Rumpler C.III
C.III and C.V | |
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Role | Reconnaissance aircraft |
National origin | Germany |
Manufacturer | Rumpler |
First flight | 1916 |
The Rumpler C.III (factory designation 6A5) was a biplane military reconnaissance aircraft built in Germany during World War I.[1]
Development
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/Rumpler_C.III_%28left_side%29.jpg/220px-Rumpler_C.III_%28left_side%29.jpg)
It was a development of the Rumpler C.I design incorporating many aerodynamic refinements, including wing planform, airfoil section, and horn-balanced ailerons,[2] revised empennage,[2] and new rear fuselage decking with compound curves.[3] This latter feature was later removed and replaced with a simplified structure, at which point the factory designation was changed to 6A6.[3] Performance was improved over that of the C.I,[1] and the C.III was selected for limited production, thought to be about 75 aircraft. The Frontbestand table of C-type aircraft at the front shows a maximum of 42 C.III aircraft at the front on 28 February 1917. With the introduction of the more powerful Rumpler C.IV based on a refined C.III airframe, the number of operational C.III aircraft at the front dropped rapidly and by the autumn of 1917 only one was at the front. The C.III was a qualified success, but its design served mainly as a stepping stone to the further refined C.IV.[2]
Specifications (C.III)
Data from Kroschel & Stützer 1994, p.127
General characteristics
- Crew: Two, pilot and observer
Performance
Notes
References
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/30px-Commons-logo.svg.png)
- Gray, Peter; Owen Thetford (1962). German Aircraft of the First World War. London: Putnam.
- 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.