O.K., I admit I'm a nitpicker, especially when it comes to movies. Just finished watching Flyboys-& I liked it. Except- How many Dr1's did Tony Fokker actually produce in that war? 'Cause it seems like a handful of american expats destroyed EVERY one of them plus 10 in that movie. Aside from 2 Gothas & a Zeppelin, they faced NO OTHER german fighter.
C'mon guys. How 'bout a Pfalz, maybe even a Siemens-ShuchertDV. At least they weren't surplus Moraines masquerading as fokkers a la 'Wings'... But what was with the Waldo Pepper Jousting technique?
Cinematically interesting, but a good way to get smoked when your opponent has 1/2 again your closure rate, stability & Manouvreablility unmatched, & Twice the Guns+Twice the rate of fire. Just shoot yoiurself down & make it easier.
Sorry if this horse has been overly flogged. just saw it, wanted to comment.
(& damn it feels good to be talking wingiethingies at high speed for a change...)
Pax, SWLD

The Flyboys seem to fly Nieuport 17s or rather 23s, since the mg is on the right hand's side (the rigging between the front cabane struts is in type 17 style, tho), which were used at the western front from the Summer 1916 to the Spring 1917. So Pfalzes or SSWs won't do any better than Dr.I. Right types should be Fokker D.I-IV, Harberstadt D.II-V and Albatros D.I-III. Even Moranes converted to Fokker E.IV:s would have been more accurate than Dr.Is which were used by elite Jastas mostly in the winter and Spring 1918.

... and you thought you're a nitpicker!


Mikko

320 production airframes including 3 preproduction airframes that went to the front. Then aditionally there were 9 experimentals of which only 8 were completed.

Keep repeating to yourself, "It's only a movie...only a movie...only a movie."
And it's made for mass audiences.
The Germans had to be easily and readily identified. Snoopy taught the mass American audience about the red triplane, so the producers chose red Dr 1's as THE German plane except for the black one flown by the leader/villain.
Shortcut...bad guys have 3 wings, good guys have two.