"sddso" wrote in message
...
Closeup examination of the Dr.1 at Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome indicates
that its main airfoils had far less wire bracing than any Sopwith design
(can't recall if Rhinebeck has a Camel or not at the moment). Were the
differences in parasitic drag enough to cause difference in max
attainable speed?

Memory suggests that Rhinebeck's airframes are as faithful to original
as can be found anywhere.


As discussed in the program, the wires did make the Sopwith more vulnerable
to enemy fire.

But the limiting factor in the design was the drag of three wings. Sopwith
had realised this and not gone into big production with their triplane.

Saw yesterday the same show regarding battle of Britain, and the same
visibility situations existed to an extent. The ME 109 had a blind spot
above the pilots head(fixed on later versions), where as the Spitfire had
excellent visibility.

The show basically had the contest as dead even - they preferred fuel
injection to the Spits carbs, and the ME-109's cannons(did an experiment
with aircraft aluminum at 200 yards, showing the big difference), but
penalised the 109 on visibility and range.

James Linn