Fokker D VII at Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome 2013 

Fokker D.VII With Mercedes D.IIIa engine with 180HP had a climb rate of 750-800FPM and would reach 10,000FT in about 13-14 minutes, this was the more common variant, and had a top speed of 117MPH at sea level, it essentially became the primary fighter used by most pilots along with some Albatros D.Va fighters, and Pfalz D.XII fighters. Fokker D.VIIF with the BMW IIIa engine with 240HP with altitude throttle applied for short periods (caution as engine damage could result due to being over compressed) could climb in excess of 1,800FPM and could reach i believe 10,000FT in a little under 8 minutes, it had a top speed ranging on figures between 124 to 128MPH, but due to limited production numbers of the BMW engine only a few were ever made. limiting it's use to select squadrons and pilots, Aces like Ernst Udet and Hermann Goering. aircraft could prop hang well because it's thick wings and stout engine power allowed for high AOA, it was in fact a robust design as stated because of it's tubular steel air frame, and it's wings which didn't require bracing wires were internally structured.

I can’t get over that wonderful ‘chitty chitty bang bang’ when the fokker is landing at 6:00…. that is such an amazing sound… the airplane is alive with character and it almost sounds like a rooster clucking and carrying on. It looks almost silly. Amazing!

A couple of facts about the D7. 1. Several different engines were used in it. Mercedes was one factory, but the best engine came from a new company, formed to do this. After the war, they decided to start making motorcycles, because people needed basic transport and they needed a way to make a living. So they designed a boxer twin for a shaft-drive motorcycle. Very nearly a century later, they're still making them. The company is BMW. The Bavarian Motor Works was thrown together in war time, to make engines for aircraft, and their first went into the D7. 2. The D7 was the most feared and respected German aircraft by Allies. It's rate of climb was satisfactory, it's speed was a bit slow, but it handled well and was easy to fly. And it had very forgiving and controllable traits at and just after the stall. You could pull the nose of a D7 up to an angle which would result in a stall, and take a snap-shot at an enemy, them forward-stick and recover, going back to the turn or the flight or whatever you had just been doing. It would cost a fair bit of air-speed, but the plane had enough control and composure to allow you to pull that trick. No other aircraft at that time could pull a stunt like that. Today, we have aircraft like the F-22, with Fly By Wire and thrust vectoring, so you can pull the nose up beyond the stall and continue to fly and point the aircraft where you need it pointed to fight. We spend billions of $ to develop aircraft, which have this trick, because experience shows us it provides a massive advantage. That experience came from the Fokker D-VII. It did not exactly have "care-free" handling, but it was a whole lot closer to that than almost any other aircraft would be for 60 or 70 years...

Excellent video.

Very nice Chris.

VERY COOL.

The D VII could hang on its prop because the lower wing stalled before the upper wing.

Thank you sir!

Thank you for your comment. To clarify though, Rittmeister Manfred von Richthofen, CO of JG 1, never flew the D VII in combat or over the front. He did get an early 160 HP Mercedes engined example that he toured the fields of Jasta 5, 6 & 10 with (and, of course, his own Jasta 11) a few days before his death on 21 April 1918. Jasta 11 began getting D VII's in numbers in Mid-May 1918. Sorry, I'm a WW I German aviation history junkie for the past 40+ years.

Thank you :)

Thanks :)

No, it is in Rhinebeck New York.

Thanks. The old WW II Zundapp KS750 was incredibly rugged and better off-road than the WW II BMW R75 sidecar rigs. The R75 was better on the street though.

Technically... Yes!

Thank u. Was this t best fighter f ww1?. I Think so.Sometimes. Roger an out

Was this in NH?

NY Never mind. Nice vid

супер

FOKKER D.VII Rabbit hunt.

@ 1:02 "mommy, why is he saying 'Fucker' ??"

:)

I hate event announcers. They ruin the sound of a an awesome event every time.