O.Thetford, P.Gray German Aircraft of the First World War (Putnam)

L.V.G. D II (D 12)
   Built at the end of 1916, this single-seat fighter with monocoque-type fuselage and vee interplane strut arrangement was the second in a series of experimental D types. There was no L.V.G. D I as such, the designation being allocated to the Albatros D II, which was licence-built by L.V.G. The L.V.G. D II was fitted with 160 h.p. Mercedes D III. No other data.

W.Green, G.Swanborough The Complete Book of Fighters

LVG D 12 (D II) Germany

   At the end of 1916, the LVG produced the prototype of an elegant and more orthodox single-seat fighter biplane, the D 12, also known as the D II (the LVG D I being the licence-built Albatros D II). An unequal-span single-bay biplane with an Albatros-style wooden semi-monocoque fuselage which filled the gap between the wings, the D 12 was powered by a 160 hp Mercedes D III engine and allegedly attained 124 mph (200 km/h) during the course of prototype trials. After suffering accidental damage the type was not further developed. No data relating to the D 12 are available.

J.Herris LVG Aircraft of WWI. Vol.3: Types C.VI-C.XI & Fighters (A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes 36)

LVG D.II

  The designation LVG D.I was applied to the Albatros D.II built under license by LVG. The LVG D.II, internal factory designation D 12, was the second original LVG fighter design to be built and first to receive a military designation.
  Like the earlier D 10, the LVG D.II was designed with a wood fuselage with the wings attached directly to it without use of cabane struts. The D.II used a more conventional fuselage that was not as deep as that of the D 10, resulting in a more conventional appearance. The large I-struts of the D 10 were replaced by V-struts, which improved the pilot's field of view at the expense of strength. The under-carriage was now of the typical simple design used by nearly all other contemporary aircraft.
  Despite using technology similar to the Albatros D.III, then the leading German fighter, plus an excellent field of view for the pilot, the LVG D.II remained a single prototype and no performance data or dimensional specifications have survived. The D.II purportedly achieved 200 km/h during testing; if that is true, its other qualities must have been very poor for it to remain a single prototype because no German front-line fighter achieved that speed until mid-1918, and having that speed available earlier would have been very important to the pilots.



LVG Fighter Specifications
LVG D 10 LVG D.II LVG D.III LVG D.IV LVG D.V LVG D.VI
Engine 120 hp Mercedes D.II 160 hp Mercedes D.III 185 hp NAG C.III 195 hp Benz Bz.IIIb 195 hp Benz Bz.IIIb 195 hp Benz Bz.IIIb
Span, Upper - - 10.00 m 8.50 m - -
Wing Area - - 26.20 m2 18.06 m2 - -
Length - - 7.53 m 6.28 m - -
Empty Weight - - 773 kg 680 kg - -
Loaded Weight - - 1,028 kg 935 kg - -
Max. Speed - - 175 km/h - - -
Climb 5000 m - - 25 minutes 28 minutes - -