Markings for Fokker E.III 1/48
E339/16, Lt. Josef Jacobs, Fokkerstaffel West, June 1916
The advent of Fokker monoplanes armed with synchronized machine guns brought a fundamental change to the course of air warfare from the summer of 1915. The original assignment of these monoplanes to FFA (Feldflieger Abteilung) field aviation units changed in early 1916 when the first German fighter units were formed. The Kampfeinsitzer Kommando (KeK) was a grouping of pilots still belonging to the respective FFA but assigned to fight enemy aircraft. Later, these pilots were allocated to the official fighter units, the Staffeln, in which many future aces grew up. One of them was Josef Carl Peter Jacobs, who spent the first year of his flying career as an observation pilot in FFA 11, only to join Fokkerstaffel West in April 1916. He achieved his first confirmed victory in May when he shot down a two-seat Caudron and possibly an observation balloon. His Eindecker was given a coat of green paint on upper and side surfaces, which was complemented by brown patches, which camouflaged the aircraft not only in the air but also on the ground. By the end of the war, his tally stood at 48 victories. Jasta 12 was formed from the Fokkerstaffel West personnel on October 6, 1916, but Jacobs was transferred to Jasta 22 just a month later.
E105/15, Ernst Udet, KeK Habsheim, 1916
The most successful surviving fighter of World War I was Ernst Udet, who started his flying career with Feldflieger Abteilung 206, from where he moved to FFA 68. There he was given his first Eindecker, but he destroyed it due to an engine malfunction during take-off. He was then assigned an older example of the same type. On March 18, 1916, Udet achieved his first aerial victory. Later that year, FAA 68 was transformed into Kampfeinsitzer Kommando Habsheim and then became Jasta 15 on September 28. Udet’s E.III was given paint of unspecified shade of green, which was complemented by an oblique black and white stripe. For this, the black section was later overpainted with a different shade of green. The color scheme and decals offer both variations.
Gotthard Sachsenberg, MFFA I, April–November 1916
The second most successful fighter of the German Navy started his flying career as an observer in the Freiwilliges Marine-Fliegerkorps. In December 1914, he was transferred to Marine-Feldflieger-Abteilung I. In the first half of April 1916, the unit took over this D.III number LF196 and it most likely became the aircraft of the then newly trained fighter pilot Gotthard Sachnsenberg. The aircraft was left in gradually accumulated oil stains and other dirt and, according to photographs, was put "on its nose" by its pilot during an emergency landing near Ostend. We do not know when this happened, but the aircraft was subsequently taken to the airfield in a dismantled state and continued to fly until the end of November, when most E.IIIs were retired in favor of new Halberstadts.
Austro-Hungarian Navy, Abwehrflugstation Altura, Austro–Hungaria, 1918
Within the Austro-Hungarian Air Force and Navy served Fokker E.IIIs with the designation A.III. Some of them had the Austro-Hungarian Schwarzlose machine gun installed instead of the original German LMG. However, this was not the case with this aircraft. This one was armed with the LMG machine gun, but it was the Navy version with simple gunsight and a slightly different perforation of the barrel housing. The A.III Fokkers were gradually withdrawn to training units, where they served during the last year of the war. This was also the case with this aircraft, which served for training at Altura airfield. There, on February 24, 1918, the Brno native Leodegar Ustynek fatally crashed during a training flight. When shooting on a target, the engine failed, the aircraft lost speed and crashed from a height of about 50 m. Interestingly, there are two types of crosses used on the aircraft. While on the wings there was an older type, on the fuselage a newer one was used. For the bottom surfaces, historians are inclined towards a light blue color.