skip to content
stan runge

#0453

Fokker Universal

first flew 1926· airliner, utility aircraft

🛫 airliner piston
7 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
  1. 1. Een Canadese Fokker Universal (2161 026737): Collectie Van Beek· CC BY-SA 4.0
  2. 2. Fokker F.XI Universal van Malert 2161 026750: Collectie Van Beek· CC BY-SA 4.0
  3. 3. Fokker Universal met drijvers en het opschrift "BIG GEORGE COX" (2161 026740): Collectie Van Beek· CC BY-SA 4.0
  4. 4. Fokker Universal van de Aero Corporation of California (2161 026736): Collectie Van Beek· CC BY-SA 4.0
  5. 5. Het prototype van de Fokker F.XI Universal. Werd later CH188 van Alpar (2161 026746): Collectie Van Beek· CC BY-SA 4.0
  6. 6. Het prototype van de Fokker Universal (2161 026735): Collectie Van Beek· CC BY-SA 4.0
  7. 7. Fokker Universal: San Diego Air & Space Museum· Public domain
Read about it on Wikipedia ↗
Fokker Universal, photo 1 of 7
1/7 Collectie Van Beek· CC BY-SA 4.0

what is it?

The Fokker Universal was the first aircraft built in the United States that was based on the designs of Dutch-born Anthony Fokker, who had designed aircraft for Germany during World War I. About half of the 44 Universals that were built between 1926 and 1931 in the United States were used in Canada. Among the famous pilots who flew the Fokker Universal were Punch Dickins and Walter Gilbert.

How to recognise it: 1 piston engine with propeller · 14.6 m wingspan

base stats

  • speed 189 km/htop speed
  • range 805 kmwithout refuelling
  • seats 4passengers
  • size 1,818 kgmax take-off weight
  • built 44made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

  • First flew 100 years ago, in 1926.
  • Wingspan of 14.6 m: about 3 cars parked nose to tail.

piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.

spec sheet

first flight
1926
introduced
1926
number built
44
role
airliner, utility aircraft
makers
Fokker
engines
1× Wright J-5 / J-4 Whirlwind
passengers
4
length
10.1 m
wingspan
14.6 m
height
2.7 m
max take-off weight
1,818 kg
top speed
189 km/h
cruise speed
158 km/h
range
805 km
ceiling
3,658 m

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.

Sources: Wikidata Q5464206, Wikipedia: Fokker Universal (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.

stan runge ef9524a source