The triplane will forever be remembered as an icon of early aviation—thanks in large part to Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen, better known as the “Red Baron.”
Today, more than a century after the dawn of aviation, few people have living memory of the earliest aircraft to take to the skies. During the first years of aviation, one aircraft design in particular—the triplane—was among the most innovative, but has long since faded into obscurity.
Most early aircraft were “biplanes,” with a pair of wings stacked on top of each other. The first manned and powered flight in recorded history—the Wright Brothers’ famed flight in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina in 1903—was in a biplane. A “triplane” simply added a third wing to this design. The first triplanes emerged in 1909, but they would not gain popularity until around 1915, when military development programs began to more seriously consider them as a viable weapons platform. Peaking in 1918, after the introduction of the British Sopwith triplane, and the German’s counter, the Fokker Dr.I, the triplane’s culminating moment was the First World War. Yet with the armistice, the triplane’s era quickly concluded, as airplane development rapidly pivoted towards an emphasis on biplane and monoplane concepts, rendering the triplane immediately obsolete.
How the Third Wing Helped—and Hurt—Aircraft
The wing is how an aircraft generates lift. Adding three wings to an aircraft increases the amount of lift generated. Naturally, triplanes had greater lift than equivalent monoplanes and biplanes—which was particularly helpful in the 1910s, as aircraft engines were still rudimentary and chronically underpowered. The increased lift generated by the third wing compensated for weakness in the engine, allowing aircraft to operate despite the lack of power. And with the extra lift, triplanes had an improved climb rate relative to contemporary bi- and monoplanes.
The use of three wings also allowed designers to make each wing more compact, and still generate the lift necessary to achieve flight. By shortening the wing length, the aircraft became more maneuverable, capable of executing turns within a tight radius—which was ideal for dogfighting.
But the triplane also had its disadvantages. Most glaringly, the triplane was quite slow compared to other aircraft. Because the three-wing structure featured a lot of surface area, it increased the plane’s aerodynamic drag. High drag, when combined with an underpowered engine, could mean a very slow aircraft.
And as one can tell, simply from looking at a picture of a triplane, the three-winged-structure was quite complicated. More wings meant more struts and wires and fabric—all of which had to be maintained, and all of which had the potential to fail.
As engines improved, and as monoplane designs improved, the triplane quickly fell from fashion. Designers wanted faster, sleeker, and simpler aircraft, and triplanes were slow, cumbersome, and complex.
One Triplane Was the Most Famous of All Time
The end of the triplane era was absolute. Though biplanes—which also largely fell out of fashion prior to the Second World War—have survived for a number of niche uses, no major aircraft manufacturer has built a triplane for combat, commercial, or private aviation since the 1920s.
Yet the triplane will forever be remembered as an icon of early aviation—thanks in large part to Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen, better known as the “Red Baron.” Flying (for the most part) a bright red-painted Fokker Dr.I triplane, the Red Baron scored 80 confirmed kills throughout the First World War, the highest official tally of any pilot of that war. Many of von Richthofen’s victories were solo, demonstrating superior tactics and marksmanship. When von Richthofen was killed in action in 1918, the Allies buried him with full military honors—and symbolically brought the era of the triplane to a close.
About the Author: Harrison Kass
Harrison Kass is a defense and national security writer with over 1,000 total pieces on issues involving global affairs. An attorney, pilot, guitarist, and minor pro hockey player, Harrison joined the US Air Force as a Pilot Trainee but was medically discharged. Harrison holds a BA from Lake Forest College, a JD from the University of Oregon, and an MA from New York University. Harrison listens to Dokken.
Image: Shutterstock / ChiccoDodiFC.
