Wilbur and Orville Wright building aircraft in Berlin

[+Olham]

Some of you may smile now, but to me, this find I just made in the web, was a surprise - I hadn't known that!

 

Als im September 1909 zwischen Teltowkanal (...) und der Berlin-Görlitzer Eisenbahn der erste Flugplatz Deutschlands eröffnet worden war, zogen auf dem Experimentierfeld die Flugzeugbauer ein: Wilbur und Orville Wright mit ihrer Firma "Flugmaschinen Wright", Anthony Fokker mit dem "Fokker Aeroplanbau", Walther Huth, Ernst Heinkel und Robert Thielen mit der "Albatros Werke AG" und Edmund Rumpler mit seiner "E. Rumpler Luftfahrzeugbau GmbH".

 

http://www.maerkischeallgemeine.de/cms/bei...ben-fliegt.html

 

When in September 1909 the first airport of Germany was opened (...), the aircraft constructors moved in to the experimental field:

Wibur and Orville Wright with their "Flugmaschinen Wright" company, Anthony Fokker with the "Fokker Aeroplanbau", Walther Huth,

Ernst Heinkel and Robert Thielen with the "Albatros Werke AG" and Edmund Rumpler with his "E: Rumpler Luftfahrzeugbau GmbH".

 

The airport terrain still exists, but isn't used for flying anymore. Here is a satelite pic.

Edited July 13, 2009 by Olham

[+Hasse Wind]

The Fokker book I bought has made me even more interested than I was before in the early phases of aviation. The pre-war aviation industry was surprisingly wide-spread and some real geniuses worked in those small factories. Fokker himself got his pilot's licence before the war, which later made him very respected among the front pilots - they knew he wasn't just some ambitious engineer who never had to fly in his own designs. For example the development process of the Dr.I greatly benefited from Fokker's good relationship with famous pilots like Manfred von Richthofen. Unfortunately I don't have a scanner, there are so many good and probably very rare photos in the book about many interesting situations, such as the first test day of the Fokker interrupter gear with Fokker himself with an Eindecker.

 

History of the Albatros Werke would be equally fascinating reading, I imagine...

[+Olham]

Is that the book "Fokker Werke" ?

[+Hasse Wind]

Is that the book "Fokker Werke" ?

 

Yes, the same book (Fokker Flugzeugwerke in Deutschland). Now somebody should write a similar book about the Albatros Werke...