Zeppelin-Staaken R.VI

what is it?

The Zeppelin-Staaken R.VI was a four-engined German biplane strategic bomber of World War I, and the only Riesenflugzeug (giant aircraft) design built in any quantity. The R.VI was the most numerous of the R-Bombers built by Germany, and also among the earliest closed-cockpit military aircraft (the first being the Russian Sikorsky Ilya Muromets).

🔎How to recognise it: 8 piston engines with propellers · 42.2 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 135 km/htop speed
• range 800 kmwithout refuelling
• size 11.8 tmax take-off weight
• built 56made in total

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 42.2 m: about 9 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

56

role

bomber

makers

Zeppelin-Staaken

engines

8× Mercedes D.IVa / Maybach Mb.IVa

crew

10

length

22.1 m

wingspan

42.2 m

height

6.3 m

max take-off weight

11.8 t

top speed

135 km/h

range

800 km

ceiling

4,320 m

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