KITS 07/2022

Albatros D.V 2299/17, Lt. Xaver Danhuber, Jasta 26, Abeele, Belgium, 1917

Although this Albatros D.V is usually assigned to

Bruno Loerzer, it is very probable, it was in fact the

mount of Xavier Danhuber, the winner in 11 aerial

combats. Apart of other indications, he was photographed himself standing by the plane or sitting in

the cockpit. Danhuber first saw action with Kagohl 6

(Kampfgeschwader der Obsten Heeresleitung - Combat squadron of the Supreme Commander), later was

transferred to Schutzstalfel 25, before he was assigned to Jasta 26 on July 1, 1917. Danhuber got wounded upper arm in an air fight on October 18 and after

his return on November 7, he moved to Jasta 79b as

he was appointed the CO of the unit. He was injured in

a crash when test-flying a Pfalz Dllla at the Thugny

airfield on February 11, 1918. After several months of

medical treatment and convalescence Danhuber had

returned to his unit and reassumed command on October 9. Five days later he achieved his 11th and last

victory, shooting down Sopwith Dolphin near Bohain.

His Albatros was painted in black and white bands

scheme typical for Jasta 26 aircraft. It also sported

the six-pointed star on both sides of the fuselage and

five-colour Flugzeugstoff on the wings.

Albatros D.V, Ltn. Kurt Monnington, Jasta 18, early 1918

This aircraft is a bit of mystery, as it is not clear,

which pilot was flying it. It was assigned to Georg

von Hantelmann for some time due to one mistake in

a famous publication. Legendary German historian,

late Alex Imrie believed this was the personal mount

of Ltn. Otto Brandes, some other sources insist on

Ltn. Kurt Monnington as the pilot of this one. Both are

possible, as they both served with Jasta 18 at around

the same time. Kurt Monnington, after his transfer

from German army (Deutsches Heer) to air force

(Luftstreitkräfte), served with FA62 before he was

posted to Jasta 15 in 1917. After the „great swap“ of

the personnell with Jasta 15 orchestrated by Rudolf

Berthold in March 1918, he became member of Jasta

18. There he scored his first victory on May 18, 1918,

downing an SE.5a. He added six more to his fighter

pilot account. The aircraft was painted in typical

colours of the „new“ Jasta 18, i.e. red nose and blue

fuselage. The aircraft had probably the upper wing

changed from another aircraft, which was painted in

camouflage colors instead of the printed Flugzeugstoff (so called Lozenge). Also, the rudder was changed after some damage.

Albatros D.V, 2263/17, Ltn. Otto Kissenberth, Jasta 23b, summer 1917

Otto Kissenberth was born on February 26, 1893, in

the Bavarian town of Landshut and volunteered for

the German air force (Luftstreitkräfte) after the

outbreak of the war. Following his pilot training he

served with several units and found himself picked

for duty with the fighter unit KEK Ensisheim at the

beginning of 1916. The small, specialized unit was redesignated Jasta 16 in November of the same year. On

July 2022

August 4, 1917, Kissenberth was named Commanding

Officer of Jasta 23b. On May 29, 1918, he crashed in

a captured Sopwith Camel, and the resulting injuries

precluded a return to a combat unit. Over the course

of the First World War, he shot down a total of twenty

enemy aircraft and was awarded the Pour le Mérite on June 30, 1918. Otto Kissenberth died on August

2, 1919, in a mountain climbing mishap in the Alps.

The wings of Kissenberth's aircraft were covered in

Flugzeugstoff with five-color pattern (so-called Lozenge) while the entire fuselage and tail surfaces

were painted black. As a tribute to his passion,

mountain climbing, Kissenberth's aircraft carried

paintings of flowering Edelweises.

INFO Eduard

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