Fokker Aircraft makes restart July 21st, 1919

On July 21st, 1919, the "Nederlandse Vliegtuigenfabriek" became operational. What is the significance to Military History you migh ask. Well this was the factory of Anthony Fokker. After World War One it was Fokker forbidden to manufacture planes in Germany and all his manufactured warplanes were to be destroyed. Fokker escaped Germany by train, taking with him a huge amount of aircraft, especially the famous WW1 fighter, the Fokker D.VII.
By starting in the WW1 neutral country the Netherlands, his homecountry with a new factory, he could resume his work on civil and military aircraft. With the aircraft he took with him, the Dutch Army Air Forces were extended.
Although his aircraft would military not be as significant as in WW1, his civil aircraft were the top aircraft between the 1st and 2nd World War. His later warplanes, especially the fighters D.XXI and G.1 would become the backbone of the Dutch Air Force and the D.XXI wopuld become famous in the eraly stages of the Finnish-Soviet Winterwar and were used up till the 1950's. Wome of the other Fokkers of WW2 were T.V, C.V, C.X, T.VIIIw


Dutch post WW1 D.VII


Finnish D.XXI


Row of Dutch D.XXI with postww2 roundels


Danish D.XXI


G.1 with postwar roundels.

 

Whats the history of the company post war? I remember flying in a Fokker Friendship...same company?

 

Yes, same company. Later it became the Fokker Company again. Post WW2 it mainly becam a civil aircraft manufacturer, although many of the F27's also were use military worldwide. The Fokkers 50, 100 and 70 were the last types before the company went bancrupt on March 15th, 1996.
Parts of the company however still exist.
Fokkers Space nowadays is called Dutch Space. The aircraft parts are now part of the Stork Company and the company's part is named Fokker Services. Since 2003 there is a project FokkerFUTURE who maintaince the excisting Fokker 50, 70 and 100's and planss manufacturing in the future again. However another company, Rekkof also wants to produce Fokker's again. Rekkof is also a restart of former Fokker parts.

Perhaps I will place here the complete Fokker legacy, all the planes manufactured with a military historical background.

 

Please do, be very interested to read it.

 

Okay, here we go, sorry if my English isn't perfect, I am Dutch and it will be just very short notes.

Part 1. Making his first airplane.

Antonij Herman Gerard Fokker, called Anthony was born in Kediri, Eastern Java on April 6th, 1890. His father was a coffeeplanter on Java. In 1894 the family moved to the Netherlands and lived in Haarlem. Anthony did not like going to school and left it before taking exams. At a young age he started inventing. His first invention was a tire that could not go leaking, but unfortunately that was already invented by someone else. In the meantime Anthony was strting to get interested in aircraft and designed his first aircraft, the Fokker Spin in 1910 and flew with it over Haarlem on August 31st, 1911.


Anthony Fokker in his "Spin"


The "Spin" in flight.

 

Part 2: Fokker Aeroplanbau / Fokker Aviatik GmbH
Anthony Fokker guessed he could be more succesfull in making aircraft in Germany then in the Netherlands, so in 1911 he left for Johannisthal, to an airfield close to Berlin. There he started his own aircraft company, the "Fokker Aeroplanbau". Later he started a second, larger factory at Schwerin on February 12th, 1912 as Fokker Aviatik GmbH.
He first started to militarize the Fokker Spin ans producerd the Fokker M.1 through M.4, all derived from the "Spin".

The M.1 was a two-seat aircraft, only built in small numbers, first flying in 1911 and by 1913 all were in service with the German Army Flying Schools.
The M.2 was the first fully militarized version of the "Spin" with a 100 hP Argus or Mercedes Engine. 10 were ordered by the German Military Staff. The M.2 already had a streamlined cabine.
The M.3 also was a two-seater for training purposes.
The M.4 was developed from the M.3 and had a nosewheel, but was no succes, it was not sold.


Fokker M.1


A Fokker M.2 with Daimler Truck for transport.


Fokker M.3

 

Part 3 Fokker M.5 The first of many?
In 1913, Anthony Fokker designed the M.5, a first full body aircraft that was to serve as a reconnaissance aircraft for the German Army at the outbreak of WW1. It would also be the basis of the first design that would be mass produced, the Fokker E.I (will follow later). The fuselage was made of welded steel tubes and it was powered by a 80hP Gnome Lambda engine. The type was produces in two versions, the M.5L (Lange) with a longer wingspan and the M.5K (Kurze) with shorter wingspan.
Halberstadt manufactured the M.5L for the German army as A.II.
A two-seat version, the M.8 was produced and known in the military as A.I all built by Fokker. All were flown in the early stages of WW1.
In 1915 the M.5K was produced known in the military as A.III of which five were armed with a 7.92mm MG14 Machinegun as M.5K/MG and were used as prototypes for the Fokker E.I.


M.5 Prototype

 

Part 4 1913 Waterplane prototypes
Before continuing in the line, we have to make a short step back in time. The M.5 was produced in 1914, but in 1913 Fokker made two experimental waterplanes, The W.1 and W.2.
Specially to construct waterplanes, Fokker opened a small factory on the Dahme River an dproduced a 70hP and 100hP waterplane of which not much is known.


The Fokker W.2

That is for now, later I will follow up with the 1915 production line.

 

Part 5, the 1914 M.6.

The first in prior to the 1915 production line is the Fokker M.6, which was a two seat experimental plane, already showing the features of the Fokker E.1 fighter. It actually flew already in june 1914.


The M.6


Another vieuw of the M.6

 

Part 6: The Fokker M.7 biplane

The M.7 was a biplane reconnaissence plane manufatured for use with the German Navy. About 20 were built.
There were two version, the M.7 and the W.3 float version which is only known from the drawing board. The Austrians used it as the B.1


The M.7



Another M.7

 

Part 7. The E-I fighter plane

The E.I was actually an armed version of the M.5K with a synchronizing Fokker Stangensteuerung, with a single 7.92mm Spandau IMG 08 of Parabellum LMG 14, shooting through the spinning probeller.
A total of 54 were manufactured.


E.I with Oberleutnant Hesse

 

Part 8: The M.5L/A2
THis was more or less a two seat version of the E.I.


M.5L/A2

Based on the M.5L a non-armed reconnaissence-trainer was built, the M.8/A.1


M.8/A1


another vieuw of the A1

 

Part 9: First two engined aircraft, M.9/K.I

The M.9 was an experimental aircraft, made from two hulls of the M.7, with a central hull containing two engines and three cockpits. One cockpit for the pilot in the centred hull and two gunpositions in the outer hulls.


The M.9

 

Part 10, the M.10 for the Austrian Army

Specifically for the Austrian Army, the M.10 was designed. There were two version, the M.10E with single bay wings and the M.10Z with two bay wings, in the Austrian Army known as B.I and B.II.


The M.10Z


The M.10E