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Fokker D.XXI: The Flying Dutchman
16 February 2021 Development

The D.XXI was a mid 1930’s fighter aircraft, designed by the well-known Fokker company for the Dutch Air Force which primarily earned its reputation with Finnish forces during WWII. 

Briefly: An interwar Dutch fighter, distinguished by well-rounded characteristics in most aspects.

Fokker D.XXI, fighter, Sweden, Premium, rank II.

Pros

  • Good maneuverability
  • Excellent rate of climb
  • 20 mm cannons

Cons

  • Mediocre top speed
  • Lack of secondary weapons
History▼

Development of what would become the Fokker D.XXI began in late 1934 with engineers at the Fokker company seeking to design a modern fighter aircraft, incorporating some of the latest aviation technologies. In 1935, the Dutch Air Force ordered the construction of a prototype which would be evaluated by its East Indies branch, as a result of the aircraft being seen as suitable for defending Dutch overseas assets.

Although its maiden flight in 1936 showed enough promise, the fate of the Fokker D.XXI was “hanging in the air” for a time due to a change in doctrine within the Dutch Air Force. As a result, Fokker began looking into promoting the aircraft on the export market, hoping to find foreign customers.

Fortunately, Fokker received interest from both Denmark and Finland to purchase a number of aircraft as well as rights to production. At the same time, domestic interest was also revived, resulting in the start of production in 1937.

Despite being a Dutch design, the Fokker D.XXI was predominantly produced and employed by Finland. Having built and operated around ⅔ of all D.XXIs, the Finnish Fokkers distinguished themselves during the Winter and Continuation War, although with less success in the latter due to their dated design. The Dutch Fokkers also put up a stiff resistance to the invading German forces in May 1940, shooting down a number of enemy aircraft, including several superior Messerschmitt Bf 109s. In the end, approximately 150 D.XXIs were built, serving up until 1949 with Finnish forces.

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In War Thunder, the Fokker D.XXI will be a new premium fighter aircraft arriving to the lower ranks of Swedish aviation tree with the release of the next major update. Featuring good performance characteristics all-round, the Fokker D.XXI is the ideal fighter for fresh pilots climbing the ranks of the Swedish aviation tree.

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This unique modification belongs to the first D.XXIs received by Finland, modified by replacing the wing-mounted machine guns with 20 mm Oerlikon cannons in an effort to test the viability of up-gunning the aircraft. While this particular airframe was later converted back to its original armament due to reliability issues, pilots in War Thunder will have the opportunity to add this unique variant of the premium Fokker D.XXI to their in-game collection while at the same time reaping the benefits of its premium status for all actions performed in battle.

The Fokker D.XXI will soon be arriving in the Swedish aviation tree in War Thunder with the release of the upcoming major update. In the meantime, make sure to stay tuned to the news in order to keep posted on all the latest developments surrounding the next update coming to the game in the near future. Until then, clear skies pilots!

The War Thunder Team

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