The story
The Pfalz D.XII was the logical development of the line of Pfalz fighters developed for the German Air Service during World War I, and it was tested and entered limited production towards the middle of 1918. The superb Fokker D.VII was already in mass production and widespread service, and the Pfalz product, while close, was not quite up to the Fokker standard in speed and maneuverability, only exceeding the Fokker in maximum diving speed. A clean two bay biplane, entering service when the steel tube fuselage D.VII was in service, the D.XII, while better than the D.III, could not compete effectively with the D.VII, and always remained an “also-ran”. It had its weaknesses, including the main landing gear, which had a tendency to collapse during any heavy landing, and its complexity did not endear it to maintenance personnel. In short, pilots preferred the D.VII.