Why a triplane?

Ricky wrote:
I am not an expert on aerodynamics so I do not know much about the
pros & cons of a monoplane vs. a biplane or triplane.
I've a re-kindled interest in the Red Baron recently and was looking
at a Fokker Triplane replica picts & videos and doing a bit of reading
about it's flying characteristics.
I have not, however, read much about the "advantage" of 3 wings. I can
guess that there would be quite a bit of maneuverability but also a
lot of drag.
Why a triplane? What are some of it's "advantages?" What are some
"disadvantages?"

Ricky
The DR1 was the result of many different designers from different
countries experimenting with more wings at different aspect ratios
trying to get greater maneuverability and rate of climb.
You are correct in that they were slow, specifically the DR1 which had a
top speed of barely over 100mph. The reason was interference drag
between the wings.
The maneuverability was excellect in the hands of good drivers, but the
ham handed could dent the fabric in a nano-second with this crate.
Eventually, the idea for the 3 wings (actually, many airplanes of the
period had even more than 3 :-) went the way of all bad ideas as the
structural issues in monoplane design began to get solved.
Bottom line on the DR1 was that it was something new to be played with
by experienced pilots, but the cons outweighed the pros and the damn
thing was slow as molasses, so it was eventually canned as a viable weapon.


--
Dudley Henriques