Aviatik C.I

The Aviatik C.I was an observation aircraft which came into service during World War I in April 1915. It was a development of the Aviatik B.I and B.II models, being one of first aircraft of the new German C class of armed biplanes. In the C.I the observer sat in front of the pilot, with a machine-gun clipped on a sliding mounting fitted on a rail at either side of the cockpit.[1] It gave the crew the means to attack enemy aircraft.[2] The positions of the pilot and observer were reversed in last series of 50, ordered in 1917 solely for trainer purpose.[3] There was only one aircraft built of refined C.Ia version in May 1916, with armament still in a forward cab, serving as a prototype for C.III.[3] Later models of the plane included the Aviatik C.II and the C.III, which had more powerful engines. The C.III was produced in large numbers.

C.I
Aviatik C.I trainer (late series)
Role Reconnaissance aircraft
Manufacturer Aviatik
First flight 1915
Introduction 1915
Retired 1917

548 Aviatik C.I were built in total: 402 by Aviatik (including 51 trainers and 1 C.Ia) and 146 by Hannover.[4]

Variants
C.I
Primary model
C.I(Han)
Primary model licence-built by Hannover, initially designated Hannover C.I
C.I trainer
Last series of 50 plus a prototype manufactured in 1917, with a machine gun in rear cab.[3]
C.Ia
Prototype for C.III, flown in May–June 1916.[3]
C.II
This model was powered by a 149 kW (200 hp) Benz Bz.IV engine. it was not produced in quantity.[5]
C.III
The C.III was a 1916 refinement which was operated until 1917.[5]

Operators
 Austria-Hungary
 German Empire
 Romania
 Kingdom of Yugoslavia

Specifications

Data from German Aircraft of the First World War[6]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 2
  • Length: 7.925 m (26 ft 0 in)
  • Wingspan: 12.5 m (41 ft 0 in)
  • Height: 2.95 m (9 ft 8 in)
  • Wing area: 43 m2 (460 sq ft)
  • Empty weight: 750 kg (1,653 lb)
  • Gross weight: 1,340 kg (2,954 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Mercedes D.III 6-cylinder water-cooled in-line piston engine, 119 kW (160 hp)
  • Propellers: 2-bladed fixed-pitch propeller

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 142 km/h (88 mph, 77 kn)
  • Endurance: 3 hours
  • Service ceiling: 3,500 m (11,500 ft)
  • Time to altitude: 1,000 m (3,281 ft) in 12 minutes
  • Wing loading: 31.2 kg/m2 (6.4 lb/sq ft)
  • Power/mass: 0.089 kW/kg (0.054 hp/lb)

Armament

Notes
  1. Gray, Thetford (1970), p. 59-63
  2. van Wyngarden, G. Early German Aces, p.6
  3. Grosz, Peter M. Aviatik C.I. Berkhamsted: Albatros Productions, 1997, Windsock Datafile no.63. ISBN 0-948414-95-2. p.5-6
  4. Grosz, Peter M. Aviatik C.I. Berkhamsted: Albatros Productions, 1997, Windsock Datafile no.63. ISBN 0-948414-95-2. p.5-6, 32
  5. Janes, p.88
  6. Thetford 1962, pp.59–63.

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Aviatik C.I.
  • Gray, Peter & Thetford, Owen (1987) [1970]. German Aircraft of the First World War (2nd ed.). London: Putnam. ISBN 0-85177-809-7.
  • Herris, Jack (2023). Aviatik Aircraft of WWI: A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes. Great War Aviation Centennial Series. Vol. 10 (2nd ed.). n.p.: Aeronaut Books. ISBN 978-1-953201-59-1.
  • Klaauw, Bart van der (March–April 1999). "Unexpected Windfalls: Accidentally or Deliberately, More than 100 Aircraft 'arrived' in Dutch Territory During the Great War". Air Enthusiast (80): 54–59. ISSN 0143-5450.
  • van Wyngarden, G. Early German Aces of World War 1. Oxford: Osprey Publishing, 2006. ISBN 1-84176-997-5
  • Taylor, Michael J H. Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. Portland House, 1989. ISBN 0-517-69186-8
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