Fokker D.VII

Fokker D.VII
Role	Fighter
Manufacturer	Fokker
Designer	Reinhold Platz
First flight	late 1917
Introduction	late April 1918
Primary user	Germany
Number built	~1000
Wingspan	8.7 m (28 ft 7 in) to 8.93 m (29 ft 3.5 in)
Engine	160hp Mercedes D.III inline or; 185hp B.M.W. IIIa inline or; 175hp Mercedes D.IIIav
Armament	2×sync., fixed LMG08/15
Ammo	1000 rounds
Crew	1
Max Speed	see table
Climb	see table
Ceiling	see table
Endurance	1:30 to 2:00

The Fokker D.VII is justifiably famous as the best overall German fighter of the war, and in 1918 it was produced in huge numbers. In fact, Fokker's rival Albatros was ordered to build D.VIIs since its D.V and D.Va fighters had done little to restore German dominance in the air. The D.VIIs clean cantilever wings and single-bay construction cut down on drag. Balanced control surfaces made the plane fly with a minimum of effort and pilots found it responsive and forgiving.

Though the plane was quite good with the original 160hp Mercedes engine, it was exceptional when upgraded with the high-compression 185hp B.M.W. engine, a configuration sometimes known as the Fokker D.VIIF. The first BMW-engined D.VII reached the front in May. About a third of the planes produced by Fokker had the BMW.^[5] The BMW engine gave especially good performance at high altitude, maintaining excellent performance up to 6,000 m (19,700 ft).^[1]

Had the war continued, Austro-Hungarian D.VIIs built by Fokker, MAG, and Aviatik would have been available to the Luftfahrtruppe. Six hundred and thirty were on order.^[5]

The plane was held in such regard that it was specifically mentioned in the Armistice Agreement, which specified all front-line D.VIIs were to be handed over to the Entente allies.

Austria-Hungary had standardized on the Fokker D.VII in August 1918, with plans for Aviatik to build 255; Fokker, 225; MAG, 150; and Thöne & Fiala, 30. MAG had completed thirty-five and partially built another twenty-five as the war ended. The Fokker D.VII(MAG) Series 93 used a 225hp Daimler(MAG) engine, and it would have been interesting to see how the D.VII behaved with such an increase in horsepower. ^[14]

Engine	Speed	Climb	Ceiling
160-180hp Mercedes D.III	188 km/h (117 mph)^[15]^[13]^[7] to 193 km/h (120 mph)^[10] to 200 km/h (124 mph)^[8]	1,000 m (3,280 ft) in 3:48^[15] to 4:00^[9] to 4:15^[10] 2,000 m (6,560 ft) in 6:48^[7] to 8:18^[9] 3,000 m (9,840 ft) in 12:00^[7] to 13:48^[9] 5,000 m (16,400 ft) in 38:05^[1]^[9]	5,500 m (18,000 ft)^[10] to 6,000 m (19,600 ft)^[7]^[12]^[13]^[8]
185hp BMW IIIa	200 km/h (124 mph)^[7]^[10] to 201 km/h (125 mph)^[9]	1,000 m (3,280 ft) in 1:45^[9] to 2:30^[15] 2,000 m (6,560 ft) in 4:00^[9] 3,000 m (9,840 ft) in 7:00^[9] - 8:30^[7] 5,000 m (16,400 ft) in 14:00^[1]^[9]	6,400 m (21,000 ft)^[10] - 7,000 m (22,900 ft) ^[7]

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

Timeline ^{[note 2]}

Game Data

Wings of Glory

Official Stats
Availability	Maneuver	Damage	Dmg Points	Max Alt.	Climb	Points
Mar/Apr18-end	L	A	16	15	2	100

Plane and Crew Cards

Jw II
Berthold
RAF
Jasta 31
Blumenbach
RAF
Jasta 2
Bolle
RAF
Jasta 13
Büchner
RAF
Jasta 40
Degelow
RAF
Jasta 11
Gabriel
RAF
Jasta 74
Hippert
RAF
Jasta 16
Holtzem
RAF
Jasta 6
Kirschstein
RAF
Jasta 19
Kliefoth
RAF
Jasta 10
Könnecke
RAF
Jasta 5
Laumann
RAF
Jasta 64
Lochner
RAF
Jasta 10
Löwenhardt
RAF
Jasta 50
Schädel
RAF
Jasta 18
Schultz
RAF
RAF
Jasta 35
Stoer
RAF
Jasta 18
vonBüren
RAF
RAF
Jasta 2
Guntruck
Jasta 2
Bolle
Guntruck
Jasta 6
Meyer
Guntruck
Jasta 18
Guntruck
Jasta 18
Guntruck
Jasta 18
Kuhne
Guntruck
Jasta 18
Kustner
Guntruck
Jasta 18
Monnington
Guntruck
Jasta 18
Müller
Guntruck
Jasta 18
Raben
Guntruck
Jasta 18
Shultz
Guntruck
Jasta 18
von Buren
Guntruck

Card Links

Blue Max/Canvas Eagles

Miniatures and Models

1:144 Scale

Full-color miniatures:
- Ares Wings of Glory: WGF115A Goering; WGF115B Sachsenberg; WGF115C Stark
- Shapeways Full Color: Reduced Aircraft Factory: Berthold [JG2], Blumenbach [31], Bolle [2], Büchner [13], von Büren [18], Degelow [40], Gabriel [11], Hippert [74], Holtzem [16], Kirschstein [6], Kliefoth [19], Könnecke [10], Laumann [5], Lochner [64], Löwenhardt [10], Schädel [50], Schultz [18], Stoer [35], Early Camouflage model, "Star of David"
- Wings of War: WW08A Göring; WW08B Schäfer; WW08C Udet
Shapeways Paintable:
- Mercedes engine: Columbia Aerodrome, Reduced Aircraft Factory
- B.M.W. engine (D.VIIF): Decapod, Kampfflieger, Reduced Aircraft Factory
Plastic or Resin Kit: Sram 144/006 (company defunct), Valom 14403, 14419
Metal kit: Red Eagle, Reviresco

Resources

Orthographic Drawings

Mercedes engine
B.M.W. engine

References

Notes

↑ Ordered were 2000^[1] to 3200^[5].
↑ German numbers are from bi-monthly Frontbestand records (Effective Frontline Strength).^[16]
↑ ^3.0 ^3.1 Speculative.

Citations

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 ^1.3 ^1.4 ^1.5 ^1.6 ^1.7 Angelucci, p.59.
↑ Gray'65, p.5.
↑ Gray'87, p.105.
↑ Gray'65, p.7.
↑ ^5.0 ^5.1 ^5.2 ^5.3 Grosz'89, p.5.
↑ ^6.0 ^6.1 Grosz'89, p.29.
↑ ^7.0 ^7.1 ^7.2 ^7.3 ^7.4 ^7.5 ^7.6 ^7.7 Lamberton, pp.218-219.
↑ ^8.0 ^8.1 ^8.2 ^8.3 Angelucci, p.49.
↑ ^9.0 ^9.1 ^9.2 ^9.3 ^9.4 ^9.5 ^9.6 ^9.7 ^9.8 ^9.9 Gray'65, p.12.
↑ ^10.0 ^10.1 ^10.2 ^10.3 ^10.4 ^10.5 Argus Vol. 2, p.75.
↑ Kelly, p.230.
↑ ^12.0 ^12.1 Gray'87, p.104.
↑ ^13.0 ^13.1 ^13.2 Munson, p.40.
↑ Grosz'93, p.351.
↑ ^15.0 ^15.1 ^15.2 Gray'87, p.108.
↑ Grosz'85, p.60 and Grosz'86, p.66.

Bibliography

Enzo Angelucci, ed. The Rand M^cNally Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft, 1914-1980. New York: The Military Press, 1983 edition. ISBN 0-517-41021-4.
Argus Books, Airplane Archive: Aircraft of World War One, Volume 2. Great Britain: Argus Books, 1989. ISBN 0-85242-984-3
Peter Gray and Owen Thetford. German Aircraft of the First World War. Great Britain, Putnam, 1962, 1987. ISBN 0-85177-809-7.
Peter L. Gray, Profile Publications 25: The Fokker D.VII. Great Britain: Profile Publications, Ltd., circa 1965.
Peter M. Grosz, George Haddow, and Peter Schiemer. Austro-Hungarian Army Aircraft of World War One. Flying Machines Press, 1993. ISBN 0-9637110-0-8.
Peter M. Grosz, "Archiv -- Frontbestand". WW1 Aero, № 107, Dec 1985 and № 108, Feb 1986. Poughkeepsie, NY: World War I Aeroplanes, Inc.
P.M. Grosz, Windsock Datafile 9: Fokker D.VII. Great Britain: Albatros Publications Ltd., 1989. ISBN 0-948414-15-4
Kevin Kelly, "Belts and Drums: A Survey of First World War Aircraft Ammunition Totals". Over the Front, Vol. 5, No. 3, Autumn 1990. Walsworth Publishing Co, Inc. and The League of World War I Aviation Historians.
W.M. Lamberton and E.F. Cheesman, Fighter Aircraft of the 1914-1918 War. Great Britain: Harleyford Publications Limited, 1960.
Kenneth Munson, Fighters 1914-19, Attack and Training Aircraft. New York: MacMillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1976. ISBN 0713707607

[6] Ordered were 2000^[1] to 3200^[5].

[18] German numbers are from bi-monthly Frontbestand records (Effective Frontline Strength).^[16]

[speculative-19] 3.0 ^3.1 Speculative.

[Angelucci59-1] 1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 ^1.3 ^1.4 ^1.5 ^1.6 ^1.7 Angelucci, p.59.

[Gray65-5-2] Gray'65, p.5.

[Gray87-105-3] Gray'87, p.105.

[Gray65-7-4] Gray'65, p.7.

[Grosz89-5-5] 5.0 ^5.1 ^5.2 ^5.3 Grosz'89, p.5.

[Grosz89-29-7] 6.0 ^6.1 Grosz'89, p.29.

[Lamberton218-8] 7.0 ^7.1 ^7.2 ^7.3 ^7.4 ^7.5 ^7.6 ^7.7 Lamberton, pp.218-219.

[Angelucci49-9] 8.0 ^8.1 ^8.2 ^8.3 Angelucci, p.49.

[Gray65-12-10] 9.0 ^9.1 ^9.2 ^9.3 ^9.4 ^9.5 ^9.6 ^9.7 ^9.8 ^9.9 Gray'65, p.12.

[ArgusV2-75-11] 10.0 ^10.1 ^10.2 ^10.3 ^10.4 ^10.5 Argus Vol. 2, p.75.

[Kelly230-12] Kelly, p.230.

[Gray87-104-13] 12.0 ^12.1 Gray'87, p.104.

[Munson40-14] 13.0 ^13.1 ^13.2 Munson, p.40.

[15] Grosz'93, p.351.

[Gray87-108-16] 15.0 ^15.1 ^15.2 Gray'87, p.108.

[Frontbestand-17] Grosz'85, p.60 and Grosz'86, p.66.

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Timeline [note 2]