Osprey Publishing

SE.5 vs. Albatros D.V, Western Front 1917-18

by  Jon Guttman

Reviewed By  Brian R. Baker, IPMS# 43146

MSRP: $17.95 ISBN: 9781846034718 Website: www.ospreypublishing.com In the past several years, Osprey Publishing have produced a series of high quality paperbacks comparing some of the major combat aircraft, describing their design origins, technological development, and combat service. The idea is to discuss two well-known types and explain how they were used against each other and other similar types. This variety is essential, as no single combat airplane only fought against one other type. The author does this by providing the origins of the design, the design philosophy, and the training and experience of the pilots who flew the aircraft and the ground crews who had to maintain them. The British SE 5 fighter, which first appeared at the beginning of 1917, was an original design which went through extensive development after its introduction to combat on the Western Front. After a relatively small number of SE 5's were built, improvements led to the introduction of the SE 5a, with increased power due to an engine change, and the airplane was no longer underpowered. Armament remained the SE 5a's chief drawback, as the single forward firing fixed Vickers gun was not as efficient as the twin gun arrangement on such types as the Camel and Spad. The Lewis gun, mounted above the wing and fired essentially as a hand-aimed weapon, was useful under some circumstances, but most pilots agreed that a twin gun armament would have been better. The SE 5, however, was fast, structurally strong, and proved to be a rugged and reliable fighter, serving long after the end of the war in 1918. The Albatros D V, on the other hand, was a result of logical development beginning with a pre-war racing plane. Early models had standard type wing with parallel interplane struts, but in response to the French Nieuports, which used a single spar lower wing braced by V interplane struts, the Albatros D III also used a V strut arrangement, which lightened but considerably weakened the structure. The design certainly gave the pilot a better downward view and a better rate of climb, but the drawback was a basic weakness which tended to cause the lower wings to twist and sometimes fail in high speed dives, a real disadvantage in combat, especially since at the time, pilots did not wear parachutes. However, some pilots survived these incidents, but they tended to treat their airplanes with distrust, hoping that the next model would be stronger and more structurally reliable. The D IV model was not successful, and the D V, although it had more power, was not really much of an improvement over earlier models. However, the German Air Service was stuck with the airplane, and it became the backbone of their fighter units until the advent of the Fokker Dr 1, D VII, and other types in 1918. And even then, the type was used until the end of the war. The author provides a very interesting account of what it was like to fly these airplanes in combat, embellished by firsthand accounts by the pilots themselves. Short biographies are provided of some of the better known aces, along with photographs of their airplanes. It is a good read, especially if you are interested in how the airplanes were flown, and you will gain respect and admiration for the men who flew these airplanes in combat, knowing that only a small amount of battle damage could result in that long dive into oblivion. The book is of more interest to the historian than modeler, as it does not contain the usual series of profile drawings or cutaways. However, the photos are excellent, the drawings informative, and the price is reasonable. I have a number of these books already, and reading them has definitely added to my understanding of what it would have been like to actually fly combat in World War I. I'm glad I didn't have to do it. Highly recommended. This one is definitely worth getting. Thanks to Osprey Publishing and IPMS for the review copy. Contact uscustomerservice@ ospreypublishing.com