German Fighters in Africa

Since my interest in WWI aviation has re awakened I seem to remember a story of a German aviator in Africa who was a real thorn in the side of the British. My recollection is that they finally filled a balloon with explosives which brought his career to a rather abrupt end when he shot it down.

An I remembering fact or fiction? My local library doesn't seem to have as many books on WWI aviation as in my younger days.

Does anyone know the name of this pilot, his aircraft or its markings?

Thank you,

Greg

[Cigogne]

That wasn't Africa, but rather Macedonia at Drama. The airman in question was Ltn. Rudolf Eschwege who flew there and did really well. He came to an end when the British put a balloon with the basket loaded with explosives. When he ventured to close the concussion of the blast crippled his aircraft and down he came. There are at least two photos of the crumpled wreckage of his Albatros D.III with him in the debris. Althought rumored to have flown a Halberstadt, the tailplane shape is definitely Albatros.

Cigogne

[Cigogne]

... Markings? The wreckage is too bad to discern them, if any. Most aircraft flown on theatre were in factory markings. Eschwege gets special treatment in Neal O'Connor's "Aviation Awards of Imperial Germany vol. V or VI" Several nice photos of him during his service.

Cigogne

Cigogne,

Thank you for the information. If you would help a neophyte, how do you gather your information? Obviously one collects books, but do you use a good public source of information or perhaps the libraries of similarly interested friends?

I have read so many interesting posts on relatively obscure topics, I was just wondering.

I salute the scholars,

Greg

I am not aware of any German aircraft used in Africa, but if you enjoy good historical fiction there was a book I read some years back called (if memory serves) 'he Dove of War' It chronicalled the adventures of a Taube used in Tanganyika ( I think)
There were German aircraft used in another colony, The German occupied China (colony name escapes me).

*I am not aware of any German aircraft used in Africa, but if you enjoy good historical fiction there was a book I read some years back called (if memory serves) 'he Dove of War' It chronicalled the adventures of a Taube used in Tanganyika ( I think)
*There were German aircraft used in another colony, The German occupied China (colony name escapes me).

Actually, there were three German aircraft used in Africa during WW I.

These included

- A Ago Pusher in German East Africa (this actually being the sample aircraft provided by Otto for Pfalz, when they started licence manufacture of the Ago). The aircraft was brought to Africa by Bruno Buechner, who had flown it first in German South West Africa(todays Namibia), before transferring to G. East Africa (todays Tansania). Later crashed, rebuild as a seaplane (but maybe never flown as such). The engine was then used to power a railway flat car - a similar installation was used 3 years later by Fl.Abt 204 (B) in Palestine.

- a Aviatik P 14 in German South West Africa (being used for recce and bombing flights). This aircraft crashed in April 15, and it´s remains were sunk in the Lake Otjikoto when the Germans surrendered in 1915.

- A "Roland Taube" (actually also a biplane and not a Taube!) also in German SW Africa. Survived the campaign over there, was hidden when the Germans surrendered, but finally set afire in 1916.

Beside that, some German aircraft obviously flew over African soil in WW I (prime examples being the Rumpler tht photographed the pyramides at Gizeh and the Zeppelin L 59), but these did not include fighters.

Two Taubes also basically made made it to Africa, this being Jeannin Stahltauben, which arrived in Cameroon in August 1914, but it seems they were not used and maybe not even assembled over there.

The only Taube with proven use in a German colony is obviously the one flown by Guenther Plueschow in Tsingtao (which is the German colony in China mentioned by you).

Oh yes: "Dove of War" is the classical book on Tauben by De Vries.

Volker

[Ross_Moorhouse]

Actually, there were three German aircraft used in Africa during WW I.

These included

- A Ago Pusher in German East Africa (this actually being the sample aircraft provided by Otto for Pfalz, when they started licence manufacture of the Ago). The aircraft was brought to Africa by Bruno Buechner, who had flown it first in German South West Africa(todays Namibia), before transferring to G. East Africa (todays Tansania). Later crashed, rebuild as a seaplane (but maybe never flown as such). The engine was then used to power a railway flat car - a similar installation was used 3 years later by Fl.Abt 204 (B) in Palestine.


Volker

Hi Volker, Was the AGO a C II ? Do you know if there are any known photos of it in Africa ?

[Cigogne]

Ross, et al.

The aircraft used by Bruno Büchner in East Africa was not an AGO C.I (or C.II) type. It was an Otto Pusher. There are later photos that show the same aircraft type as an AGO pusher, but, this is a bit of a technicality. The Gustav Otto Flugmaschinenwerke of Munich was in financial trouble and went into bankruptcy in the 1913-14 timeframe. A replacement company, AGO (Ago Fluggesellschaft mbH) was reformed after the bankruptcy at Berlin-Johannisthal. I need more information about AGO, but that is basically the short outline story. The Pfalz company started building the pusher type under license to Otto in 1913 after they (Pfalz) were formed. There must have been some built after the bankruptcy when the AGO firm was established, hence some photos show the AGO pusher which was the same type of airframe. The Otto C.I was a twin-boom pusher aircraft BUT WAS NOT the AGO C.I. The concept is basically the same, but the execution was different. The only similarity to my eyes are the struts whereby the twin booms are mounted to the wing cellule. Also, there was a four-wheeled “baby carriage” type of landing gear arrangement. The later AGO C.I-II types were a more advanced design, although incorporating some of the earlier aircraft’s features. *

Gustav Otto Flugmaschinenwerke showing initial types produced:

http://204.83.160.230/archive/b/images2/Otto_werke.jpg

The Otto Pusher looks like this:

http://204.83.160.230/archive/w/images/otto_pusher.jpg

http://204.83.160.230/archive/b/images/otto.jpg

http://204.83.160.230/archive/w/images/Cou...deroyRunway.jpg

http://204.83.160.230/archive/a/images/AGO_pusher.jpg

The Otto C.I looks like this: (The type was used operationally in Bulgaria... see the booklet on the Bulgarian Airforce for some great photos!)

http://204.83.160.230/archive/images4/OTTO_Ci.jpg

The AGO C.I-II look like this:

Prototype: (note rudder shape is different than production AGO C.I type. Also, wing plan form is also different outline.)

http://204.83.160.230/archive/images4/AGO_C1.jpg

Production versions:

http://204.83.160.230/archive/images1/AGO_CI.jpg

http://204.83.160.230/archive/a/images/AGO_BENZ150.jpg

http://204.83.160.230/archive/images8/AGOc1_sanke.jpg

http://204.83.160.230/archive/w/images/AGO..._c2_crackup.jpg

http://204.83.160.230/archive/images4/AGO_C2.jpg

Naval seaplane version:

http://204.83.160.230/archive/w/images/W11...15_seaplane.jpg

I couldn't have done this without Rosebud's handy site close by to add these links. Thanks Rosebud!

Cigogne

[JohnMacG]

There's a photo of the Otto/Pfalz Biplane in German East Africa in the book 'Die Koniglich Bayerischen Fliegerttruppen 1912 bis 1919'/ P. Pletschacher/1992.

[Ross_Moorhouse]

Cigogne : Thank you. Now I know what aircraft Volker was talking about. Yes Rosebud is a great site.