Fokker F.VII

F.VII
The improved, three-engine F.VIIB-3m was the most numerous and successful type in the aircraft series; seen here in service with Linje Lotnicze LOT on the Warsaw-Bucharest route.
General information
Type	Passenger & military transport
Manufacturer	Fokker
Designer	Walter Rethel
Status	Retired
Primary users	SABENA KLM Polish Air Force Polskie Linie Lotnicze LOT
History
Manufactured	1925-1932
Introduction date	1925
First flight	24 November 1924
Developed from	Fokker F.V
Variants	Fokker F-10

The Fokker F.VII, also known as the Fokker Trimotor, was an airliner produced in the 1920s by the Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker, Fokker's American subsidiary Atlantic Aircraft Corporation, and several other companies under license. It was an airliner that could carry 6-12 people, depending on the version, and it used a variety of engines; early versions had one engine but three was more common.

This was an important airliner in the 1920s and 1930s; it was popular and made in several versions and used for record breaking flights. A variant of this aircraft, the F-10, was involved in famous aviation accident in that period that led to safety reforms in the USA. It was also used for an attempt to reach the North Pole, although there was a debate if it did reach all the way there: the aircraft was at least flown in arctic conditions in this attempt. Less controversially, it was flown in the first flight across the Pacific from Australia to the United States, and earlier it was used in flight from the United States to Hawaii.

In the 1930s, the aircraft began to fall out favor as newer designs that were larger, faster, and more streamlined entered service. Some major variations on this design included the Fokker F-10, which was bit bigger and could carry 4 additional passengers, and the Fokker F.VIII, which omitted the central engine thus becoming a twin-engined aircraft. The Fokker F.VII was also license produced by several countries including SABCA, Avia, Avro, and others.