Fokker V.6 (Fokker D.VII)

History of Fokker V. 6 (Fokker D. VII)

The Fokker V. 6 continued the series of triplane prototype fighters started by Fokker, with the V. 4 being used as a biplane in Austro-Hungarian aviation service. The line was heavily influenced by the arrival of the Sopwith triplane, which was introduced by the Allies in late 1916 and first entered service in early 1917. Its maneuverability, rate of climb, and high operational limitations made it an immediate success against the slower, less maneuverable, and heavier-equipped Fokker biplanes in service at the time. This forced Fokker to develop a competing genre that eventually became the classic "Red Baron" Dr. Fokker.

I'm three-tiered and described elsewhere on this site.

Like other V-Series triplanes, the Fokker V.6 only served as a prototype for its lifetime. Developed at the same time as the earlier V.5 triplane, the V. 6 was ordered on July 7, 1917, and made its first flight in 1917, and had the same basic three-bladed wing arrangement as the earlier model - although the fuselage is now A V. 5 was added, a more powerful (and heavier) Mercedes D. II liquid-cooled six-cylinder engine with 120 hp.

The pilot sits in an open-air cockpit, the engine drives a two-bladed wooden propeller, and the tail rests on a vertical tail with a low-level plane. As expected, the landing gear is attached to the fuselage via a series of struts and has two wheels for ground operation.

Due to the heavier engines in the game, the V.6 is a larger aircraft design compared to the V.5 - it has increased wing area and surface area, and an increased main aircraft chord. The midplane with the longer wings is now connected by a single solid strut that slopes forward to match the staggered arrangement of the three wings.

The changes also caused the cockpit to be moved further aft (further reducing forward visibility) and the hull to be deepened.

After a period of testing, we found that the improved, heavier V.6 prototype did not contribute much to overall agility, as maneuverability proved to be lacking compared to the Wankel-engine-equipped competing V.5 prototype. So the V.5 prototype jumped to the V.6 as the upcoming Dr.

I had three wings in front.

V.6 was finally scrapped in October 1917. V. 7 appeared briefly and differed from the Siemens-Halske Sh. Series III engine installation.

The performance figures on this page are purely estimates by the author.

Specification

Basic

Production

Roles

Dimensions

Weight

Performance

Performance

Armor

Changes