Russian Fokkers C.IV

Russian Fokkers 1

In the spring of 1923, the Soviet Union ordered sixty Fokker C.IV reconnaissance aircraft from the Netherlands. They were delivered by ship in the autumn of 1923. The construction numbers were 2301 through 2360. One such C.IV cost 28,000 guilders.

On November 11, 1923, the first C.IV squadron, called the Ultimatum Squadron, was officially inaugurated at Moscow Central Airfield (then temporarily called Trotsky Airfield).

The photographs below, taken between 1923 and 1928 and arranged chronologically, show individual Fokker C.IVs from the 2301-2360 series in service with the Red Air Fleet. They were stationed in Moscow, Gomel, Vitebsk, and Dretun. The latter three locations are in present-day Belarus.

Most photos show bruised or crashed specimens. There are two reasons for this:

1. The sixty C.IVs had been built in (too) much haste and showed quite a few technical shortcomings;

2. The crashes and accidents involving the C.IV were meticulously documented and archived at the time.

Most of the photos are from the Russian State Archives RGVA and were first published in 2020 by A. Averin in the Russian model building magazine M-Hobby.

Click on the photo to enlarge the photo

01

The Ultimatum Squadron is standing by at the airfield. In the foreground is Serpukhov's Fokker C.IV Worker. Tail number 5, c/n 2309.
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02

One of the first Soviet C.IVs during testing at the NOA (Nauchno-Opytny Aerodrome = Scientific Test Airfield). The NOA assessed whether the C.IV, as delivered, met the contractual technical specifications. 1924.
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03

The same
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04

Strange as it may sound, the first Fokker C.IV squadron to enter service with the Red Air Fleet was not funded by the government, but through crowdfunding. Here we see a poster from the ODVF (Obshchestvo Druzei Vozhdushvnovo Flota, the Association of Friends of the Air Fleet), dedicated to raising donations for the Ultimatum Squadron. The text in the upper left corner reads: NN'AA! (this should be pronounced firmly and growlingly and means something like NO! NEVER!).
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05

This cartoonish plane with a clenched fist became the unofficial emblem of the Ultimatum Squadron.
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06

Accident involving Serpukhov's C.IV Worker of 'Trenes' (a separate training squadron for demonstrations). Tail number 9, c/n 2309. June 13, 1924. Moscow, Central Airfield. Very difficult to see, but a red star is painted on the upper wing. The same aircraft can be seen in photo 1. After being transferred to 'Trenes', the tail number was changed from a 5 to a 9.
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07

The same aircraft. The lettering on the right side differs from the inscription on the left. New wheels are already in place, but a completely new landing gear is needed.
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08

Crash of Fokker C.IV c/n 2337 of M.I. Kojello of the Ultimatum Squadron. March 24, 1925. The engine stalled during landing. Eastern edge of Gomel airfield. There are no red stars on the wing.
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09

The same aircraft, Fokker C.IV c/n 2337. The Ultimatum emblem (see photo 5) is only on the left side. March 24, 1925. There is no opening in the floor through which the observer could shoot (as with the later C.IV Bis).
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10

the same
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Fokker C.IV Prima c/n 2334 (left) and C.IV Prima c/n 2304 (right). They collided on landing. The N-strut of 2334 appears to have become lodged in the lower wing of 2304. Vitebsk Air Base, January 25, 1925.
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11

Accident involving Fokker C.IV c/n 2349 of the Ultimatum Squadron. No tail number. The radiator control had failed. Vitebsk region. The pilot was Ja. Ja. Spoero. January 30, 1926.
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12

The same aircraft, c/n 2349. No tail number. A defining feature of the early C.IVs (designated C.IV Prima in Russia) is clearly visible: a single longeron reinforcing the side of the fuselage.
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12a

Same, now in close-up. The fuel lines from the two fuel tanks in the upper wing are clearly visible.
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13

June 8, 1927. Gomel Airfield. Accident involving c/n 2339 of the Ultimatum Squadron. The pilot's name was Sokolov.
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14

the same
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15

An accident involving C.IV c/n 2306 of the Ultimatum Squadron, tail number 1. The aircraft landed on its nose. Dretoen Air Base. August 23, 1926. A (red) star can be seen with great difficulty on the wing.
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16

Another accident involving a Foktsjet ('Fokkertje') of the Ultimatum Squadron. August 1926.
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17

Accident of Comrade Shkuro of the Ultimatum Squadron. Fokker C. IV c/n 2315, Moscow textile worker. June 23, 1925. Engine failure while attacking a ground target at the training ground near Vitebsk airfield.
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18

Crashed in a swamp during an emergency landing near the village of Volovo. Fokker C.IV c/n 2348, Ultimatum Squadron, June 9, 1927. The pilot was Ja. Ja. Spoero (who crashed earlier in c/n 2349, photos 11 and 12).
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19

The same
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20

Three months later. This is the same Fokker C.IV c/n 2348 that had rolled over and sustained heavy damage (photos 18 and 19). This photo shows how adept the repair shops had become at repairing these aircraft. The tail number is 2. Gomel Air Base, September 10, 1927. The cause was a landing error plus a fatigue failure in the landing gear.
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21

the same
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22

This is the second Fokker C.IV to bear the designation Ultimatum 26. Tail number 5, c/n 2340. The first, c/n 2324, was likely withdrawn from service. Gomel air base, November 19, 1927. The pilot was A.M. Mashkov, who had joined the squadron in July 1924. The inscription "Ultimatum 26" appears on both sides.
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23

The same.
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24

Another unscathed C.IV. 1928. Dretoen Air Base. From the collection of G.F. Petrov.
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Crew posing next to a Fokker C.IV Prima. From the collection of G.F. Petrov.
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Same, but now without staff. From the collection of GF Petrov.
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Russian Fokkers 1

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