Few aircraft of the World War I period have received the attention given the Fokker Dr.I triplane. Often linked with the career of the highest scoring ace of that war, Germany's Rittmeister Manfred von Richthofen, the nimble Dr. I earned a reputation as one of the best "dogfighters" of the war.

The Fokker Dr. I was ordered into production on July 14, 1917 in response to earlier success that year of the British Sopwith Triplane and at the written request from Richthofen. At the time there was a little distrust for the monoplane. It was believed that the major criteria for a fighter aircraft was rate of climb, maneuverability and visibility. Speed, firepower and stealth were not yet realized as critical factors (even though these tactics were used in combat).

The first Dr. Is appeared over the Western Front in August, 1917. Pilots were impressed with its maneuverability, and several, including von Richthofen, soon scored victories with the highly maneuverable triplane. Nineteen of Richthofen's last 21 victories were achieved while he was flying the Dr. I.

Fokker built 320 Dr. Is; for a brief period, production was suspended while the wings were redesigned to prevent in-flight failures. Thought the Dr. I proved itself as the mount of choice for some of Germanys top fliers, it was never widely used and quickly became outdated. By May 1918 the Dr I was being replaced by the newer and faster Fokker D VII

No known original Fokker Dr. Is have survived.

The Collings Foundation operates two Fokker DR-I replicas at local airshows and events yearly. The full-scale replicas accurately portray the aircraft that was known as the scourge of the skies for so many years during WWI.