L 79 Kobold

The Albatros L 79 Kobold was a single‑seat German aerobatic trainer developed in the mid‑1920s by the Albatros Flugzeugwerke, a firm celebrated for its World War I fighters. First flown in 1925, the Kobold emerged from the company’s effort to create a lightweight, high‑performance aircraft for sport flying, air‑show demonstrations and rudimentary combat‑training after the Treaty of Versailles had limited German military aviation. Powered by a 110 hp BMW IIIa inline engine, the L 79 featured a compact wooden frame, fabric‑covered wings and a short, tapered fuselage that gave it an excellent power‑to‑weight ratio. Its cantilever biplane wings, equipped with ailerons on both upper and lower surfaces, provided rapid roll rates and precise control, while the fixed, wide‑track landing gear contributed to stability on uneven fields. Over a few hundred examples were built, and the Kobold quickly became a favorite among pilots for its forgiving handling and daring maneuverability, influencing later German aerobatic designs such as the Bücker Jungmann. Although it never entered military service, the L 79 Kobold helped preserve German aeronautical expertise during a constrained era and left a lasting legacy in the development of civilian sport aviation.