LVG C.II

LVG C.II
	LVG C.II armed with a Bergman machine gun in the observer's cockpit.
Role	reconnaissance/light bomber
National origin	Germany
Manufacturer	Luft-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft
Introduction	late 1915
Primary user	Luftstreitkräfte
Number built	c. 300
Developed from	LVG B.I

The LVG C.II was a 1910s German two-seat reconnaissance biplane designed at the Luft-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft for the Luftstreitkräfte.

Development

The C.II was developed from the LVG B.I, with the pilot and observer positions reversed, adding a ring-mounted machine gun to the rear. The increase in weight required a larger engine, the Benz Bz.III. Few C.I's were built before the C.II was introduced. It incorporated structural improvements and a more powerful engine.^[1]

Operational history

The C.IV was the first fixed-wing aircraft to bomb London, when six bombs were dropped near Victoria Station on 28 November 1916.^[1] (The first air raid on London was by the Zeppelin LZ 38, in the early hours of 1 June 1915.)

Variants

LVG C.I - initial design, 120 kW (160 hp) Benz Bz.III engine.
LVG C.II - production version.
LVG C.III - single experimental aircraft, observer and machine gun moved to front.
LVG C.IV - slightly larger, 160 kW (220 hp) Mercedes D.IV engine.

Operators

German Empire

Switzerland

Swiss Air Force

Specifications (C.II)

Data from Donald, David, The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft (pg 553). (1997). Prospero Books. ISBN 1-85605-375-X

General characteristics

Crew: 2
Capacity: 2
Length: 8.10 m (26 ft 7 in)
Wingspan: 12.85 m (42 ft 2 in)
Height: 2.93 m (9 ft 7.25 in)
Wing area: 37.60 m² (404.74 sq ft)
Empty weight: 845 kg (1,863 lb)
Gross weight: 1,405 kg (3,097 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × Mercedes D.III , 119 kW (160 hp)

Performance

Maximum speed: 130 km/h (81 mph, 70 kn)
Range: 385 km (240 mi, 210 nmi)
Endurance: 4 hours
Service ceiling: 4,000 m (13,125 ft)
Wing loading: 37 kg/m² (7.6 lb/sq ft)

Armament

1 × flexible 7.92 mm (.312 in) Parabellum MG14 machine gun
1 × fixed, forward-firing 7.92 mm (.312 in) LMG 08/15 machine gun (later production aircraft)
up to 60 kg (130 lb) of light bombs

Notes

^ ^a ^b Donald, 1997, p. 553.

References

Donald, David, The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft (pg 553). (1997). Prospero Books. ISBN 1-85605-375-X
Grosz, P. M. (2004). The LVG C.II. Windsock Datafile. Vol. 106. Berkhampstead, UK: Albatros Productions. ISBN 978-1-902207-64-5.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: ignored ISBN errors (link)
Grosz, P. M. (2005). The LVG C.IV. Windsock Datafile. Vol. 112. Berkhampstead, UK: Albatros Productions. ISBN 978-1-902207-74-2.
Lagorgette, Jean (Nov 1, 1916). "Les Biplans allemands L. V. G." L'Aérophile (in French). 24 (21–22). Paris.
van Wyngarden, G (2006). Early German Aces of World War I, Osprey Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1-84176-997-5

[Donald-1] Donald, 1997, p. 553.

[1]