Fokker Eindecker fighters
| Fokker Eindecker III | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Type | Fighter |
| Manufacturer | Fokker |
| Designer | Martin Kreutzer |
| Number built | 416 |
| History | |
| First flight | 23 May 1915 (modified M.5 A.16/15 serving as a E.I prototype, flown by Otto Parschau) |
The Fokker Eindecker fighters were a series of German World War I monoplane single-seat fighter aircraft designed by Dutch engineer Anthony Fokker. Developed in April 1915, the first Eindecker ("Monoplane") was the first purpose-built German fighter aircraft and the first aircraft to be fitted with a synchronization gear, enabling the pilot to fire a machine gun through the arc of the propeller without striking the blades. The Eindecker gave the German Army's Air Service (then the Fliegertruppen des deutschen Kaiserreiches) a degree of air superiority from July 1915 until early 1916. This period, during which Allied aviators regarded their poorly armed aircraft as "Fokker Fodder", became known as the "Fokker Scourge".