Jump to content
Sign in to follow this  
rwmarth

Is there an altimeter in the Alb. DIII?

Recommended Posts

I'm not finding it anywhere in the cockpit. And the airspeed indicator's location defies me as well, if there are those in the cockpit.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Thanks, at least I know I wasn't staring right at the instruments and didn't realize it!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Altimeter is "look at the ground and see how high you are"

Airspeed is "look at the ground and see how fast you are going"

 

Yep, it's that simple (grin).

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Altimeter is "look at the ground and see how high you are"

Airspeed is "look at the ground and see how fast you are going"

 

If I progress far enough in building a plane to have a virtual cockpit, there's going to be a sign in the cockpit that says exactly that. That sounds way easier than making a working altimeter that goes from "counting leaves" to "seeing Earth's curvature", which was my original plan grin.gif

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

German cockpits were generally as a rule sparse. RPM to make sure your engine is working, and fuel gauge, compass maybe was about it. Some later allied cockpits were extremely detailed (SPAD's like a mantle piece over the fire with all your brass on display ;), Bristol F2B, Se5a etc).

 

There's always the override F5 "HUD" dials or press Z for info.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
German cockpits were generally as a rule sparse. RPM to make sure your engine is working, and fuel gauge, compass maybe was about it.

 

 

Well, the D.VII does have an artificial horizon of a sort grin.gif .

 

BTW, IIRC, the reason the tach was right there in front of your face was so you'd check it before firing your guns. The synchronizer or interruptor or whatever it was only worked properly within a certain band of RPMs. If you fired while outside that RPM band, you might shoot your prop off.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

My DFW C.V has an altimeter - my Albatros not.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Indeed some craft had extra instruments, but generally most German craft did not have much. We tried to model what you would typically find after researching.

One good instrument is the Mark I eyeball. Aim it at the big green thing - getting closer = bad generally in flight ;).

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I think you got it right, Pol.

Such instruments may have been expensive and valuable then,

A bomber or observer craft needs to make sure that they get to a certain altitude, and they flewso high,

that they actually had to be careful about oxygen.

A scout like the Albatros had no real reason for an altimeter.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Sign in to follow this  

×

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use, Privacy Policy, and We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue..