Fokker B.11 Armament

Can anyone with Gsorzs book on Austrian aircraft tell me if the single seater Fokker B.11 were ever armed and if so with what.I have tried to find out to no avail.I presume it would be pre interrupter gear.
I have the Special Hobby kit of the plane on order.
Thanks

Graham Southam

[Ross_Moorhouse]

I have this kit. The one with the guns is for a prototype B.II flown by Pius Moosbrugger in Flik11 Stanislau, Eastern Front June 1918. It was armed with a single Bergmann LMG 15nA according to the kit instrcutions.

Have you built this kit yet, any traps for a new player.I am getting mine through NKR models.
Thanks Graham

[Ross_Moorhouse]

Originally Posted by gsoutham

Have you built this kit yet, any traps for a new player.I am getting mine through NKR models.
Thanks Graham

I have started it. By this I mean I have taken the resin cockpit walls and thinned down the top part of them. The top is thicker than the bottom. You will know what i mean when you get your kit. Some of the very small resin parts were broken in my kit. The control column being one of these. But there is a plastic one in the kit.

I may have to move this thrad to the model forum soon if I keep on talking about the kit.

I have:

"AUSTRO-HUNGARIAN ARMY AIRCRAFT OF WORLD WAR I; By PETER M. Grosz, George Haddow & Peter Schiemer."

On page 401 there are two photographs of B.II 03.61 (w/n 499) equiped with a machine gun. The captions read:

"The B.II 03.61 prototype was armed with a synchronized Bergmann LMG 15nA and a Schwarzlose M 16 mounted outside of the propellor arc, a sure sign that the synchronization problem had not been mastered for this weapon."

"Sent to Flik 11 at Stanislau on the Eastern Front in June 1916 for evaluation, the B.II 03.61 was armed with a single Bergmann LMG 15nA machine gun. It was the only series 03.6 aircraft to carry armament. As a trainer, 03.61 was based at Flek 6 in Wiener-Neustadt in October 1918."

I don't think the B.II was ever armed at the front. This bit is telling.

"The B.II 06.61 (w/n 499) prototype remained at Aspern until June 1916 when it was dispatched to Flik 11 on the Eastern Front for evaluation. An amusing episode related by pilot Pius Moosbrugger shows the caution with which aircrews appriached the unfamiliar rotary engine:

'Since the engine had to be started by swinging the propeller and the pilot had no throttle control, we felt a real danger existed should the aircraft leap forward and injure the ground crew. Our solution was to tie the Baby Fokker to a tree by its tail skid, and after the engine was running properly,we simply cut the rope with an axe. Unfortunately, the shortage of expensive castor oil soon made it necessary to send the Baby Fokker home.'

Returned to Aspern, the 03.61 was used for testing a variety of machine-gun installations. THe remaining B.II biplanes, assigned to Fleks 4, 6, and 8, served as unarmed single-seat trainers, a role they performed through 1918."

The Schwarz M 16 was mounted on the to wing to fire over the propeller, much like a Neuiport 11. The Bergmann fired throught the propeller. I hope this helps.

Cool Breeze,

[Cigogne]

One example of the 80 h.p. Fokker M.17 single-bay wing variant (k.u.k. designation as Fokker B.II) was on strength of the German Navy as one of their landplanes. It was fitted with a synchronized LMG 08 machine gun. Two or three photos exist of it there. I can't remember the LF designation No. Will have to go find it now!

There is also a photo of the B.II w/ a synchronized Bergmann machine gun in Austria-Hungary.