The Fokker T.IV was developed to meet the requirements of the
Royal Netherlands Navy for a maritime patrol/
torpedo bomber aircraft for use in the Dutch East Indies. First flying on June 7, 1927,[1] the T.IV was a twin engined
floatplane with a thick, cantilever, high mounted
monoplane wing and a deep, slab-sided
fuselage with an open cockpit housing the two-man crew. The aircraft could carry either a torpedo or 800 kg (1,764 lb) of bombs, and had a defensive armament of three machine guns in nose, dorsal and ventral positions, The initial version was powered by two 450 hp (340 kW)
Lorraine-Dietrich 12EW-12 engines.
In 1935, Fokker produced a developed version, the T-IVa, to supplement the existing T-IVs in Dutch service.
Wright Cycloneradial engines replaced the Lorraine Dietriches, while the pilots were provided with an enclosed cockpit in a hump over the wing root, and enclosed nose and dorsal gun turrets were fitted.[2] 12 were built for the Dutch Naval Aviation Service, while the remaining T-IVs were rebuilt to the T-IVa standard.[2]
Operational history
Deliveries of the original T.IV to the Dutch Naval Aviation Service in the Dutch East Indies started in 1927 and continued until 1930.[3] The second batch of 12 TIVa aircraft was delivered to the East Indies from 1936 to 1938,[3] and the original T.IVs were rebuilt as T.IVas.[4]
The T.IV proved to be a reliable and seaworthy aircraft,[5] and continued in use for local patrols and air-sea rescue operations from the naval base at
Soerabaja on
Java until 1942, when the
Japaneseattacked the Dutch East Indies.[6] All the remaining T.IVs were destroyed during the Japanese invasion, either by Japanese bombing or scuttling.[3][6]
Variants
T.IV
Original production version, powered by 336 kW (450 hp)
Lorraine-Dietrich 12E engines. 18 built.[5]
T.IVa
Refined version with
Wright SR-1820-F2 Cyclone radial engines, enclosed cockpit and gun turrets. 12 built.