Which aircraft was the Luftwaffe's last frontline biplane…

Which aircraft was the Luftwaffe's last frontline biplane fighter?

Short answer

The Arado Ar 68, the last biplane fighter to serve in the front line with the Luftwaffe. It entered service in early 1936 and the monoplane Bf 109 relegated it before the war: by September 1939 it had already replaced it in the day-fighter units. It kept flying, mainly as a trainer, until 1944.

Published: November 2, 2026 · Updated: November 2, 2026 · Edited by Above Ten Thousand · Editorial policy

Which aircraft was the Luftwaffe's last frontline biplane fighter?

Bundesarchiv Bild 146-1990-021-20, Arado Ar 68Klinke & Co. (CC BY SA), vía commons

A biplane on the threshold of war

The Arado Ar 68 was the last biplane fighter to see frontline service in the Luftwaffe. It joined the Luftwaffe in early 1936. The Ar 68F variant was delivered to I./JG 134 Horst Wessel in late summer 1936.

Displaced by the Messerschmitt Bf 109

Before the Second World War broke out, the Messerschmitt Bf 109, a monoplane fighter, had already overshadowed the Ar 68. When the war began, in September 1939, the Bf 109 had already replaced the Ar 68 in day fighter units. The biplane did not disappear with that handover: it continued to operate, mainly as a trainer, as late as 1944.

Identifying marks of the aircraft

The Ar 68's tail was a design very characteristic of Arado, with the horizontal stabilizer joined to the tall rudder by means of struts. Sheet metal covered the stabilizer and the fin.