| LFG Roland D.XVI | |
|---|---|
 | |
| LFG Roland D.XVI first prototype | |
| Role | Single seat fighter aircraft |
| National origin | Germany |
| Manufacturer | LFG Roland (Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft) |
| First flight | September–October 1918 |
| Number built | 2 |
The LFG Roland D.XVI, initially designated the LFG Roland E.I, was a single-seat, single-engine, parasol wing German fighter aircraft flown close to the end of World War I. Only two were built.
The D.XVI had a fully cantilevered fabric covered parasol wing mounted above the fuselage on a pair of N-form struts from the lower fuselage. These struts were laterally stabilized with a near horizontal strut on each side, joining the upper fuselage and the upper end of the rear member of the N. In plan the wing was straight tapered with blunt tips and included a trailing edge cut-out to improve upward vision from the cockpit. The wing was quite thick and the ailerons short. [1]
Its fuselage was flat-sided and rectangular in cross-section, with plywood covering. The prototypes differed in the way this covering was applied; on one the grain ran diagonally, on the other longitudinally. They also differed in their vertical tails, one broader and lower than the other. Both had deep horn balanced rudders which extended to the keel. The horizontal tail was mounted at mid-fuselage, with a straight-edged, unswept tailplane bearing overhung, balanced elevators with outward increasing chord. Both prototypes had conventional undercarriages with a rigid axle mounted to the lower fuselage by V-form struts. [1] [2] [note 1]
The main difference between the two prototypes was in the engines, both fully cowled rotaries. One had a 9-cylinder, 160 hp (119 kW) Goebel Goe.III, the other an 11-cylinder Siemens-Halske Sh.III of about the same power. Both two and four blade propellers were used. [1] [2]
The Idflieg allowed the Sh.III engined version to take part in the third D-type competition for fighters even though that engine was not on its approved list. It was faster than either the Fokker D.VII or the Siemens-Schuckert D.IV below 4,000 m (13,123 ft) but slower at higher altitude. [1]
Data from Green & Swanborough p.339-40 [1]
General characteristics
Armament
The Fokker E.V was a German parasol-monoplane fighter aircraft designed by Reinhold Platz and built by Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. The E.V was the last Fokker design to become operational with the Luftstreitkräfte, entering service in the last months of World War I. After several fatal accidents due to wing failures, the aircraft was modified and redesignated Fokker D.VIII. Dubbed the Flying Razor by post-war pulp-fiction writers, the D.VIII had the distinction of scoring the last aerial victory of the war.
Siemens-Schuckert was a German electrical engineering company headquartered in Berlin, Erlangen and Nuremberg that was incorporated into the Siemens AG in 1966.
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Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft, also referred to as LFG, was a German aircraft manufacturer during World War I. They are best known for their various "Roland" designs, notably the Roland C.II Walfisch (whale), Roland D.II haifisch (Shark) and Roland D.VI, although they also produced a number of airships and many experimental designs.
The Albatros D.XI was a German single-seat fighter sesquiplane first flown in February 1918. It was the first Albatros fighter to use a rotary engine, in the form of the 120 kW (160 hp) Siemens-Halske Sh.III, and also featured a new wing construction with diagonal struts from the fuselage replacing traditional wire bracing.
The Siemens-Halske Sh.III was an 11-cylinder, air-cooled counter rotary engine developed in Germany during World War I. The engine was a development of the earlier 9-cylinder Siemens-Halske Sh.I.
The Pfalz D.VIII was a German World War I fighter aircraft.
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The Siemens-Schuckert D.VI was a single engine, single seat, parasol wing German fighter aircraft flown in 1919.
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The Pfalz D.VII was a German biplane fighter aircraft from World War I. It was not put into production.
The Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft (LFG) Roland D.VII was a German single seat, single engine biplane fighter aircraft built during World War I. Problems with its underdeveloped V-8 engine prevented its production.
The LFG Roland D.IX was a World War I German single seat fighter aircraft, a biplane powered by one of a new generation of powerful rotary engines. Three slightly different prototypes were built but there was no series production.
The LFG Roland D.XV was a World War I German single seat fighter aircraft, ordered as a test-bed for engine comparisons. It was distinguished from earlier Roland biplane designs by the elimination of flying wires. Two later aircraft, also called LFG Roland D.XV, were completely different designs with slab sided fuselages.
The LFG Roland D.XVII was a single-seat, single-engine, parasol wing German fighter aircraft flown close to the end of World War I. Only one was built.
The Siemens-Schuckert Dr.I was a German single seat triplane fighter aircraft first flown in 1917. Its development and that of a more powerful, uncompleted variant, was abandoned after a flight test programme.
The Siemens-Schuckert B was an unarmed German two seat reconnaissance biplane built early in World War I. A single example was delivered but soon lost.
