The Fokker F.VIIA
KLM director Albert Plesman once told Anthony Fokker that he had five F.VII prototypes in his fleet, due to the many technical changes made over time.
This prompted Fokker designers Rethel and Platz to incorporate all the changes into a new aircraft, resulting in the F.VIIA.
The main changes were:
• the ailerons no longer extended beyond the wingtips,
• the landing gear was simplified and well-sprung,
• the horizontal stabilizer was adjustable, and
• it could now carry eight passengers.
The prototype was fitted with a 420 hp water-cooled Packard Liberty V-12 engine.
The first flight took place on 12 March 1925. The F.VIIA was normally delivered with a 440 hp Bristol Jupiter radial engine.
The Wright Cyclone and Lorraine Dietrich were alternative engines for the F.VIIA.
Of the 36 aircraft built, 11 went to KLM. Dozens of other airlines and even private owners also operated the F.VIIA.
Some F.VIIAs were shipped to the USA.
The F.VIIA was used for transoceanic, record-breaking and expedition flights.
As with the F.VII, a flight was also made to what was then the Dutch East Indies in an F.VIIA.
Some F.VIIAs were later converted to F.VIIA-3m; after the F.VIIA, Fokker also built the F.VIIA-3m from the outset.
Two F.VIIAs have survived: one at the Aviodrome in Lelystad and the other at the Verkehrshaus in Lucerne, Switzerland.
In North Dakota, USA, the fuselage of Hubert Wilkins’s F.VIIA is preserved in a museum.
For the single-engine F.VIIs that went to America, see “Fokkers built in America”
Click the photo to enlarge it
Mr. van Lear Black, an American millionaire, chartered an aircraft with crew from KLM in 1927 and 1928. In fact, this was the first long-term and, moreover, intercontinental charter in aviation history. Mr. van Lear Black did this not primarily for business reasons, but simply enjoyed flying around a little, just for fun.
