation pioneers in France, and they wasted no time in adapting their airplane designs to carry weapons. As a result, by 1914 their Voison planes were widely used by France for aerial observation missions, and by 1915 they were being used for night bombing missions over the Western Front. The Voison VIII Bomber was used in most of the theaters of the War, including the frozen Russian front, the deserts of Mesopotamia, and the temperate areas of Europe. Voison bombers carried out bombing missions of German towns and factories during the period of 1915 to 1917.

Albatross D.V Fighter
(1917)

Although not one of the best fighters of World War I, the Albatross was widely used and well known to military troops on both sides of the War. The first model Albatross, the D.I scout, became operational in 1916, and the Albatross D.V Fighter began to be used in 1917. More than 4,500, of all models, were constructed through 1918. Although he is generally associated with the Fokker Dr.1 Triplane, Baron Manfred von Richtofen -- "The Red Baron" -- scored most of his 80 kills flying Albatross D.V's.

SPAD XIII Fighter
(1917)

The acronym "SPAD" stands for the French name of the airplane manufacturer that produced one of the most famous Allied aircraft of World War I. The SPAD XIII Fighter and other models of the SPAD are associated with the top American pilots of the war, including America's top fighter ace Captain Eddie Rickenbacker of the 94th Aero Squadron of the American Expeditionary Forces, the "Hat in the Ring" squadron. The SPAD XIII made its first flight in April 1917 and by the end of the War, almost 8,500 had been constructed. The SPAD XII in the Museum's collection was built in 1918 and was flown by Lt. Raymond Brooks of the 22nd Aero Squadron of the U.S. Army Air Service.

Fokker D.VII Fighter
(1918)

The Fokker D.VII first entered service in May 1918 with the "Flying Circus" of Baron Manfred von Richtofen and soon became one of the most formidable German fighters of the War. The Allies so feared the Fokker D.VII that the surrender of all this type of aircraft was one of the conditions in the Armistice. The aircraft in the Museum's collection was captured two days before the Armistice was signed when its pilot landed at a small American airfield behind enemy lines mistaking it for a German base.

Pfalz D.XII Fighter
(1918)

The Pfalz D.XII became operational on the Western Front in late 1918 as a replacement for the outclassed Albatross and Fokker Dr.1 Triplane aircraft that were in wide use at that time. It was able to match the better-known Fokker D.VII in a climb, level flight, and a dive, but did not turn well. By the time of the Armistice in November 1918, more than 800 were in front line use. The wartime record of the Museum's Pfalz D.XII is largely unknown, but this particular plane was purchased by Howard Hughes around 1928 and used in several war films, including "Hell's Angels," " Dawn Patrol," and "Men with Wings."

SPAD XVI Fighter
(1918)

The SPAD XVI was designed as a combination two-seat fighter and reconnaissance aircraft, and was armed with twin machine guns fore and aft. They began to enter front line service in 1918. The Museum's SPAD XVI was flown by Brigadier General William "Billy" Mitchell, who was commander of the U.S. Army Air Service during World War I.

Sopwith Snipe Fighter
(1918)

After the SPAD, perhaps the best known Allied fighter of World War I was the British Sopwith Camel (made known to a large extent by the exploits of Snoopy in the "Peanuts" comic strip). Flying a Sopwith Camel, Canadian pilot Robert Brown shot down Manfred Baron von Richtofen in 191x. The Museum's aircraft is actually a Sopwith Snipe, an upgrade of the Camel that went into service in 1918 and became a primary fighter aircraft of the Royal Air Force after the War.

In the period immediately following World War I came a number of record-setting flights by early aviation pioneers. These are the subject of our next stop, the Pioneers of Flight gallery.

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Last Updated: January 1, 2003