Schmeelke, Michael Deutsche Luftkriegsgeschichte 1914-1918. Flugzeuge des Ersten Weltkrieges 1914-1920

Pigeon - aircraft, Albatros D.I - D.Va, LVG C.VI, Halberstadt Cl.IV, Sopwith F.1 Camel, Nieuport 17/23. This publication describes the technical development from the first pigeon types to the metal aircraft of the final phase of the First World War. At the beginning of the First World War, aviation was still in its infancy. The engine power of the aircraft was usually only 100 hp, and there was hardly any offensive armament apart from the usual carbines or pistols.

The only exception was France, whose aircraft were already equipped with machine guns and dropping devices for bombs. As the leading aviation nation, France maintained this lead until the 1920s. Although Ottoman, Italian and American aircraft had already dropped homemade explosive devices on their opponents before 1914 in limited conflicts, mostly border disputes, a bomb war was still a long way off. It was not until the First World War that all parties used the aircraft as a new weapon for dropping explosive devices. In addition to the ongoing development of aircraft and their armament, the equipment of the pilots was also improved enormously. As early as 1917, radio technology made it possible to take precise bearings of one's own position, enabling pilots to find their own airfield even without sight.