LFG Roland D.VII

LFG Roland D.VII
Role	Single seat fighter aircraft
National origin	Germany
Manufacturer	LFG Roland (Luft-Fahrzeug-Gesellschaft)
First flight	late 1917-early 1918
Number built	2 (second as D.VIII)

The LFG Roland D.VII was a German single seat, single engine biplane fighter aircraft built during World War I. Problems with its underdeveloped V-8 engine prevented its production.

The D.VII was a response by LFG to continued criticism of the pilot's limited forward and downward view from its fighters. The D.V and D.VI had attempted to address this problem though not very successfully. Since the height of the Mercedes D.III and Benz Bz.IIIa inline engines used in these two designs was part of the problem, LFG decided to install the new 60° V-8 Benz Bz.IIIb, lowering the cylinders and providing a gap between them.

Apart from its engine, the D.VII had much in common with the D.VI, particularly with the original D.VIa variant. It was a single bay biplane with pairs of near-parallel interplane struts and blunt tipped wings of almost constant chord, though less staggered than on the D.VI. The upper wing was carried above the fuselage by a cabane; only this wing mounted ailerons. A small cut-out in its trailing edge above the cockpit enhanced the pilot's view. The vertical tail was rounded, with a deep, wide chord rudder that extended below the fuselage to meet a small ventral fin. Both types had Klinkerrumpf, clinker built fuselages, monocoques constructed with thin overlapping spruce strips over a light wooden internal framework and oval in cross-section. The engine was totally enclosed in the nose, driving a two blade propeller. The D.VII's conventional undercarriage had mainwheels on a single axle, supported by long V-struts to the lower fuselage and a tailskid on the leading edge of the ventral fin.

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