Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft

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Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft
IndustryAircraft manufacture
Founded1908
Defunct1933
Headquarters,

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.

Contents

Airships

The PL 18 next to an airship hangar. This was delivered to the Royal Navy as Parseval No.4 in 1913. Parseval PL 18 1913-05-03.jpg
The PL 18 next to an airship hangar. This was delivered to the Royal Navy as Parseval No.4 in 1913.

Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft formed on April 30, 1908, from the assets of an experimental airship engine company located in Bitterfeld, Motorluftschiff Studiengesellscaft (MStG). Additional funding for the new enterprise was provided primarily by Krupp, AEG, and a local chemical company. The company's offices were located in Berlin along with the factory at Adlershof. Manufacture was transferred to Charlottenburg following a fire on 6 September 1916, allegedly caused by the British Secret Service. [1]

Their first project was an airship design by August von Parseval, a German airship designer. This entered service as the PL.II in 1910. During World War I, four were delivered to the German Army and Navy. In total some 25 "PL" airships were built, flown and delivered to various customers. The PL-26, one of the last, crashed on landing and burnt inside hangar Luftschiffhalle 2 with no fatalities. For the rest of the war the hangars were used mostly for repairs of observation balloons.

Aeroplanes

LFG Roland C.II Walfisch LFG Roland C.II LRQ.jpg
LFG Roland C.II Walfisch

In 1913 LFG started producing new designs under the trade name Roland to avoid confusion with the Luftverkehrsgesellschaft (L.V.G.) firm. In 1916 the company developed a floatplane version of the Albatros C.Ia as the LFG W. Some parts were built in Bitterfeld, but final assembly and checkout was carried out in new factories in Stralsund.

Their first successful design was the Roland C.II Walfisch (whale), a two-seat reconnaissance biplane. It had a semi-monocoque fuselage, skinned with two layers of long plywood strips glued at opposing diagonal angles around a mold and skinned with fabric both inside and outside. The fuselage filled the full gap between the wings, leaving the pilot and observer/gunner over the top wings with an excellent view upward. The fuselage "half-shells" were each fitted onto a supporting framework of wooden formers and longerons. The "wrapping" technique of the long plywood strips for the outer fuselage surface led to this particular technique of manufacture being described in German as the Wickelrumpf (wrapped body) style of construction, and was subsequently patented by the firm, [2] licensing the construction method to Pfalz in 1917 for construction of their own single-seat fighter designs. Although it was said to have tricky handling, the Roland C.II had excellent performance, and was also used on long-range missions as a bomber escort. A version with the 200 hp Benz Bz.IV engine and new wing struts was built as the D.III, but only one prototype was ever built, as was the case for the 160 hp Mercedes D.III-powered C.V.

The C.II was adapted to the pure fighter role as the Roland D.I, but in this role the poor forward view proved to be a problem. A fire at the factory severely constrained production, and only 20 were built. A newer version with a more conventional layout, the Roland D.II, followed, whose fuselage was reduced in height to leave a gap with the upper wing but was otherwise similar overall. The competing Albatros D.I was preferred, and only about 230 examples were built, which were then mostly used on the eastern front and in Macedonia. The fuselage to wing gap was further increased in the D.III, but the temperamental 180 hp Argus As.III limited production to only a handful. Six D.IIs were delivered in July 1917 to the Bulgarian Air Force, and six D.IIIs were delivered in May 1918. [3]

An LFG V 44 LFG V 44.JPG
An LFG V 44

Although the Wickelrumpf style of wood-structure monocoque fuselage was extremely strong, it was also very difficult and time-consuming to build. A new method of construction was introduced that used spruce planking running the length of the aircraft in place of the formed plywood, and the D.III was adapted using this technique to produce D.IV triplane and D.V biplane, both powered by the D.III's 160 hp Mercedes. The fuselage shell's construction technique for these aircraft resembled a clinker-planked boat hull in appearance when finished, and was named Klinkerrumpf (clinker body) construction, and was also patented by the firm. [4] A further adaptation of the D.IV with the 185 hp Benz Bz. III resulted in the Roland D.VI, which was entered in the First Fighter Competition trials at Adlershof in early 1918. Although the Fokker D.VII won that contest, the D.VI was also ordered into production as it used a different engine, and by the end of the war about 350 had been delivered. A large number of different versions using various engines were built as prototypes without entering production, as well as a triplane adaptation as the D.VI (also known as the Dr.I).

The next major design from Roland were parasol monoplane designs, the D.XVI with the Siemens-Halske Sh.III or 170 hp Goebel Goe.IIIa rotary piston engines, and the otherwise similar D.XVII with the inline 185 hp BMW IIIa. Both were entered into the Second Fighter Competition at Adlershof, but lost to the Fokker D.VIII.

After the war all aircraft production in Germany was banned, and the company was forced to close the Bitterfeld plant and reopen in Seddin, producing airplanes, balloons and life boats. In 1933, aircraft production shut down. Three additional Parseval pattern airships were also built during this period.

Aeroplane types

An LFG Roland Pfeilflieger observation biplane 1914-1915 Roland.JPG
An LFG Roland Pfeilflieger observation biplane

This is a list of aeroplane produced, taken from Nowarra, Heinz: Flugzeuge 1914–1918, München 1959 and Emmanuel Gustin's list of German military aircraft. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airframe</span> Mechanical structure of an aircraft

The mechanical structure of an aircraft is known as the airframe. This structure is typically considered to include the fuselage, undercarriage, empennage and wings, and excludes the propulsion system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albatros C.I</span> 1910s German aircraft

The Albatros C.I,, was the first of the successful C-series of two-seat general-purpose biplanes built by Albatros Flugzeugwerke during World War I. Based on the unarmed Albatros B.II, the C.I reversed the pilot and observer seating so that the observer occupied the rear cockpit which was fitted with a ring-mounted 7.92 mm (0.312 in) Parabellum MG14 machine gun.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pfalz D.III</span> Type of aircraft

The Pfalz D.III was a fighter aircraft used by the Luftstreitkräfte during the First World War. The D.III was the first major original design from Pfalz Flugzeugwerke. Though generally considered inferior to contemporary Albatros and Fokker fighters, the D.III was widely used by the Jagdstaffeln from late 1917 to mid-1918. It continued to serve as a training aircraft until the end of the war.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pfalz D.XII</span> Type of aircraft

The Pfalz D.XII was a German fighter aircraft built by Pfalz Flugzeugwerke. Designed by Rudolph Gehringer as a successor to the Pfalz D.III, the D.XII entered service in significant numbers near the end of the First World War. It was the last Pfalz aircraft to see widespread service. Though the D.XII was an effective fighter aircraft, it was overshadowed by the highly successful Fokker D.VII.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LFG Roland C.II</span> Type of aircraft

The LFG Roland C.II, usually known as the Walfisch (Whale), was an advanced German reconnaissance aircraft of World War I. It was manufactured by Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft G.m.b.H.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LFG Roland D.VI</span> 1910s German fighter aircraft

The Roland D.VI was a German fighter aircraft built at the end of World War I. It lost a fly-off to the Fokker D.VII, but production went ahead anyway as insurance against problems with the Fokker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LFG Roland D.II</span> 1910s German fighter aircraft

The LFG Roland D.II was a German single-seat fighter of World War I. The type was manufactured by Luftfahrzeug Gesellschaft, and also by Pfalz Flugzeugwerke under license.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LFG Roland D.I</span> Type of aircraft

The LFG Roland D.I was a fighter aircraft produced in Germany during World War I. It was a single-seat aircraft based originally on the Roland C.II two-seat reconnaissance type. It shared its predecessor's unusual design feature of having a deep fuselage that completely filled the interplane gap, but in comparison, the fuselage was much sleeker. While the C.II's appearance had earned the Walfisch ("Whale"), the D.I became known as the Haifisch ("Shark"). The I-struts that had been used to brace the C.II's wing were replaced by more conventional struts. Other changes to the wing included the removal of stagger from the design and the introduction of slight sweepback.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LFG Roland D.III</span> 1910s German fighter aircraft

The LFG Roland D.III was a fighter aircraft produced in Germany during World War I.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rumpler D.I</span> Type of aircraft

The Rumpler D.I was a fighter-reconnaissance aircraft produced in Germany at the end of World War I. It was a conventional single-bay biplane with wings of unequal span braced by I-struts. It featured an open cockpit and a fixed, tailskid undercarriage. The upper wing was fitted with aerodynamically balanced ailerons and fuselage had an oval cross-section.

The Kondor E 3, sometimes erroneously known as E.III, was a German single seat, monoplane fighter aircraft designed and built close to the end of World War I. Though successful in the third D-type fighter competition at Aldershof in September 1918, only a few were produced, given the Idflieg designation of Kondor D.I.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LFG Roland D.VII</span> 1910s German fighter aircraft prototype

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LFG Roland D.IX</span> 1910s German fighter aircraft prototype

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LFG Roland D.XV</span> 1910s German fighter aircraft

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LFG Roland D.XVI</span> 1910s German fighter aircraft

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LFG Roland D.XVII</span> Type of aircraft

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 LFG Roland C.VIII was a German reconnaissance aircraft of World War I. It was manufactured by Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft G.m.b.H.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LFG V 3 Susanna</span> 1910s German flying boat

The LFG V 3 Susanna was a three seat, high wing monoplane flying boat with a single, pusher configuration engine mounted above the wing. A later variant, the LFG V 3a Susanne, was a bigger, more powerful four-seater. Only one of each was built.

References

  1. German Aircraft of the First World War, Gray P. & Thetford O., 1970 Putnam
  2. Wagner, Ray & Nowarra, Heinz (1971). German Combat Planes: A Comprehensive Survey and History of the Development of German Military Aircraft from 1914 to 1945. New York: Doubleday. pp. 75 & 76.
  3. Aviation in Bulgaria in the Wars from 1912 to 1945, Vol I, Milano Y., 1995 Sveti Gueorgui Pobedonosetz, Sofia
  4. Wagner, Ray & Nowarra, Heinz (1971). German Combat Planes: A Comprehensive Survey and History of the Development of German Military Aircraft from 1914 to 1945. New York: Doubleday. p. 90.
  5. , Emmanuel Gustin, 1997-07-04
  6. Abbott, Dan S., and Grosz, Peter M. "The Benighted Rolands", Air Enthusiast Quarterly, Bromley, Kent., U.K., Volume 3, 1976, pages 39–40.
  7. LFG V 44

Further reading