Fokker F.II
| F.II | |
|---|---|
| |
| Role | Airliner |
| Manufacturer | Fokker |
| Designer | Reinhold Platz |
| First flight | October 1919 |
| Retired | 1934 |
| Primary users | Deutsche Aero Lloyd Deutsche Luft Hansa,KLM |
| Number built | about 23 |
| Variants | Fokker F.III |
TheFokker F.IIwas the first of a long series of commercial aircraft from the Fokker Aircraft Company, flying in 1919. In a biplane age, it presented a distinct clean, high-wing monoplane style that sold successfully across Europe and North America during the development of commercial passenger-carrying aviation.
This design lead to theFokker F.IIIwhich also proved a commercial success. A license produced version was built in Germany, with some modification is sometimes called the Fokker-Grulich F.II
A non-flying replica of a Fokker F.II was built for the Dutch airline KLM, and is on display at theAviodromemuseum in Lelystad in the Netherlands.
Design and development
[edit]
The Fokker F.II was a single engined high-wing cantilever monoplane with a design lineage that went back to designerReinhold Platz'sDr.Itriplane, via the biplaneD.VIIand monoplaneD.VIIIfighters and his unflownF.Icivil design. The Dr.I was the first aircraft[1]to use the thick high lift/drag airfoils that enabled high climb rates and also allowed internal wing bracing. Hence the triplane wing needed no external wire bracing and its monoplane successors, apart from attachments to the fuselage were simple cantilever structures.
The F.II had other characteristic early-Fokker design features: a wing constructed of wood, fully skinned in plywood, with ailerons extending beyond the wingtips and a deep sided square section fuselage of welded steel tube covered in fabric which provided enough directional stability that no vertical fin was fitted. The F.II had a fixed undercarriage, the main units of which were joined by a cross-axle.
There was enclosed accommodation for four passengers; a fifth could travel alongside the pilot in his unenclosed cockpit, in a seat originally intended for a mechanic or navigator.
The prototype F.II, known by the company designationV.45,was constructed at the Fokker factory inSchwerin,Germany, and made its first flight there in October 1919. WhenAnthony Fokkerdecided to relocate the firm to the Netherlands, the V.45 was illegally flown across the border on 20 March 1920. Even after this, perhaps another three examples were built at Schwerin before production shifted toVeere.All F.IIs built by Fokker had the 138 kW (185 hp)BMW IIIaengine. The Dutch airlineKLM,which ordered the first two F.IIs after the prototype, found the BMW IIIa lacked power and had cooling problems. After an experiment with a 133 kW (178 hp) Mercedes motor, KLM re-engined both of their aircraft with the 179 kW (240 hp)Armstrong Siddeley Puma.
In Germany, however, the technical manager ofDeutsche Aero Lloyd,Karl Grulich, arranged to build the type under licence for the airline, making a few modifications of his own to the design. These included strengthened landing gear, a redesigned cockpit, and redesigned trapezoidal cabin windows. At least 20, the great majority of F.IIs, were assembled byDeutsche Aero LloydatStaaken,Berlin. They built the fuselages there, but the wings were built byAlbatrosand were then supplied to the airline for final assembly. These rather heavier aircraft were powered by 172 kW (230 hp)BMW IV(and later 239 kW/320 hpBMW Va) motors.
Operational history
[edit]
The Dutch airlineKLMoperated two F.IIs between 1920 and 1927; the type was first Fokker aircraft to be used by the airline. After their withdrawal by KLM, both aircraft were acquired bySABENA,who operated them on theirBrussels-Antwerproute. The machines that Fokker had built in Germany were bought byDeutsche Luftreedereiand registered in theFree City of Danzig.Deutsche Aero Lloyd's aircraft were used right up until the time the airline was absorbed byDeutsche Luft Hansain 1926, at which point ten machines remained. These were put to use on regional routes linkingColognewithAachen,Essen,Krefeld,andMülheimuntil 1934.
A replica of the F.II was built and put display atAviodromemuseum in the Netherlands.[2]
Operators
[edit]
Specifications (Puma powered)
[edit]Data fromde Leeuw p.13
General characteristics
- Crew:One pilot
- Capacity:5 passengers
- Length:11.65 m (38 ft 3 in)
- Wingspan:16.10 m (52 ft 10 in)
- Height:3.66 m (12 ft 0 in)
- Wing area:38.2 m2(411 sq ft)
- Empty weight:1,200 kg (2,650 lb)
- Gross weight:1,900 kg (4,190 lb)
- Powerplant:1 ×Armstrong Siddeley Puma,180 kW (240 hp)
Performance
- Maximum speed:150 km/h (93 mph, 81 kn)
- Cruise speed:120 km/h (75 mph, 65 kn)
- Range:1,200 km (750 mi, 650 nmi)
References
[edit]- ^Anderson pp. 309-310
- ^"The end of an era, last commercial Fokker flight in KLM service ZAP16.COM Air Show photography, Civilian and Military aircraft fact sheets".ZAP16.COM.2017-10-27.Retrieved2024-01-02.
Bibliography
[edit]
- Anderson, J. D.A History of Aerodynamics(1997). Cambridge University Press.ISBN0-521-66955-3
- de Leeuw, R.Fokker Commercial Aircraft(1994). Fokker Publications
- Herris, Jack & Leckscheid, Jörn (2023).Fokker Aircraft of WWI: Volume 5: 1918 Designs, Part 1 - Prototypes & D.VI: A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes.Great War Aviation Centennial Series. Vol. 55A. n.p.: Aeronaut Books.ISBN978-1-953201-09-6.
- Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989).Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation.London: Studio Editions. p. 405.
- World Aircraft Information Files.London: Bright Star Publishing. pp. File 894 Sheet 36.
- "A Fokker Six-seater Limousine Monoplane".Flight.Vol. XII, no. 609. 26 August 1920. pp. 931–932.Retrieved9 January2024.
- "A Fokker Raid on London".Flight.Vol. XII, no. 615. 7 October 1920. pp. 1064–1066.Retrieved14 August2018.