The unarmed Lohner B.VII and its armed derivative the C.I were military
reconnaissance
In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities.
Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmisher ...
aircraft produced in Austria-Hungary during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
.
[Taylor 1989, 610–11] They were the ultimate developments in a family of aircraft that had begun with the
B.I prior to the outbreak of war, and were the first members of that family that proved suitable for front-line service during the conflict.
[Murphy 2005, 105] Like their predecessors, the B.VII and C.I were conventional biplanes with characteristic swept-back wings.
Operational history
The B.VII appeared in August 1915 and finally provided a machine suitable for service use.
These were used to conduct long-range reconnaissance missions over the
Italian Front, as well as occasional bombing raids, carrying 80 kg (180 lb) of bombs internally. Many B.VIIs in operational service were equipped with machine guns on flexible mounts for the observer,
and this led to the armed C.I version being produced at both the Lohner and Ufag factories. Aside from its factory-installed armament, the C.I also sported a streamlined cowling around the engine, whereas the B-types had their cylinders exposed to the airstream. Notable missions carried out by these aircraft included the raid on the
Porta Volta
Porta Volta is a former city gate of Milan, Italy, part of the Spanish walls (16th century). Nowadays, the name "Porta Volta" is most commonly used to refer to the surrounding district (" quartiere"), part of the Zone 8 administrative division of ...
power station in
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
on 14 February 1916 (a 378 km/276 mi round trip for 12 B.VIIs)
[Murphy 2005, 106] and
Julius Arigi
Julius Arigi (3 October 1895 – 1 August 1981) was a flying ace of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in World War I with a total of 32 credited victories. His victory total was second only to Godwin von Brumowski. Arigi was considered a superb natur ...
sinking an Italian steamer at
Valona in a B.VII in 1916.
[Chant 2002, 56]
Production of all versions ceased in 1917,
[Gunston 1993, 188] and all were withdrawn from service soon afterwards.
Variants
;B.VII:unarmed version with 110 kW (150 hp) or 120 kW (160 hp) Austro Daimler engine (73 built)
;B.VII(U): Series 17.5: production by UFAG (''Ungarische Flugzeugfabrik Abteil Gesellschaft / Ungarische Flugzeugwerke Aktien Gesellschaft''): 48 built.
;C.I:version with 120 kW (160 hp) Austro Daimler engine and armed with single machine gun on trainable mount for observer (40 built)
Specifications
Notes
References
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Further reading
A contemporary accountof the raid carried out on 14 February 1916, published in ''
Flight
Flight or flying is the process by which an object moves through a space without contacting any planetary surface, either within an atmosphere (i.e. air flight or aviation) or through the vacuum of outer space (i.e. spaceflight). This can be a ...
''.
{{Authority control
B.VII
1910s Austro-Hungarian military reconnaissance aircraft
Biplanes
Single-engined tractor aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1915
fr:Lohner C.I