Don't Miss Any Special Deals - Sign Up To Our Newsletter! Aircraft Search Squadron Search Signature Search Artist Search SPECIAL OFFERS Product Search
CLICK HERE FOR A FULL LIST OF ALL GERALD COULSON PRINTS BY TITLE

Roland D.VI Manufacturer : LFG Roland Number Built : 350 Production Began : 1918 Retired : 0 Type : In January 1918, two D.VIs were entered into the first fighter competition held by Idflieg at Adlershof, one powered by a 160 hp (119 kW) Mercedes D.III engine and the other by a Benz Bz.IIIa of similar power and, like the Mercedes, another upright, inline, six cylinder engine . Although the winner of the competition was the cheaper Fokker D.VII, orders were placed for the Roland as insurance against production problems with the Fokker.[ A total of 350 were built, 150 D.VIas powered by the Mercedes, while the remaining 200 were powered by the Benz and were called D.VIb. Deliveries started in May 1918, with 70 D.VIs in frontline service on 31 August 1918 and were still in use at the end of hostilities in November . The Roland D.VI was purported to have good handling qualities, but most pilots wanted the sensational Fokker D.VII. The clinker built body of the Roland D.VI was final refinement of all the shark-like designs that had come before it.

Roland D.VI

Roland D.VI Artwork Collection

Vfw Emil Schape by Ivan Berryman.

Gefreiter Jakob Tischner - Roland D.VIa by Ivan Berryman.