Rumpler C.IV

what is it?

The Rumpler C.IV was a German single-engine, two-seat reconnaissance biplane. It was a development of C.III with different tail surfaces and using a Mercedes D.IVa engine in place of the C.III's Benz Bz.IV. The Rumpler 6B 2 was a single-seat floatplane fighter variant with a 120 kW (160 hp) Mercedes D.III engine built for the Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy). For a two-seater reconnaissance aircraft, Rumpler C.IV had an excellent performance, which enabled it to remain in front-line service until the end of World War I on the Western Front, as well as in Italy and Palestine.

🔎How to recognise it: 1 piston engine with propeller · biplane · fixed tailwheel (taildragger) · 12.7 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 171 km/htop speed
• size 1,530 kgmax take-off weight

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

• 🎂First flew 110 years ago, in 1916.
• 🚗Wingspan of 12.7 m: about 3 cars parked nose to tail.

piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.

spec sheet

first flight

1916

introduced

1917

number built

—

role

reconnaissance aircraft

origin

German Empire

makers

Rumpler

engines

1× Mercedes D.IVa / Mercedes D.IV

crew

2

length

8.4 m

wingspan

12.7 m

height

3.3 m

max take-off weight

1,530 kg

top speed

171 km/h

range

—

ceiling

6,400 m

wings

biplane

landing gear

fixed conventional landing gear

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.