Albatros W.4
The Albatros W.4 was a German Navy aircraft in World War II. It was a seaplane, which was used as a reconnaissance and Jagdeinsitzer.
Given the growing threat of air raids on their bases created the Imperial Navy a specification for the development of a Jagdeinsitzers. It was natural to develop this machine from the most modern fighter planes land, and so Albatros Flugzeugwerke drew on the model of the Albatros DI. Here we enlarged the gap between the upper wing and fuselage, and the wing span was extended by one meter.
The prototype was ordered in June 1916 and delivered to the Navy number 747 in September 1916 to Warnemünde, two more followed until December 1916.
The machine proved to be very maneuverable and offered the pilot a good view. However, the float had amplified, streamlined designed and re- braced. The wings were to be protected against moisture, wind Hoff cooler been modified and later moved sideways. The cockpit has been reduced. But after these weaknesses were eliminated, the machine was readily accepted by the Seefliegern and showed up in the North and Baltic Seas the other application types - the Hansa -Brandenburg KDW and the Rumpler 6B1 - clearly superior in firepower, operational range and speed.
The first series of ten machines with the numbers 785-786 arrived between February-April 1917 in the insert. The other delivered to the Navy machines were numbered 902-911, 948-967, 1107-1116, 302-1326, 1484-1503 and 1719-1738. In December 1917, the application backlog reached 118 pieces. Yet in June 1918 were 60 aircraft in the front line, and another 24 were used as multi-purpose machines at various coastal stations flight.
8 Albatros W.4 were sold to the Austrian Navy and served in the naval port of Pola from July 1918 as a hunting and reconnaissance machines. The German naval aviation in the Aegean operated from Turkey with the W.4.
The replacement of the Albatros W.4 was carried out by the Hansa -Brandenburg W.12 two-seater. When the war ended were still 67 machines in stock.