O.Thetford, P.Gray German Aircraft of the First World War (Putnam)

Albatros C XIV
   Designed in 1917, the C XIV first flew in the spring of 1918. It marked a return by Albatros to a lighter, smaller type of standard two-seater from the earlier C X and C XII types; it was also the first Albatros C type to employ staggered wings. No more than one was built before it was modified into the C XV, which was scheduled for series production. Engine, 220 h.p. Benz IVa. Span, 10.4 m. (34 ft. 1 1/2 in.). Length, 6.9 m. (22 ft. 7 3/4 in.). Weights: Empty, 950 kg. (2,090 lb.). Loaded, 1,385 kg. (3,047 lb.). Duration, 3.5 hr. Armament, one Spandau and one Parabellum machine-gun.


Albatros C XV
   Although it entered production, the end of the war prevented the appearance of the C XV in any quantity, as relatively few had been completed by the Armistice. Developed from the C XIV, it differed mainly in having overhung balanced ailerons and an angular cut-out in the centre-section; it was also slightly larger in overall dimensions. Standard Albatros fuselage construction was followed, with ply covering upon multi-ply formers. Engine, 220 h.p. Benz Bz IVa. Span, 11.8 m. (38 ft. 5 5/8 in.). Length, 7.47 m. (24 ft. 6 1/8 in.). Height, 3.33 m. (10 ft. 11 1/8 in.). Weights: Empty, 859 kg. (1,890 lb.). Loaded, 1,320kg.(2,904 lb.). Speed, 165km.hr. (103.12m.p.h.). Climb, 1,000 m. (3,280 ft.) in 3.4 min., 6,000 m. (19,680 ft.) in 47 min. Duration, 3 hr. Armament, one Spandau and one Parabellum machine-gun.

J.Herris Albatros Aircraft of WWI. Vol 2: Late Two-Seaters (A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes 25)

Albatros C.XIV

   After the relative failure of the large, elegant C.XII Albatros reconsidered their design direction for two-seat reconnaissance planes. The compact C.XIV was the result.
   Powered by a 220 hp Benz Bz.IVa engine, the C.XIV had little of the elegance of the larger C.XII and was the first Albatros aircraft with staggered wings, a feature intended to improve the field of view for the crew.
   The C.XIV remained a prototype but had sufficient promise that it was developed into the C.XV reconnaissance aircraft, the last Albatros wartime two-seater to reach production.


Albatros C.XV

   A redesign of the compact C.XIV prototype led to the production C.XV. Like the C.XIV, the C.XV was powered by a 220 hp Benz Bz.IVa engine. The C.XV closely followed the overall design of the C.XIV; however, a number of improvements were made to the design to improve performance and handling.
   The C.XV was slightly larger than the C.XIV, but despite that was lighter, upgrading performance and maneuverability. To further improve handling and maneuverability, the ailerons were aerodynamically balanced, which reduced the force the pilot need to exert on the ailerons.
   The crew members were placed close together to enable them to better coordinate during flight. To improve the pilot's field of view the upper wing cutout for the C.XV was enlarged compared to that of the C.XIV. These refinements of the basic C.XIV design created a fine, general-purpose reconnaissance aircraft that became the last Albatros wartime two-seater to reach production.
   Few C.XV aircraft had reached the front before the Armistice, but the type went on to a successful post-war career both in civil and military use. Poland received 18, mostly new, Albatros C.XV biplanes obtained by Capt. William's mission in Gdansk. The aircraft were collected at Poznan-Lawica airfield and delivered to CWL and CSL for assembly. The first (CWL refurbished 23.1) was delivered to the 16th EW but crashed on 12 August 1920, soon after leaving the Warszawa-Mokotow airfield. It went into a spin from about 100 m and did not recover, the crew being killed in the crash. Two were reported to have served with the 12 EW against actions against Budyonny's cavalry. The type also served with the 8, 14, and 16 EW and the 21 EN, participating in the Battle of Niemen, actions in Groodno and Lida. After the war they were quickly dropped from frontline service and used mainly for training. The last C.XV was in service at Grudziadz until November 1921. One, marked D.414, served with the 21st Assault Squadron. The C.XV remained in service till at least 1926.
   Lithuania operated one, serial N8, until at least 1927, when it appeared in a fish scale finish.
   The German forces retreating from the Baltic in 1918 left behind a number of aircraft. From these Latvia acquired C.XV 7818/18, however it was considered too badly damaged to repair.
   In 1922, the Nationalist Forces in Turkey sent Saffet Arikan and Nuri Conker to Germany to purchase military aircraft. 21 Albatros C.XV biplanes were obtained, however it was difficult to ship them to Turkey due to the opposition and the Allied occupying forces. The aircraft were shipped via train to Russia and from thereby ship to Samsun, a Nationalist Turkish harbour on the Black Sea. On 29 July 1922, Capt. Sadettin was sent with a pilot, technician, and a mechanic to prepare as many aircraft as possible and get them to Ankara. Only two Albatros C.XV machines were able to be erected from the remains of those shipped.
   These two Albatros reconnaissance machines took part in the Turkish Great Offensive that commenced on 26 August 1922. Their service life was brief, being struck off in 1923.
   A photograph shows the wreck of a crashed C.XV in the markings of the Count Keller Air Detachment of the Western White Russian Army. The aircraft is thought to have served in the Riga, Latvia, theatre, circa 1919.
   The Kingdom of Albania apparently received five Albatros L.45, the C.XV civilian conversion. A number of C.XV biplanes entered the German civil register as Albatros L.47 civil conversions. There was also an L.47b, but the difference in this sub-type is unknown. D-109, D-140, D-179 , D-185, D-186, D-300, D-407 and D-586 are recorded as C.XV biplanes in different references. (Ries gives D-109 as a Rumpler D.I and D-140 as an Alb. C.III. D-179 is also recorded as Fokker D.VII 7609/18 used by the DLR company. D-185 is also recorded as a Sablatnig type and D-407 as a DFLW D VIIIa.)
   Lt. G. Koppen of the Netherlands obtained Albatros C.XV 7838/18 as a civil aircraft with German registration D-407. He intended to fly this machine to the Netherlands East Indies in February 1920, but bureaucratic hurdles could not be surmounted and the flight was not attempted. In 1927 Koppen finally made a flight to Batavia as copilot to KLM pilot G. Frijns in a Fokker VIIa.3m.


Albatros C-Type Specifications
Albatros C.XII Albatros C.XII(OAW) Albatros C.XIII Albatros C.XIV Albatros C.XV
Engine 260 hp Mercedes D.IVa 260 hp Mercedes D.IVa 160 hp Mercedes D.III 220 hp Benz Bz.IVa 220 hp Benz Bz.IVa
Span, Upper 14.37 m 14.24 m 10.00 m 10.4 m 11.8 m
Span, Lower 13.01 m 12.92 m - - -
Chord, Upper 1.8 m 1.8 m - - -
Chord, Lower 1.6 m 1.6 m - - -
Gap 1.73 m (inboard) 1.80 m (outboard) 1.73 m (inboard) 1.80 m (outboard) - - -
Wing Area 42.7 m2 42.7 m2 - - -
Wing Dihedral 3° (upper), 2.5° (lower) 3° (upper), 2.5° (lower) - - -
Length 8.85 m 8.85 m 7.8 m 6.9 m 7.47 m
Height 3.40 m 3.40 m 2.71 m - 3.33 m
Empty Weight 1,020-1,115 kg 1,040-1,115 kg 700 kg 950 kg 859 kg
Loaded Weight 1,638-1,733 kg 1,658-1,733 kg 1,060 kg 1,385 kg 1,320 kg
Maximum Speed 175 km/h 175-180 km/h 165 km/h - 165 km/h
Climb to 1,000m 5 minutes 5 minutes 4 minutes - 3.4 minutes
Climb to 2,000m 11 minutes 11 minutes - - -
Climb to 3,000m 19 minutes 19 minutes - - -
Climb to 4,000m 30 minutes 30 minutes - - -
Climb to 5,000m 45 minutes 45 minutes 47 minutes - -
Climb to 6,000m - - - - 47 minutes
Duration 314 hours - 2.5 hours 3.5 hours 3 hours