Fokker DVIII (oz2046)

About this Plan

Fokker D-VIII (the Flying Razor). Scale parasol WWII German fighter for control line. For .19 - .23 motors.

Update 30/03/2020: Added article, thanks to dfritzke.

Quote: "The Flying Razor, by Jack H Sutton. Scale control line version of the famous World War I fighter, Fokker D.VIII which set a new aerial fighting pattern and the Allies had to rush new fighters into the arena. This same combativeness can help you at the scale contest arena, also a fun machine.

As World War I continued on into 1918, the Fokker works at Schwerin, Germany strived to produce the ultimate fighter airplane at a minimum of cost, and also minimum use of vital materials. Designer Rheinhold Platz achieved that result in his cantilever, parasol wing monoplane which was designated as design number V.26. Anthony Fokker was also pleased with this design as it utilized the LeRhone 110 HP rotary engine which he had control of through his Oberursel Motoren-Werke, and many of which were also in stock at the German Flying Corps Headquarters at Aldershof.

After many types of fighters were demonstrated at the second fighter trials at Aldershof in June 1918, the V.26 was accepted by the German Army Flying Corps for production and designated as Service Type, Fok. EV. Production rates were set at 80 aircraft per month beginning after two months, and mass production began immediately to produce 400 of the monoplane fighters. The first units were delivered in approximately two weeks! The front line units began to receive EVs in July and August.

Almost immediately after the Jagdstaffels at the front began to employ the EVs, wing failures were experienced in rapid succession, and on August 23, 1918 the EVs were grounded. As usual, a full investigation was made of the failed wings, and the wing design itself. When the investigation was complete, there emerged reasons for the crashes experienced with the first models. The primary reason was that the workmanship on the wings was deplorably sub-standard. They were made of under-sized spar sections, and the workmanship was exceedingly slipshod. The glue joints were inadequate, and the plywood skin was not firmly attached to the ribs in many places.

The results of these findings placed Fokker in a very precarious position with the German Army Flying Corps. He was accused of almost everything devious in this connection, but it appears that his basic fault was negligence in the factory at Schwerin. Wings, when built to Platz's specifications, were found to be entirely satisfactory in all respects. Production was again resumed with proper wings, and the designation was changed to Fok.DVIII to distinguish the good from the bad, and also to overcome the pilot's psychological fear of the EV's.

These problems prevented the Fok.D.VIII from getting to the front until late October in 1918. The record of the Fok. D.VIII at the front was very brief, but it gave a good account of itself while in service. Had the war continued beyond November 11, 1918, the improved model Fok.D.VIII with 145 hp, and the Fok D.VIII's with 200 hp would have probably set a record beyond any other World War I fighter plane.

Many gave good service for years after the war in the hands of the Dutch and Italians, but in general, the left over production units were left to rot as the cantilever 'frail' wing was highly suspect at that time among aircraft designers and pilots. Rheinhold Platz was considerably ahead of his time in cantilever wing theory, and employed concepts of deflection stress loading not recognized by the aircraft engineers of that day.

The Fokker D.VIII makes a very attractive model and, owing to its clean lines and simple struts, is easy to model in true scale. Our model was numbered Fok. D.VIII 238/18, which was a special version with a subwing fuel tank flown by Ernst Udet. The construction is relatively simple and straightforward, and produces a sturdy model.

Fuselage: Begin the fuselage by cutting the keel 'K' from fairly hard 1/2 in balsa to be the base for the bulkheads. Be sure to mark the keel for location of F2 through F5. Cut out the bulkheads F1 through F10; F1 from 1/2 in plywood; F2A and F3A from 1/16 plywood; F2, F3, F4, F6. F9, and F10 from 1/2 in balsa sheet..."

Supplementary file notes

Article.

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