D.XXIII
Fokker D.XXIII
An unusual design, as may be called the D.XXIII, developed by Marius Beeling in 1937.
A low-wing fighter with two tail booms from the wing to the rear, powered by two Walter Sagitta air-cooled 12 cylinder (suspended) V engines rated 530 hp each.
The front engine, in front of the cockpit, provided the pulling power and the engine behind the cockpit provided the pushing force.
The aircraft was equipped with a fully retractable landing gear and could be equipped with 2 fixed Browning-FN 7.9 mm machine guns in the nose and 2 13.2 mm Browning-FN machine guns in the wing.
Anthony Fokker insisted on building a mock-up as soon as possible after the design phase of the D.XXIII.
The highly detailed Mock-Up, including engines, was realized and attracted much attention at the 16th Paris Aviation Salon in 1938.
On May 30, 1939, Fokker's test pilot Gerben Sonderman made the first flight with the D.XXIII.
During the test flights it appeared that the rear engine could not be cooled properly and this problem was never solved.
During the test phase, a number of changes were also made to the D.XXIII, including the rear of the hull.
The D.XXIII made only 11 flights with a total of less than 4 flight hours.
On April 11, 1940, the landing gear was damaged and the D.XXIII program was stopped, partly due to the impending German invasion in May 1940.
It therefore remained with the production of one (proto) type.
A low-wing fighter with two tail booms from the wing to the rear, powered by two Walter Sagitta air-cooled 12 cylinder (suspended) V engines rated 530 hp each.
The front engine, in front of the cockpit, provided the pulling power and the engine behind the cockpit provided the pushing force.
The aircraft was equipped with a fully retractable landing gear and could be equipped with 2 fixed Browning-FN 7.9 mm machine guns in the nose and 2 13.2 mm Browning-FN machine guns in the wing.
Anthony Fokker insisted on building a mock-up as soon as possible after the design phase of the D.XXIII.
The highly detailed Mock-Up, including engines, was realized and attracted much attention at the 16th Paris Aviation Salon in 1938.
On May 30, 1939, Fokker's test pilot Gerben Sonderman made the first flight with the D.XXIII.
During the test flights it appeared that the rear engine could not be cooled properly and this problem was never solved.
During the test phase, a number of changes were also made to the D.XXIII, including the rear of the hull.
The D.XXIII made only 11 flights with a total of less than 4 flight hours.
On April 11, 1940, the landing gear was damaged and the D.XXIII program was stopped, partly due to the impending German invasion in May 1940.
It therefore remained with the production of one (proto) type.
Click on the photo to enlarge the photo
Het filmpje is o.a. opgenomen in de Fokkerloods op Schiphol-Oost.
We zien een zogenaamde (hydraulische) intrektest van het landingsgestel. Zo te zien geeft het neuswiel wat problemen.
Na deze test gaat de D.XXIII naar buiten om de motor te laten draaien.
We zien een zogenaamde (hydraulische) intrektest van het landingsgestel. Zo te zien geeft het neuswiel wat problemen.
Na deze test gaat de D.XXIII naar buiten om de motor te laten draaien.
