I wanted to wait until I have done scenic shots, but that could take a couple of more days, so I start with the WiP part of this literally small build.

The kit and its assembly:
This tiny what-if model was originally inspired by a book about national air forces and their markings over time – and I found Sweden's first roundels, a blue circle with a yellow disc inside, quite interesting. What's more practical and then triggered the build was the fact that early modern Ukrainian roundels were very similar (the colors were reversed after while), and that I had a set of these on a Hi-Decal Su-24 sheet.

The aircraft carrying them would fall into the post-WWI era, and finding a suitable aircraft was not so easy. I eventually stumbled upon the Fokker E.V/D.VIII, and the type was even more intriguing because it was just a monoplane with very little rigging...
So I procured a respective Roden kit and it was basically built OOB, since there is little to change/add on the tiny aircraft. I just modified the machine guns, so that they do not look like the German 08/15 MGs with their "cooling cage". Another more mechanical modification is the metal axis for both prop and rotary piston engine with its respective adapter in the fuselage.


1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Painting and markings:
The OOB kit comes with decals for a late war-time Lozenge camouflage, but since my Swedish whif would fall into the post-war period and depict a revamped (or even jury-rigged) aircraft I rather went for a bare linen finish – which was also worn by Sweden's first quasi-military aircraft. These, however, entered service around 1915, IIRC, so that my markings would not fit 100% into the intended 1918 timeframe. The first official J1 fighters that entered service in 1919 already carried three black crowns, with a Swedish flag on the fin, and an all-over aluminum dope livery.
   
The bare linen livery I went for looks simple and primitive, but I used a wide range of lightened sand and beige tones (Humbrol 71, 74 and 103 as basis, later treated with 121 and 147, too) to add plasticity to the airframe, and with a light black and sepia ink washing as well as light dry-brushing things do not look bad at all. To make the aircraft look less uniform I painted the cowling and the area in front of the cockpit in a greyish green (RAF Lichen Green). Prop and struts were painted in a streaky mix of Humbrol 7 and 9 and 133 and 63, respectively.


1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


As already mentioned, the blue-and-yellow roundels came from an Ukrainian Su-24 from the Nineties, the large "S"s on the wings were another Swedish military aircraft marking from 1915. The tactical code was created with single black Swedish Air Force digit decals. The fin flash had to be improvised and was created from decal sheet and stripe material.

The minimal rigging was done with heated and stretched black and grey IP sprue material, and I added a pair of handles made from thin wire under the rear fuselage. Finally, the model was sealed with matt acrylic Italeri varnish.


1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Always liked the E.V, looking forward to this 

Looking good. Makes a change from lozenge. In the RW, the Poles used some in 1919.

Finally... 

1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

Some background:
The history of the Swedish Armed Forces dates back to the early sixteenth century, when they were founded by the newly crowned monarch Gustav I Vasa. Since then, they have played an important role in the history of Sweden; they have been engaged in numerous conflicts since their founding. It was in the seventeenth century that the Swedish Armed Forces reached their height, during the time of the Swedish Empire. During this time, they were among the leaders in military innovation, and engaged in many wars; among the Swedish wars of the seventeenth century were the Thirty Years' War, Second Northern War, Scanian War and Great Northern War. The military of the Swedish Empire was one of the most important institutions in the empire.

The era of World War I was a period of enhanced readiness, and the Swedish Armed Forces adopted the airplane as a new weapon to its arsenal – even though no official air force was founded yet, and the aircraft was still regarded as rather experimental. One of the first types that was procured and tested by Sweden was the Fokker E.V. The Fokker E.V was a German parasol-monoplane fighter aircraft designed by Reinhold Platz and built by Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. The E.V was the last Fokker design to become operational with the German Luftstreitkräfte, entering service in the last months of World War I during spring 1918. Four hundred were ordered, originally with more powerful engines (either the Ur.III or Goe.III rotary engines, each with around 150 hp), but because neither powerplant was available in any quantity, all production examples mounted the Oberursel Ur.II, producing only 82 kW (110 hp). The engine was obsolete but the low drag and the light weight of the E.V meant that it was still quite fast and nimble

1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The first production E.V aircraft were shipped to Jasta 6 in late July 1918, but soon after the first victories some fatal accidents occurred, when wings collapsed in flight. Soon Idflieg grounded all E.V aircraft. Pending the investigation of these wing failures, production ceased at the Fokker Flugzeugwerke. According to Fokker, the wing failures were caused by the army technical bureau, which had forced him to modify the original design by over-strengthening the rear main spar. This faulty design allegedly caused the wing to twist and eventually fail. Fokker claimed that this defect was resolved by reverting to his original design. However, shoddy and rushed construction certainly had their impact, too. Fokker had subcontracted construction of the E.V wings to the Gebrüder Perzina Pianoforte Fabrik factory. Due to poor quality control, inferior timber had been used and the spar caps, forming the upper and lower members of each spar assembly, had been placed too far apart during the fabrication. Because the resulting spars were vertically too large to pass through the ribs, excess material was simply planed away from the exposed upper and lower surfaces of the cap pieces, leaving the assembled spars dangerously weak. Other problems included water damage to glued parts, and pins that splintered the spars, rather than securing them.

1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


However, Idflieg tests showed that, when properly constructed, the original E.V wing had a considerable margin of safety. Satisfied that the basic design was safe, Idflieg authorized continued production, after personnel changes and improved quality control measures were introduced at the Perzina factory, and deliveries resumed in October. At the direction of the KoGenLuft (Kommandierender General der Luftstreitkräfte), Idflieg redesignated the modified aircraft D.VIII. By that time the earlier Luftwaffe "E." and "Dr." prefixes for fighter monoplanes and triplanes, respectively, were abolished and all fighters would henceforth receive the "D." prefix instead. The improved D.VIII commenced operations on 24 October with Jasta 11. The aircraft proved to be agile and easy to fly, even though it was structurally still quite fragile. Allied pilots nicknamed it the "Flying Razor", presumably because it resembled a cocked straight razor in flight.

1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


A total of 381 aircraft were produced, but only some 85 aircraft reached frontline service before the Armistice in November 1918. Some reached Italy, Japan, the United States, and England as trophies, or were be sold to third parties like Sweden. Sweden had ordered thirty E.V fighters from Fokker in early 1918, but the type's technical problems and the production priority for domestic use delayed the deliveries, so that the Arméns Flygkompani (Army Aviation Company) received only five aircraft from that order until the Armistice. After that, many D.VIIIs still on the production lines were scrapped.

To fill the gaps after the end of WWII the Swedish Armed Forces procured 17 further aircraft from Continental Europe, all of them battlefield survivors. Only seven of them (six E.V and one D.VIII) were in airworthy condition, though, the rest were more or less undamaged parts for ten more complete aircraft. All airframes were transferred to Sweden as knocked-down kits, re-assembled by AB Svenska Järnvägsverkstäderna (Swedish Railway Workshops Co) in Linköping, brought to D.VIII standard, outfitted with new weapons (a pair of synchronized 8 mm (0.315 in) Madsen machine guns instead of the original German 7.92 mm (0.312 in) Spandau MG08 machine guns) and made operational again.

1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr
 
The machines were in the post-war period mostly used for training at Hässlö in Central Sweden and the evaluation of the aircraft as a military tool in general. When the Swedish Air Force was formally created on 1 July 1926 with a merger of the Army's and Navy's aircraft units, all D.VIII had already been retired and scrapped.


General characteristics:
    Crew: 1
    Length: 5.86 m (19 ft 3 in)
    Wingspan: 8.34 m (27 ft 4 in)
    Height: 2.6 m (8 ft 6 in)
    Wing area: 10.7 m² (115 sq ft)
    Empty weight: 405 kg (893 lb)
    Gross weight: 605 kg (1,334 lb)

Powerplant:
    1× Oberursel UR.II 9-cyl. air-cooled rotary piston engine, 82 kW (110 hp)

Performance:
    Maximum speed: 204 km/h (127 mph, 110 kn)
    Endurance: 1.5 hours
    Service ceiling: 6,000 m (20,000 ft)
    Rate of climb: 8 m/s (1,600 ft/min)
    Time to altitude: 1,000 m (3,300 ft) in 2 minutes
                                   4,000 m (13,000 ft) in 10 minutes 45 seconds
    Wing loading: 56.0 kg/m² (11.5 lb/sq ft)

Armament:
    2× 8 mm (0.315 in) Madsen machine-guns


1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


1:72 Fokker D.VIII; aircraft ,39' of the Arméns Flygkompani (Swedish Army Aviation Company); Hässlö (Central Sweden), late 1918 (What-if/Roden kit) by Dizzyfugu, on Flickr


A quick and relatively simple build, even though the paint job was challenging. But it's quite exotic, and while the aircraft and its markings do not 100% match into the intended timeframe, I like the simple "vintage" look, and the odd roundels make you look twice.

Nice job! The linen finish really look good.

It's inspiring me to do something with the Mikro-Mir/Avis 1/32 D.VIII in my stash that I want to build as a post WWI aircraft.

Thank you.

 

 

Top Fokker 

Hotte

Thankl you all, too. 

Quote from: frank2056 on March 23, 2025, 11:41:07 AMNice job! The linen finish really look good.

It certainly does, makes a huge change from the more usual lozenge or "bright" single colour schemes. 

Yes, it was a bit of an experiment, but also a logical livery for a refurbished post-WWI training aircraft, despite markings that were standard 5 years earlier. Underlines IMHO the E.VIII's clean lines, though?

Quote from: Dizzyfugu on March 24, 2025, 07:29:07 AMUnderlines IMHO the E.VIII's clean lines, though?

Very much so, looks more attractive to my eyes as well

 

Wonderful little build Thomas   
Still trying to think of what to do with my 32nd Camel ...zero ideas I'm afraid.