Anthony Fokker (1890 - 1939)

Those old Fokker types... I like them! Especially the F18. Even though I never saw a replica of it, I fell in love with this airplane just by seeing pictures of it.
Anyhow, the glory days of the relationship between Anthony Fokker and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines ended with that same F18, since KLM president Albert Plesman showed more interest in the full metal Douglas DC-2.
But even after the introduction of this full metal airplane, these old fashioned F18’s were still able to set new standards in flight time and reliability. Such as: Amsterdam to Java in some 100 hours and, with extra fuel on board, ‘no-nonsense’ transatlantic flights to the Netherlands Antilles.

By the way: The name Fokker means ‘breeder’.

Joop van Dijk, February 2001 / Edited: March 2004