Fokker D.I

From Wings of Linen
Fokker D.I
Role Fighter
Manufacturer Fokker
Designer Martin Kreutzer
First flight June 1916[1]
Introduction July 1916[1]
Primary users Germany
Austria-Hungary
Ottoman Empire
Number built 112[2]
Wingspan 9.04 m (29 ft 8 in) [3]
Engine 120hp Mercedes D.II inline or
100hp Mercedes D.I inline
Armament fixed, sync. LMG08/15
Crew 1
Max Speed 150 km/h (93 mph)[4][5][3]
Climb 1,000 m (3,280 ft) in 5:00[4][3] or 4:00[5]
2,000 m (6,560 ft) in 9:00[5]-11:00[3]
3,000 m (9,840 ft) in 15:00[5]-16:00[3]
Ceiling 4,000 m (13,100 ft) [3]
Endurance 1:30 [4][3]

Though Fokker had won the love of German fighter pilots in 1915 with their Eindeckers, their early biplanes were uninspired and suffered from poor workmanship. The inline-engined Fokker D.I and D.IV and the rotary-engined Fokker D.II and D.III were substandard relative to competitors like the Halberstadt D.II and the Albatros fighters, and on 6 December 1916 all Fokker biplanes were withdrawn from front-line service due to structural failures both in static testing and in combat use.

The D.I was powered by a 120hp Mercedes D.II and armed with a single fixed machine gun. In an unusual decision for 1916, the plane used wing-warping rather than ailerons. Their first service was in summer 1916. 112 were constructed: ninety for the Fliegertruppe; six for the Navy; and a further sixteen were sent to Austria-Hungary. In November 1917 eight D.I's were sent to the Ottoman air service, but they only saw light use.[6]

For more information, see Wikipedia:Fokker D.I.

Timeline [note 1]

Game Data

Wings of Glory

Official Stats
Availability Maneuver Damage Dmg Points Max Alt. Climb
16Q3-16Q4 R B 11 9 5
Card Links

Miniatures and Models

1:144 Scale

1:285/6mm/1:288 Scale

Resources

Orthographic Drawings

References

Notes
  1. German numbers are from bi-monthly Frontbestand records (Effective Frontline Strength).[7]
  2. Updated card
Citations
  1. 1.0 1.1 Grosz'99, p.12.
  2. Grosz'99, p.51.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Lamberton, pp.218-219.
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 Gray, p.90.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Grosz'99, p.52.
  6. Grosz'99, p.13.
  7. Grosz'85, p.60 and Grosz'86, p.66.
Bibliography
  • Peter Gray and Owen Thetford. German Aircraft of the First World War. Great Britain, Putnam, 1962, 1987. ISBN 0-85177-809-7.
  • P.M.Grosz. Fokker Fighters D.I-IV. Albatros Publications, Ltd., 1999. ISBN 1-902207-11-4.
  • Peter M. Grosz, "Archiv -- Frontbestand". WW1 Aero, № 107, Dec 1985 and № 108, Feb 1986. Poughkeepsie, NY: World War I Aeroplanes, Inc.
  • W.M. Lamberton and E.F. Cheesman, Fighter Aircraft of the 1914-1918 War. Great Britain: Harleyford Publications Limited, 1960.