Servothian Imperial Airforce

The Servothian Imperial Airforce (SIAF) (German: Servotten kaiserlichen Luftwaffe (SKL) is the aerial warfare branch of the SIM, originally founded in 1875 as the Servothian Imperial meteorological Service.

History
The SIAF was founded on September 14th, 1875 as a meteorological service as established by Kaiser Heinz Krauss IX, who had been crowned just four years earlier. The original purpose of the branch was to provide accurate temperature, climate, and weather information for the use in coordinating infantry and naval force regardless of environmental conditions.

Early Service
In early January of the next year, word came of the Fanaglian's Flying Monitor, the designs of which SIRDO had stolen and replicated. However, design changes were made before the craft was finished, the three envelopes were merged into a single larger one, with three metallic rings placed around the outside to secure and reinforce the skin of the airship, making it a crude semi-rigid airship; additionally the gondola was decreased in size as well as the removal of two of the engines, the original steam engines were replaced with two-stoke gasoline combustion ones. This new design was dubbed the Taube. But the design was weak, with the airship having trouble lifting off and was severely underpowered. Further improvements were made, and by 1878, the Storch was created.

The Storch was manned by only one person, who piloted the craft. This new design also added a tail to the gondola, to which a more powerful gasoline engine was affixed. This back engine provided forward thrust while the two engines on the side now handled steering. The reinforcing bands were increased to five, as well as attaching a retaining bar which encircled the outside of the envelope, with the envelope now strapped to the frame with leather strips. The envelope was also elongated by several meters in both forward and backward directions. The Storch class airship, now a crude zeppelin, was continually developed into the 1880s.

Reorganization and Updates
Now, as the SIM watched the Storch develop, new potential arose for military purposing. The SIM, under the order of the Kaiser, restructured the SIMS into the modern-day SIAF, leaving only a small portion of the new branch with the original task.

The new Falke design of airships was produced as an outcome of the Storch class in 1885. The Falke internalized the structural elements in the envelope, added eight engines to the outside of envelope, increased the size of the gondola and removed the tail from the craft entirely. Plates of armour were placed along the top of the frame, and harpoons along sections of the gondola.

Heavier-than-Air
In late 1897, Henry Archmann patented his designed for a heavier-than-air fixed-wing aircraft. Though the design was considered unfeasible by both SIRDO and SIAF at the time, so no attempts at buying the patents were made.

However, after Archmann's successful demonstration of his design at the 1900 World's Fair, the State found new interest. Archmann's company was now funded by the State, and he was commissioned to design military models of his aircraft.

The first was the Geier, which added two light machine guns to the wings, as well as a larger engine. These changes required that the prototype model increase both in size and mass. The Geier was largely unsuccessful, but brought insight into airplane design. Newer models were then tested, which showed great improvement, as well as the great military potential of heavier-than-air crafts.

The Next Decade
''Under Construction, Please Stand By. ''