Burning Albatros safely landed

[Olham]

Would you believe it? This craft was landed safely, although burning already.

This Albatros D.III (153.45) was hit by enemy fighters and caught fire.

But the pilot, the Austrian ace Brumowski, could still land it safely.

 

(Well, I assume, a good deal of the canvas burnt away after landing, but still!)

 

 

[Duce Lewis]

Yikes! looks like a scary flight!

Wonder if he was forever known as Fireball Burnowski

Looks structurally sound but if he kept losing canvas?

[itifonhom]

I'm sure he kept his head REAL low until he landed!

 

itifonhom

[Hasse Wind]

Well, the Austrians did build better Albs than the Germans - their Oeffag (Oesterreichische Flugzeugfabrik AG) Albatrosses were much improved over the German versions.

 

Brumowski was the leading Austrian ace of the war, with 35 confirmed kills.

[Rickitycrate]

You can see how the plywood fuselage resisted the flames or it may have been a different story. One time In a flight I got all shot up to hell and had to put her down in a field. I landed the 1 1/2 Strutter safely and cut the engine and then she caught fire. The one time I would have jumped. You'll see in the pick the prop has stopped and the smoke and flames are going up not back.

 

 

Will post pic when the editor allows.

Edited October 4, 2009 by Rickitycrate

[Rickitycrate]

Seems I can upload now. The pic just goes to show you never know what might happen in OFF.

[Duce Lewis]

Excellen screenshot Rick

Never seen one quite like that

[Rickitycrate]

Yeah Duce, I thought it was unusual and was glad I had fraps running for a screenie.

[zoomzoom]

Truly amazing. Great find Olham, you cant keep a good Albatros down. Bet that guys face looked a bit like a lobster for a few days. Maybe he pulled the trick that I've heard some other WWI flyers did and got out on the wing, away from the flames, and steered it in from out there, reaching one hand in to grab the stick. away fromthe heat!

 

ZZ.

[Bullethead]

Brumowski was the leading Austrian ace of the war, with 35 confirmed kills.

 

Yeah, those Austrians could fly. Check out these pics of other miraculous landings. The Aviatik D.I was a POS for several reasons, but the most dangerous was that the wing trailing edge was designed to flatten out at high speed to reduce drag. It was thus thin and weak, and tended to fail at high speed. These are from that Austro-Hungarian Aircraft book.

 

 

 

 

 

 

You'll see in the pick the prop has stopped and the smoke and flames are going up not back.

 

Congrats on getting that down OK

[Olham]

The Aviatik is a very bulky craft. On the lowest pic, it sais, the pilot had messed with the wings?

As an Austrian ace, I would have had an even far better Albatros.

 

Did they really not fly the western front at all? Not even in the south? Bullet?

Cause if they did, I could perhaps get an OeFFAG Albatros out of Pol...

[zoomzoom]

Wow....again amazing. Reminds me of the times in Rickenbackers accounts that Jimmy Meissner shredded and lost most of the fabric off of his wings yet made it home on a number of occasions...(apparantly he had a penchant for doing this)...with it flapping in the wind like a flag. Some pilots these boys were....puts us to shame.

 

ZZ.