Jump to content

Rumpler B.I

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Rumpler 4A)
B.I
Role Reconnaissance aircraft
National origin Germany
Manufacturer Rumpler
First flight 1914
Primary user Luftstreitkräfte
Number built ca 225

The Rumpler B.I (factory designation 4A) was a military reconnaissance aircraft produced in Germany during World War I.[1]

Design and development

[edit]

The B.I was a conventional two-bay biplane with unstaggered wings of unequal span.[2] It featured two open cockpits in tandem and fixed, tailskid undercarriage.[2] Its upper wing reflected the wing design of the Etrich Taube that Rumpler was building at the time.[3]

Rumpler built 198 of these aircraft for the Luftstreitkräfte, plus 26 seaplane versions for the Imperial German Navy.[2]

Variants

[edit]
  • 4A - landplane with Mercedes D.I engine, military designation B.I[3]
    • 4A13 - B.I with balanced, comma-style rudder[4]
    • 4A14 - version with Benz Bz.III engine[5]
  • 4B - seaplane
    • 4B1 - version with Mercedes D.I engine[6]
    • 4B2 - version with Benz Bz.III engine[6]
    • 4B11 - version with Benz Bz.I engine[5]
    • 4B12 - version with Benz Bz.III engine[5]

Operators

[edit]
 Denmark
 Germany
 Turkey

Specifications

[edit]

Data from Gray & Thetford 1962, p.518

General characteristics

  • Crew: Two, pilot and observer
  • Length: 8.40 m (27 ft 7 in)
  • Wingspan: 13.00 m (42 ft 8 in)
  • Height: 3.10 m (10 ft 2 in)
  • Empty weight: 750 kg (1,650 lb)
  • Gross weight: 970 kg (2,100 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Mercedes D.I , 75 kW (100 hp)

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 145 km/h (90 mph, 78 kn)

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Taylor 1989, p.771
  2. ^ a b c The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft, p.2833
  3. ^ a b Gray & Thetford 1962, p.518
  4. ^ Gray & Thetford 1962, p.519
  5. ^ a b c Gray & Thetford 1962, p.520
  6. ^ a b Kroschel & Stützer 1994, p.127

References

[edit]
  • Gray, Peter; Owen Thetford (1962). German Aircraft of the First World War. London: Putnam.
  • Herris, Jack (2014). Rumpler Aircraft of WWI: A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes. Great War Aviation Centennial Series. Vol. 11. n.p.: Aeronaut Books. ISBN 978-1-935881-21-6.
  • The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft. London: Aerospace Publishing.
  • Kroschel, Günter; Helmut Stützer (1994). Die Deutschen Militärflugzeuge 1910–1918. Herford: Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn.
  • Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions.

Further reading

[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rumpler B.I.
  • Nicolle, David (March–April 1999). "Young Turks: Ottoman Turkish Fighters 1915–1918". Air Enthusiast. No. 74. pp. 40–45. ISSN 0143-5450.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rumpler_B.I&oldid=1139531366"