Rumpler 6B

6B
Role	Floatplane fighter
Manufacturer	Rumpler Flugzeugwerke
First flight	1916
Introduction	1916
Retired	1920s
Primary users	German Imperial Navy Finnish Air Force
Produced	1916–1918
Number built	88
Developed from	Rumpler C.I

The Rumpler 6B was a German single-engine floatplane fighter with a biplane wing structure, designed and built by Rumpler Flugzeugwerke, in Berlin Johannisthal and introduced in 1916.

Born out of a requirement of the Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy) for a seaplane fighter, the Rumpler 6B was, like its contemporaries the Albatros W.4 and Hansa-Brandenburg W.9, an adaptation of an existing landplane design. In Rumpler's case the new floatplane fighter was based on the company's two-seat C.I reconnaissance aircraft. The modifications included adding a forward stagger to the wings, removal of the second (observer's) cockpit and fitting a larger rudder to offset the increased side area caused by the addition of floats. In the production aircraft, the area of the horizontal tail surfaces was also slightly reduced. The armament consisted of a fixed, forward-firing 7.92 mm (.312 in) LMG 08/15 "Spandau" machine gun mounted on port side of the engine block.

The initial version of the fighter was the 6B-1. A total of 39 of these were produced, with all but one of the number having been delivered by the end of May 1917. A new version of the basic design, the 6B-2, was introduced in October 1917. These aircraft retained the Mercedes D.III engine, but otherwise they were based on the C.IV, with larger dimensions and more rounded horizontal tail surfaces. In spite of the decrease in performance, 49 of this type were delivered between October 1917 and January 1918, during which time the remaining 6B-1 also left the factory.

The Rumpler 6Bs were mostly employed at German seaplane bases at Ostend and Zeebrugge. Some were also sent to the Black Sea area to fight the Russians.

...
Wikipedia