Fokker Super Universal
| Industry | Aircraft manufacturing |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1920s |
| Headquarters | Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey , United States |
| Products | Aircraft, including the Fokker Super Universal |
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The Fokker Super Universal was an American-built airliner from the late 1920s, developed by Fokker America as a larger and enhanced iteration of the Fokker Universal. This model featured cantilever wings and an enclosed cockpit, distinguishing it from its predecessor. Designated also as the Model 8, it was later produced under license in Canada and Japan, where it was known as the Nakajima–Fokker Super Universal. The Imperial Japanese Army Air Force operated a variant called the Nakajima Ki-6, while the puppet state of Manchukuo manufactured it as the Manshū Super Universal. Notably, it took part in the Byrd Antarctic expedition and ranked among the most extensively produced aircraft by Fokker America.
Design and development
The Super Universal featured a traditional high-wing cantilever monoplane design, equipped with a fully enclosed cockpit and passenger cabin, alongside a fixed landing gear. Compared to its predecessor, it introduced an enclosed flight deck and a redesigned wing that removed the need for supporting struts, aligning it with the rest of Fokker’s aircraft lineup. The earlier Fokker Universal originally had an open cockpit, although many units were later modified to include enclosures.
Following typical Fokker construction methods, the wing was predominantly wooden, consisting of two primary spars and lightweight ribs sheathed in thin plywood panels. The fuselage framework was constructed from welded steel tubing, extensively reinforced with wire bracing. Wooden components included fairings, the cabin floor, and a bulkhead separating the pilot’s area from the passenger compartment. Pilot access to the cabin was provided via a triangular-shaped door. The tail assembly also utilized steel tubing but lacked internal bracing; larger diameter tubes formed the main structure while smaller tubes created slight camber. The standard landing gear featured a tailskid with split main legs supported by bungee cord shock absorbers, attached to both wings and fuselage. Additionally, the aircraft could be equipped with floats or skis for water or snow operations (refer to floatplane).
This model was also identified as the Fokker Model 8.
Operational history
The initial Fokker Model 8 Super Universal, named Virginia, was deployed during Richard E. Byrd’s Antarctic expedition. Unfortunately, it was destroyed after being toppled by an extreme wind gust that carried it over a distance of approximately one mile (one kilometer). The wreckage remained frozen in ice until its discovery in 1988.
Market reception of the Super Universal was highly favorable, leading to sales surpassing those of any other Fokker-America design with around 80 units sold. This demand compelled the manufacturer to increase production capacity by expanding its factory facilities.
An additional 15 aircraft were produced by Canadian Vickers, while approximately 100 units were manufactured by Nakajima in Japan. Some of these Japanese-built planes served in military roles under the designation Ki-6. The United States Navy also tested the Super Universal for military purposes as the XJA-1, but ultimately chose not to acquire it (the JA designation was later reassigned to the Noorduyn Norseman). The Fokker Universal gained popularity as a reliable bush plane, with many operating in Canada’s northern regions.
The first production Super Universal bore the name Virginia, bestowed by Byrd himself before being transported to Antarctica in 1928. This aircraft suffered severe damage when winds estimated at over 150 mph uprooted it from its moorings and hurled it backward more than one kilometer. It was subsequently abandoned; however, Byrd returned later to recover salvageable components.
For details regarding versions operated by Japan and Manchukuo, refer to the article on the Nakajima Ki-6.
TWA’s fleet of Fokker Super Universals faced significant setbacks following a crash involving another Fokker model, the Fokker F-10, near Bazaar, Kansas on March 31, 1931. The accident claimed the lives of all aboard including renowned Notre Dame football coach Knute Rockne, who was traveling to participate in filming The Spirit of Notre Dame. An extensive and widely publicized investigation determined that structural failure due to fatigue cracks in the cantilever plywood wing—specifically near an engine mount strut attachment—caused the breakup of the aircraft. Despite this conclusion, debates have persisted regarding factors such as weather conditions at the time (the flight had turned back because of adverse weather) and other circumstances surrounding the crash (see also 1931 Transcontinental & Western Air Fokker F-10 crash).
Following similar crack discoveries in numerous Super Universal airframes, authorities ordered inspections and grounded many aircraft, severely damaging Fokker’s reputation in the United States. Anthony Fokker’s company was then operating out of Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey. This incident prompted a comprehensive revision of transport aircraft standards and accelerated adoption of all-metal airframe construction seen in models like the Boeing 247 and Douglas DC-2.
Surviving aircraft
In 1998, a Super Universal that had originally been employed for mineral prospecting in northern Canada underwent restoration to become flightworthy again in Alberta. After several years of operation, it was exhibited at the Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada starting in 2005. Byrd's Fokker Universal was uncovered by a New Zealand expedition in 1987. The Antarctic Aviation Preservation Society had plans to recover and refurbish this aircraft, but since the organization is no longer active, the remains have yet to be retrieved. The Fokker “Super Universal” registered as #NC9792, which belonged to Wien Alaska Airlines and crashed in 1939, was recovered in 1984. Despite significant deterioration of its wooden and fabric components, the steel tube fuselage, cockpit frame, landing gear, and engine were salvaged and are currently displayed in their original recovered state at the Pioneer Air Museum located in Fairbanks, Alaska, USA.
In popular culture
- In the 1942 movie Casablanca, General Strasser arrives in Casablanca aboard a Fokker Super Universal.
Variants
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- XJA-1
- A Super Universal model tested by the United States Navy
- Nakajima Super Universal
- Designed for civilian transport use
- Ki-6 (Army Type 95 trainer)
- Military transport aircraft utilized by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force
- Nakajima–Fokker Super Universal
- Nakajima–Fokker ambulance version
- Nakajima Navy Fokker reconnaissance aircraft
- Known by short designations C2N1 and C2N2
- C2N1 (Navy land-based reconnaissance plane)
- Used for land reconnaissance and military transport by the Imperial Japanese Navy
- C2N2 (Navy reconnaissance seaplane)
- Employed for naval reconnaissance and military transport by the Imperial Japanese Navy
- Manshū Super Universal
- Manufactured in Manchukuo (Manchuria) for both civil and military transport roles
Civil
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- Canadian Airways
- Canadian Vickers
- Northern Transportation Company
- Starratt Airways
- Western Canada Airways
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- Coastal Air Freight
- Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company
- Byrd Antarctic Expedition
- Mid-Continent Air Express
- Standard Air Lines
- National Parks Airways
- Universal Air Lines
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Military
- File:Flag of the Republic of China-Nanjing (Peace, Anti-Communism, National Construction).svg China-Nanjing
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- The Reorganized Republic of China Air Force operated a single unit.
Specifications
References
- Notes
- Bibliography
- Dierikx, Marc. Fokker: A Transatlantic Biography. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1997. ISBN 1-56098-735-9.
- Molson, K.M. Pioneering in Canadian Air Transport. Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada: James Richardson & Sons, Ltd., 1974. ISBN 0-919212-39-5.
- Nevin, David. The Pathfinders (The Epic of Flight Series). Alexandria, Virginia: Time-Life Books, 1980. ISBN 0-8094-3256-0.
- Postma, Thijs. Fokker: Aircraft Builders to the World. London: Jane's, 1979. ISBN 978-0-531-03708-9.
- Seagrave, Sterling. The Bush Pilots (The Epic of Flight Series). Alexandria, Virginia: Time-Life Books, 1983. ISBN 0-8094-3312-5.
- Taylor, Michael J. H. Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions, 1989. p. 410.
- World Aircraft Information Files. London: Bright Star Publishing, File 894, Sheet 44.
External links
- Antarctic Aviation Preservation Society
- Fokker Super Universal CF-AAM Returns to Yukon Territory
- Western Canada Aviation Museum
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