Fokker D.VIIs Take Shape In Germany
On the other side of the uncovered, spindly metal fuselages, a
craftsman hunches over a table. He is assembling wing ribs in a
jig, periodically referring to a drawing. The drawing bears the
signature of a junior engineer and was checked by: A. Fokker.
A basket of control surface hinges of a type which has not been
used since the 1920s sits, waiting the call. Sometimes you hear the
sound of a six-cylinder Daimler-Benz engine being test-run.
And sometimes everybody breaks for a quick round of basketball
-- or to post photos of the latest progress on the web.
Because, you see, while every piece is going into a 1917 Fokker
DVII fighter, it's not 1917 and we're not quite in the Fokker plant
in Berlin -- despite the fact that Tony Fokker himself, the
Dutchman whose name was synonymous with the Imperial German Air
Service, would recognize every part and every process. We're at
Fokker-Team-Schorndorf, an unusual German firm that is dedicated to
bringing the German aviation technology of the period before 1920
back to life in the most literal manner.
F-T-S was founded by Achim Engels, who secured its first
contract to build a Fokker replica when he was only seventeen. The
firm now builds the most accurate replicas of German World War I
aircraft ever.
Now, there are other replica World War One aircraft out there.
Another European museum is finishing the restoration of a D.VII, in
fact, but it is not a very accurate replica: it was built for the
Great War movie, The Blue Max. Even Tony Fokker would be hard
pressed to distinguish F-T-S's machines from his own, and Achim and
his "team" have gone so far as to hunt down period tools such as
lathes, and even a sewing machine (for fabric covering) that is the
exact same model that was used in the Fokker plant. Nothing is
anachronistic, and no shortcuts are made. "Many aircraft of this
type are around flying today..." Engels acknowledges, "but none of
these do represent what a Fokker-built machine was like. This
project is not just a simple replica, but it is a historical study
of that aircraft...."
Achim Engels rejects the idea of making updated aircraft with
more modern engines, as for example Ron Sands's plans encourage. He
has nothing against people who do that, but for him, the history of
the technology is more important, too important to be altering the
airplanes.
While the airworthy, accurate aircraft replicas are the most
visible contribution of F-T-S to the study of the Great War and
early aviation in Germany, it's far from all they do. The firm
publishes useful monographs on aspects of early European,
particularly German, aviation from time to time. These are
available at the F-T-S website (see the link at the end). In
addition, team members --primarily Achim -- are very active in the
small world of World War I aircraft enthusiasts, and F-T-S probably
has inspired more reproductions that F-T-S itself will ever
actually build.
The long-term goal of F-T-S is even more breathtaking: "We have
in mind to create a special aviation museum that compares to
nothing else in the world. Not just a few sheds housing a
collection of some aircraft put on display, but a real reproduction
of the actual area of the Fokker Flugzeugwerke... including the
airfield where the aircraft could be shown in flight." What they
propose is nothing less than a recreation of the famous Fokker
works as a living history exhibit -- a working 1917 aircraft
factory that would be open to the public.
Before you say impossible, remember that this guy talked a
German museum out of a contract to build an authentic Fokker Dr. I
triplane before he was old enough to vote. Even if the Germans were
not noted as a serious race, have you ever heard of a museum
curator who took wild risks with the organization's money? My
money, such as it is, is on Engels and F-T-S to succeed.
The two DVIIs under construction are nearing completion now. One
will be Achim's -- and he intends to auction it off; the current
bid is 108,000 Euros -- and the other, his friend Wulffo's. Then,
what will F-T-S do?
No problem. Achim has an order for another D-VII. Several of
them, in fact. And an E-III (the famous Eindecker). And a Pfalz,
which has him very excited: "To our knowledge there is no Pfalz
D.IIIa reproduction flying today that is made using the original
'Wickelrumpf' (wrapped fuselage) technique." F-T-S is constructing
a new building to keep pace with the growth in orders and allow the
production line to operate.
The Pfalz has been a difficult project to take on: while many
Fokker factory drawings exist, Engels reckons that only 20-percent
of what he needs to do the Pfalz is on hand. But you would be
foolish to bet against this young entrepreneur. After all, no
authentic Fokker DVII existed a couple of years ago, either.
ANN's Daily Aero-Term (11.28.25): Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS)
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