LVG B.I

{{Infobox aircraft | name = LVG B.I | logo = | logo_size = | image = LVG B.I.jpg | alt = | caption = | long_caption = | other_names = | aircraft_type = Two-seat reconnaissance biplan | aim = | outcome = | related = | national_origin = Germany | manufacturer = Luft-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft | design_group = | designer = | builder = | issuer = | status = | owners = | primary_user = ''Luftstreitkräfte'' | more_users = | service = | major_applications = | proposals = | prototypes = | number_built = | construction_number = | civil_registration = | military_serial = | radio_code = | requirement = | aircraft_carried = | flights = | total_hours = | total_distance = | construction_date = | introduction = | retired = | first_flight = | initiated = | in_service = | last_flight = | expected = | developed_from = | variants = | developed_into = | preservation = | fate = | predecessors = | successors = | concluded = }}

The '''LVG B.I''' was a 1910s German two-seat reconnaissance biplane designed by Luft-Verkehrs-Gesellschaft for the ''Luftstreitkräfte''.

==Development== LVG had been involved in the operation of dirigibles before it started design, in 1912, of the company's first original design, the B.I. The B.I was an unequal-span two-seat biplane with a fixed tailskid landing gear. It was powered by a nose-mounted 80 kW (100 hp) Mercedes D.I engine. After entering service an improved variant, the '''B.II''' was developed with a cut-out in the upper wing to improve visibility for the pilot in the rear cockpit to help spot ground infantry and fitted with a 90 kW (120 hp) Mercedes D.II engine. The B.II entered service in 1915 and although mainly used as a trainer it was also used for unarmed reconnaissance and scouting duties. A further variant was the '''B.III''' which had structural strengthening to allow it to be used as a trainer.

The Euler company built the B.I and B.II under license as the '''Euler B.I''' and '''Euler B.II''' respectively. The B.III was likewise built under license by Euler as the '''Euler B.III'''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_LVG_BI.html|title = LVG B.i}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_LVG_BIII.html|title = LVG B.III}}</ref>

==Variants== thumb|right|German pilots in front of an LVG B.I on the western front * '''B.I''' - Production variant powered by an 80 kW (100 hp) Mercedes D.I engine. ** '''Otto B.I/LVG B.I(Ot)''' - Otto-built B.I.<ref>Herris, Jack, 2019. ''Otto, AGO, and BFW Aircraft of WWI: A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes (Great War Aviation Centennial Series).'' Aeronaut Books.</ref> * '''B.II''' - Improved variant powered by a 90 kW (120 hp) Mercedes D.II engine. ** '''Lebedev IX''' - Captured B.II rebuilt by Lebed and supplied to the Imperial Russian Air Force * '''B.III''' - Training variant with strengthened structures.

==Operators== ;{{BUL}} *Bulgarian Air Force ;{{DEN}} *Royal Danish Air Force ;{{flag|German Empire}} *Luftstreitkrafte ;{{TUR}} *Ottoman Air Force

==Specifications (B.I)== {{Aircraft specs |ref=<ref>Orbis 1985, page 2277</ref> |prime units? = met |crew=2 (pilot, observer) |length m=8.30 |length ft=27 |length in=2.75 |span m=12.12 |span ft=39 |span in=9.25 |height m=2.95 |height ft=9 |height in=8.25 |wing area sqm=35.40 |wing area sqft=381.05 |empty weight kg=726 |empty weight lb=1,600 |gross weight kg=1,075 |gross weight lb=2,370 |eng1 number=1 |eng1 name=Mercedes D.I inline piston engine |eng1 kw=75 |eng1 hp=100 |max speed kmh=105 |max speed mph=65 |endurance=4 hours 0 minutes }}

==See also== {{aircontent  |see also= |related= |similar aircraft= |lists= * List of military aircraft of Germany }}

==References== {{Commons category|LVG B.I}}

===Notes=== {{Reflist}}

===Bibliography=== *{{cite journal |last1=Anderson|first1=Lennart|title=La renaissance de l'aviation militair bulgare dans les années vingt|journal=Avions |date=November–December 2019 |issue=232|pages=52–66 |trans-title=The Rebirth of Bulgarian Military Aviation in the Twenties|language=French |issn=1243-8650}} *{{cite journal |last1=Klaauw|first1=Bart van der|title=Unexpected Windfalls: Accidentally or Deliberately, More than 100 Aircraft 'arrived' in Dutch Territory During the Great War |journal=Air Enthusiast |date=March–April 1999 |issue=80 |pages=54–59 |issn=0143-5450}} * {{cite book |last= Taylor |first= Michael J. H. |title=Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation |year=1989 |publisher=Studio Editions |location=London }} *{{cite book |title= The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982-1985)|publisher= Orbis Publishing}}  {{LVG aircraft}} {{Idflieg B-class designations}} {{Lebed aircraft}} {{World War I Aircraft of the Central Powers}} {{Authority control}}

Category:1910s German military reconnaissance aircraft Category:Biplanes Category:Single-engined tractor aircraft B.I Category:Aircraft first flown in 1912 Category:Aircraft with fixed conventional landing gear

LVG B.I

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