Rumpler G.I
| {{Infobox Aircraft Begin
| name= G.I, G.II and G.III | image=Rumpler G.III (RFQ).jpg | caption=Rumpler G.III }}{{Infobox Aircraft Type | type=Bomber aircraft | national origin=Germany | manufacturer=Rumpler | designer= | first flight=1915 | introduced= | retired= | status= | primary user=Luftstreitkräfte | number built=c. 222 | developed from= | variants with their own articles= }} |
The Rumpler G.I was a bomber aircraft produced in Germany during World War I, together with refined versions known as the G.II and G.III.Taylor 1989, p.772
Design and development
Based on a prototype with the factory designation 4A15, the G.I and its successors were built to a conventional bomber design for their time, two-bay biplanes with unstaggered wings of unequal span.The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft, p.2834 The pilot sat in an open cockpit just forward of the wings, and open positions were provided in the nose and amidships for a gunner and observer. The engines were mounted pusher-fashion in nacelles atop the lower wings and enclosed in streamlined cowlings. Fixed tricycle undercarriage was fitted, with dual wheels on each unit.
The G.II version was almost identical, but featured more powerful engines and carried a second 7.92 mm (.312 in) machine gun and increased bombload. The G.III was again similar, but had engine nacelles that were now mounted on short struts clear of the lower wing.
Variants
File:Rumpler 4A 15 - Ray Wagner Collection Image (21451876531).jpg
- 4A15 - prototype with Benz Bz.III enginesGray & Thetford 1962, p.529
- 5A15 - G.I production version with single machine gun and Benz Bz.III or Mercedes D.III enginesGray & Thetford 1962, p.530 (c. 60 built)
- 5A16 - G.II production version with Benz Bz.IV engines and two machine gunsGray & Thetford 1962, p.531 (c. 72 built)Kroschel & Stützer 1994, p.140
- 6G2 - G.III production version with Mercedes D.IVa engines and two machine gunsGray & Thetford 1962, p.532 (c. 90 built)
Specifications (G.III)
{{Aircraft specs
|ref=Kroschel & Stützer 1994, p.140
|prime units? = met
|crew=Three
|length m=12.00
|length ft=39
|length in=4
|span m=19.30
|span ft=63
|span in=4
|height m=4.50
|height ft=19
|height in=2
|wing area sqm=73.0
|wing area sqft=785
|empty weight kg=2,365
|empty weight lb=5,203
|gross weight kg=3,620
|gross weight lb=7,964
|eng1 number=2
|eng1 name=Mercedes D.IVa
|eng1 kw=190
|eng1 hp=260
|max speed kmh=165
|max speed mph=103
|range km=700
|range miles=440
|ceiling m=5,000
|ceiling ft=16,000
|armament = *1 × trainable 7.92 mm (.312 in) Parabellum MG14 machine gun in nose
- 1 × trainable 7.92 mm (.312 in) Parabellum MG14 machine gun in dorsal position
- 250 kg (550 lb) of bombs
}}
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Notes
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References
{{commons category multi|Rumpler G.I|Rumpler G.II|Rumpler G.III}}
- {{cite book |last=Gray |first=Peter |author2=Owen Thetford |title=German Aircraft of the First World War |publisher=Putnam |location=London |year=1962 }}
- {{cite book |last1=Herris |first1=Jack |title=Rumpler Aircraft of WWI: A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes |date=2014 |publisher=Aeronaut Books |location=n.p. |isbn=978-1-935881-21-6|series=Great War Aviation Centennial Series|volume=11}}
- {{cite book |title=The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft |publisher=Aerospace Publishing|location=London }}
- {{cite book |last= Kroschel |first=Günter |author2=Helmut Stützer |title=Die Deutschen Militärflugzeuge 1910–1918 |publisher=Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn |location=Herford |year=1994}}
{{Rumpler aircraft}}
{{Idflieg G, GL, K, L and N-class designations}}
Category:1910s German bomber aircraft