Fokker Eindecker
     Fokker's "Eindecker" was the first monoplane fighter in WWI, but it was also the first to be able to fire a forward facing machinegun through the propeller without having the bullets hit it. Previous designs on both sides allowed firing through the propeller only with deflectors mounted on it that did not always deflect the bullets, and still put considerable stress on the wooden propeller. This synchronized firing mechanism was a major step forward in aerial combat, as it avoided damaging or stressing the propeller and allowed the pilot to fire the gun at an opponent simply by pointing his aircraft at it.
     For a few months in early 1915 the Eindecker destroyed the Allies superiority in the air during the Fokker Scourge. The aircraft was used in large part to prohibit Allied access to German airspace, as the pilots were instructed not to dogfight over Allied territory for fear of having the synchronizing gear fall into enemy hands. The monoplane was used to control the air over Verdun during their offensive of Feb. 1916. By summer of 1916 the Allies regained aerial superiority with other aircraft.  

Fokker Eindecker
Deluxe Series.  1/20th scale.  19.5" wingspan x 15" long.
  No. ACG6D-DX.   Only $159.95

See Fokker Passenger Planes

 
aviation td15