Numbers 404 and 405 were the sole two examples of a unique seaplane design produced for the flying service of the Imperial German Navy during the First World War.[1] [2] [3] By 1917, the output of the major German seaplane manufacturers was taken up producing machines for front-line service.[1] As a consequence, the only machines available for training purposes were those that had been made obsolete or which had been damaged and rebuilt.[1] In order to provide modern trainers for the Navy, the Kaiserliche Werft Danzig undertook the design and construction of two brand-new seaplanes between March and June,[1] unarmed two-seat biplanes.[3] These machines were supplied to the naval base at Putzig along with a batch of four trainers of a different design, numbered 467–470.[1]