This was the forerunner of the German monoplanes, and very representative of German type. These machines were first made in Austria, and are excellent examples of strong, simple, efficient military aircraft. The wing-shaped supporting planes have upturned wing tips at the back, which are flexed up and down for the purpose of lateral stability; the back portion of the tail plane is movable, and can be flexed for elevating. Regarding the other types of German machines, Germany appears to have gone through three stages of construction: 1. The stage in which the types evolved were chiefly copies of various well-known French machines. 2. That in which a characteristic German type was produced, the Taube (dove), a type which possessed many excellent qualities, but also several defects. SOME GERMAN BIPLANES. --------------+-------+-------+--------+--------------------------+----------- | |Length | Area in| | Speed by Make and | Span. | in |metres².| Engine and h.p. |the hour in Type. | |metres.| | |kilometres. --------------+-------+-------+--------+--------------------------+----------- L.V.G., 1913 |14·9 m.| 9 m. | 44 m. |Argus or Mercèdes 100 h.p.| 100 km. Otto |14·9 m.|10·8 m.| -- | 100 h.p. | 100 km. Albatross |14·4 m.| 9·2 m.| -- |Argus or Mercèdes 100 h.p.| 110 km. Rumpler Taube | 13 m. | 8·5 m.| 38 m. | Mercèdes 100 h.p. | -- Aviatik | 16 m. |10·8 m.| 43 m. |Argus or Mercèdes 100 h.p.| 100 km. --------------+-------+-------+--------+--------------------------+----------- SOME GERMAN MONOPLANES. --------------+-------+-------+--------+--------------------------+----------- | |Length | Area in| | Speed by Make and | Span. | in |metres².| Engine and h.p. |the hour in Type. | |metres.| | |kilometres. --------------+-------+-------+--------+--------------------------+----------- Rumpler Taube,| | | | | 1913–14 | 14 m. |10·2 m.| 35 m. | Mercèdes 100 h.p. | 120 km. Kondor | 14 m. | 9·8 m.| -- | Mercèdes 100 h.p. | 120 km. Albatross | | | | | (Hirth Type)|14·6 m.| 10 m. | 35 m. | Mercèdes 100 h.p. | 105 km. Etrich Taube |14·3 m.|9·85 m.| 38 m. |Argus or Mercèdes 100 h.p.| 105 km. Gotha Taube |14·4 m.|10·2 m.| -- |Argus or Mercèdes 100 h.p.| 100 km. --------------+-------+-------+--------+--------------------------+----------- 3. That in which the indifferent qualities of the characteristic type were removed.