Fokker C.X

C.X

Picture - Finnish Fokker C.X

Role: Light recce, bomber aircraft
Manufacturer: Fokker
Introduced: 1933
Primary users: Royal Netherlands Air Force Finnish Air Force

The Fokker C.X was a biplane scout and light bomber designed in 1933. It had a crew of two (a pilot and an observer).

It was originally designed for the Royal Dutch East Indies Army, in order to replace the Fokker C.V. Like all Fokker aircraft in that period, it was of mixed construction, with wooden wings and a welded frame covered with aluminium plates at the front of the aircraft and with linen at the back. The prototype was built in 1934 with a Rolls-Royce Kestrel V engine.

The East Indies Army ordered 13 C.Xs, but they were soon replaced in the scout/light bomber role by the American Martin B-10s. Until the Japanese attack on the Dutch East Indies in 1941, the C.X remained in use as a trainer and target tug.

The Dutch Air Force ordered 16 C.Xs, and four more C.Xs with Kestrel IIS engines. These four were later re-equipped with Kestrel V engines, because the Kestrel IIS was not very reliable.

Two C.Xs were delivered to the Spanish Republic, and four more to Finland. The Finnish also license-produced 35 C.Xs until 1942. These C.Xs were equipped with Bristol Pegasus XII engines.

Operational history

During the German attack on the Netherlands in May 1940, the C.Xs served in their intended role as scouts and light bombers. They were far too slow to compete with German aircraft such as the Messerschmitt Bf 109, but the tactic of hu-bo-be (huisje-boompje-beestje), Dutch for "house-tree-animal" or "hugging the ground", allowed the C.Xs to achieve some measure of success. Two C.Xs and their crews escaped to France after the Dutch surrender.

The Finnish C.Xs served with distinction in the Winter War, the Continuation War and the Lapland War. The last of the seven Finnish C.Xs that survived the war crashed in 1958. The craft, designated FK-111, served as a target-towing craft in the Finnish Air Force. The plane crashed into a forest 21 January 1958, killing the pilot (Second Lieutenantt Aimo Allinen) and the winch-operator (2nd Ltn Antti Kukkonen).

Variants

C.X Series I : Fokker-built aircraft for the Dutch
C.X Series II : Fokker-built, 4 to Finland.
C.X Series III : Licence-built in Finland.
C.X Series IV : Licence-built in Finland.

Operators

Finland

Finnish Air Force (39)

Netherlands

Royal Netherlands Air Force (20)
Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force (13)

Spain

Republican Spanish Air Force (2)

Specifications (C.X)

Data from Bombers a guide to Bombers of World War II

General characteristics

Crew: Two
Length: (Dutch) 9.2 m (Finnish) 9.1 m ((Dutch)30 ft 2.25 in (Finnish) 29 ft 9 in)
Wingspan: 12.00 m (39 ft 4.5 in)
Height: 3.30 m (10 ft 10 in)
Empty weight: (Dutch and Finnish) Approx 1,400 kg ((Dutch and Finnish) 3,086 lb)
Loaded weight: (Dutch) 2,250 kg (Finnish) 2,500 kg ((Dutch) 4,960 lb (Finnish) 5,512 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 2,900 kg (6,393 lb)
Powerplant: 1x— (Dutch) Rolls Royce Kestrel liquid-cooled V12 (Finnish) License-built Bristol Pegasus XII nine-cylinder radial, (Dutch) 485 kW (Finnish) 634 kW ((Dutch) 650 hp (Finnish) 850 hp)

Performance

Maximum speed: (Dutch) 320 km/h (Finnish) 340 km/h ((Dutch) 199 mph (Finnish) 211 mph)
Range: (Dutch) 830 km (Finnish) 840 km ((Dutch) 516 mi (Finnish) 522 mi)
Service ceiling: (Dutch) 8,300 m (Finnish) 8,400 m ((Dutch) 27,230 ft (Finnish) 27,560 ft)
Rate of climb: 8.3 m/s ()

Armament

2 x— 7.9 mm (.31 in) machine guns fixed in top of front fuselage and a third manually aimed from rear cockpit
Underwing racks for 2 x— 175 kg (385 lb) or 4 x— 100 kg (220 lb) bombs

Fokker C.X Pictures

More aircraft.

Source: WikiPedia