DFW C.V
The DFW C.IV, DFW C.V, DFW C.VI, and DFW F37 were a family of German reconnaissance aircraft first used in 1916 in World War I. They were conventionally configured biplanes with unequal-span unstaggered wings and seating for the pilot and observer in tandem, open cockpits. Like the DFW C.II before them, these aircraft seated the gunner to the rear and armed him with a machine gun on a ring mount. Compared to preceding B- and C-class designs by DFW, however, the aerodynamics of the fuselage were more refined, and when coupled with more powerful engines, resulted in a machine with excellent performance.
Design and development
The C.IV had a single-bay wing cellule and was powered by a 112 kW (150.19 hp) Benz Bz.III. It was soon replaced in production by the definitive C.V with a two-bay wing cellule and either a 185 hp (137.95 kW) C.III N.A.G. or 149 kW (199.81 hp) Benz Bz.IV. Predictably, the more powerful Benz engine gave significantly better performance.
The C.V's main designer was Heinrich Oelerich, and it was produced in larger numbers than any other German aircraft during World War I. About 2000 were manufactured by DFW and about 1,250 licence manufactured by Aviatik (as the DFW C.V(Av) or Aviatik C.VI), Halberstadt, LVG, and Schütte-Lanz.