The AEG C.VII was a
prototype
A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and Software prototyping, software programming. A prototype ...
two-seat
biplane
A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...
reconnaissance aircraft
A reconnaissance aircraft (colloquially, a spy plane) is a military aircraft designed or adapted to perform aerial reconnaissance with roles including collection of imagery intelligence (including using Aerial photography, photography), signals ...
built by the (AEG) during the
First World War
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
for the
Imperial German Army
The Imperial German Army (1871–1919), officially referred to as the German Army (), was the unified ground and air force of the German Empire. It was established in 1871 with the political unification of Germany under the leadership of Kingdom o ...
's ()
Imperial German Air Service
Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor/empress, or imperialism.
Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to:
Places
United States
* Imperial, California
* Imperial, Missouri
* Imperial, Nebraska
* Imperial, Pennsylvania
* Impe ...
(). It was developed from the
C.IV but did not enter production. The C.VII was tested with two different wing arrangements, one with straight wings and another with a swept upper wing.
Development
The C.VII had been developed to the Inspectorate of Flying Troops ( ()'s requirement for a new type of two-seat aircraft, smaller than the existing C-type aircraft. These were to be used to equip protection flights () to escort reconnaissance aircraft. Three prototypes were ordered in October 1916 with the first aircraft completed in December. They were scaled down about 20 percent from the C.IV and the C.VII had
single-bay wings. The two aircraft shared the same water-cooled
Mercedes D.III
The Mercedes D.III, or F1466 as it was known internally, was a six-cylinder SOHC valvetrain liquid-cooled inline aircraft engine built by Daimler and used on a wide variety of German aircraft during World War I. The initial versions were introd ...
straight-six
A straight-six engine (also referred to as an inline-six engine; abbreviated I6 or L6) is a piston engine with six cylinders arranged in a straight line along the crankshaft. A straight-six engine has perfect primary and secondary engine balanc ...
piston engine and the armament of one fixed, forward-firing machine gun and another on a flexible mount for the
observer
An observer is one who engages in observation or in watching an experiment.
Observer may also refer to:
Fiction
* ''Observer'' (novel), a 2023 science fiction novel by Robert Lanza and Nancy Kress
* ''Observer'' (video game), a cyberpunk horr ...
. The C.VII was about faster than the C.IV and had a better rate of climb. The first two prototypes had upper wings with straight
leading edge
The leading edge is the part of the wing that first contacts the air;Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 305. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 1997. alternatively it is the foremost edge of an airfoil sectio ...
s, but the third had a swept wing that was intended to improve the gunner's visibility.
[Herris, pp. 16–17, 44]
Fight testing was conducted in early 1917; 's report of 30 April damned the C.VII with faint praise, saying that its performance was acceptable, but was not as good as expected. It was judged suitable for service on the less demanding
Eastern Front and inferior to the submissions by and .
[Herris, p. 44]
Specifications (AEG C.VII)
See also
References
Bibliography
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aeg C.VII
C.VII
Single-engined tractor aircraft
Biplanes
1910s German military reconnaissance aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1916