Fokker T.VIII

Maritime Patrol / Torpedo Bomber Floatplane Aircraft

Netherlands | 1939

"The Dutch-originated Fokker T.VIII floatplane torpedo bomber fought for several sides during World War 2."

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 04/27/2016 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

Prior to the German invasion of the Netherlands in World War 2, the Dutch maintained a relatively healthy stable of modern aircraft of local origination. In 1937, work began on a new design covering a floatplane requirement to serve with the Dutch Marine Luchtvaardienst (MLD). The aircraft became a three-crew, twin-engine floatplane for maritime reconnaissance work as its primary role with a torpedo bombing capability as secondary. A first flight came in 1938 and serial production followed shortly thereafter under the designation of T.VIII.

The aircraft initially held a mixed metal and wood construction. Its fuselage was capped with a glazed position for one of the crew while the other two persons were seated inline under a greenhouse-style canopy ahead of midships. The empennage featured a conventional arrangement with single rudder fin. The wings were mid-mounted, straight elements along the fuselage sides, each fitting a radial engine nacelle at their leading edge. A strong strut network was used to join the aircraft with the large twin-float undercarriage which allowed for waterborne landing and take-off. Dimensions included a length of 42.7 feet, a wingspan of 59 feet, and a height of 16.4 feet. Armament was modest: 1 x 7.92mm machine gun in a fixed, forward-firing position in the lower section of the nose and 1 or 2 x 7.92mm machine guns in a trainable mounting at the rear cockpit. The design was cleared for up to 1,335 pounds of carried ordnance to include bombs or a single torpedo.

The aircraft were first seen with American Wright "Whirlwind" radial piston engines with the intention to replace these with British Bristol "Mercury" types in time. This change never occurred due to the speed of the German invasion, leaving the Whirlwinds in place and making the T.VIII generally underpowered for the bulk of its service life. These were Wright R-975-E3 models of 9-cylinder design and air-cooled while developing 450 horsepower each. Performance was underwhelming, netting the airframe a maximum speed of 177 miles per hour, a range out to 1,710 miles, and a service ceiling up to 22,310 feet.

Service entry for the T.VIII was during 1939 and the German invasion began in May 10 of 1940 and continued into May 17th ("Battle of the Netherlands"). The seaplanes were pressed into active service during the confrontations that followed but could do little in the face of the more agile, well-armed German fighters. With nine useable T.VIII at its disposal, the Netherlands Navy relocated the stock to French air bases nearer to the English Channel where were used in the patrol role. However, with the hopeless Allied situation in mainland Europe, the stock was once again relocated, this time to South Wales of the United Kingdom.

From early June onwards, these aircraft formed the 320 (Dutch) Squadron flying under British Royal Air Force (RAF) colors complete with RAF serials. In this guise, they continued service as maritime patrol platforms until a lack of spares restricted their usefulness. These Dutch aircrews then shifted to flying other aircraft types in the role.

The T.VIII was also ordered by the Finnish government - five examples were contracted for - but these were not delivered before the German invasion. The Germans confiscated about twenty-five T.VIIIs and these were operated under the banner of the Luftwaffe for a time.

There were only a small number of variants in the T.VIII line beginning with T.VIII W/G of which 19 were completed. These were of the aforementioned mixed wood/metal construction which was ultimately changed to a more model, all-metal construction design through the 12 examples of the T.VIII W/M. The T.VIII W/C was a dimensionally larger model under design when the Germans invaded, featuring more powerful engines to make up for the performance limitations of the earlier models and promoted speed gains of up to 45 miles per hour more. The W/C was on order with Finland at the time of the German march through Holland and was subsequently overtaken by the Luftwaffe (five examples).

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Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the Fokker T.VIII Maritime Patrol / Torpedo Bomber Floatplane Aircraft.

2 x Wright R-975-E3 Whirlwind 9-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engines developing 450 horsepower each.
Propulsion

177 mph
285 kph | 154 kts
Max Speed

22,310 ft
6,800 m | 4 miles
Service Ceiling

1,709 miles
2,750 km | 1,485 nm
Operational Range

City-to-City Ranges
Operational range when compared to distances between major cities (in KM).

NYC

LON

PAR

BER

MOS

TOK

SYD

LAX

NYC

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the Fokker T.VIII Maritime Patrol / Torpedo Bomber Floatplane Aircraft.

3
(MANNED)
Crew

42.7 ft
13.00 m
O/A Length

59.1 ft
(18.00 m)
O/A Width

16.4 ft
(5.00 m)
O/A Height

6,834 lb
(3,100 kg)
Empty Weight

11,023 lb
(5,000 kg)
MTOW

Design Balance
The three qualities reflected below are altitude, speed, and range. The more full the box, the more balanced the design.

RANGE

ALT

SPEED

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of the Fokker T.VIII Maritime Patrol / Torpedo Bomber Floatplane Aircraft .

STANDARD:
1 x 7.92mm machine gun fixed, forward-firing position in nose.
1 OR 2 x 7.92mm machine gun(s) on trainable mounting in rear cockpit.

OPTIONAL:
Up to 1,335 lb of drop ordnance to include conventional bombs or a single torpedo.

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the Fokker T.VIII family line.

T.VIII - Base Series Designation

T.VIII W/G - Initial production model; mixed wood/metal construction; 19 examples.

T.VIII W/M - All-metal construction; 12 examples.

T.VIII W/C - Dimensionally larger, faster variant with uprated engines; 5 examples.

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the Fokker T.VIII. Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 36 Units
Contractor(s): Fokker - Netherlands

[ Finland; Nazi Germany; Netherlands; United Kingdom ]

Relative Max Speed

Hi: 200mph

Lo: 100mph

Aircraft Max Listed Speed (177mph).

Graph Average of 150 MPH.

Era Crossover

Showcasing Aircraft Era Crossover (if any)

Max Alt Visualization

Production Comparison

36

36183

44000

Entry compared against Ilyushin IL-2 (military) and Cessna 172 (civilian) total production.

MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

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Aviation Timeline

EarlyYrs

WWI

Interwar

WWII

ColdWar

Postwar

Modern

Future

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Image from the Public Domain.

Mission Roles
Some designs are single-minded in their approach while others offer a more versatile solution to airborne requirements.

GROUND ATTACK

ANTI-SHIP

MARITIME / NAVY

RECONNAISSANCE

Recognition
Some designs stand the test of time while others are doomed to never advance beyond the drawing board; let history be their judge.

Military lapel ribbon for the World War 2

Going Further...
The Fokker T.VIII Maritime Patrol / Torpedo Bomber Floatplane Aircraft appears in the following collections:

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