The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1919-11-24
FOKKER DEVISED
RADIO A|RPLANE
Dutch Inventor Had Plan to Put
Allied Artillery Out of
Commission.
BUNGLED BY THE WAR OFFICE
AirpIanes Loaded With Explosives to
Be Directed by WreIess-Fokke
Perfected Machine, but War
Office Spoiled Scheme

| Amsterdam.-M. FOkker the Dutch
airplane expert who worked for the
| Germans during the war, stated in
| an interview, that he had made mil
| lions of marks out of the Germans, but
would give half of them to prove to
| the world thar he was never anti-ally.
II was making airplanes before the
war broke out" he said, "and when the
Germans asked me to make airplanes
for them could only agree to do so.
1t was purely a financial matter
1--WE are having an airplane exhi-
bition here in Amsterdam this month
and | find that all the English flying
men who come here are good sports
men. They don't nurse any grudge
against me for making airplanes for
the Germans, but the Frenchmen-
they never will forgive me, l fear
My machine brought down too many
Frenchmen, and they don't like my
name"
Germans Had $500.
M. Fokker said he built $500 air.
planes at his factories in Germany
for the Germans to use in the spring
drive of 1918, but the allies had five
to one. So the German army had to
quit.
"If the war had gone on for sew
eral more years how far would the
airplane have developed?" M. Fox
ker was asked.
His answer revealed what he de-
clared had been a great military Sc
cret. 1--WE would have put the artil- |
lery out of commission" he said. 1--WE
would have made the big guns as old
fashioned as spears. 1t was all the
fault of the army red tape in Berlin |
that it was not begun sooner.
sit was like this: II 1916 the army
authorities asked me If could make
a very cheap airplane with very
cheap engine, capable of flying about
four hours, which could be steered
through the air by wireless waves.
''They intended to load each one Of
these airplanes with an immense bomb
and send them into the air under the
control of one flying man who would
,lCpltClO llClA LllOuSli tlC ~Shv ny |
wireless like a flock of sheep. He
would be able to steer them as he
pleased, and send them down to earth
n exactly the spot he selected.
"The German idea was that it was
| tremendous waste to send shells
through the air by means of explosives.
Their idea was to put all their ex- {
'losives into the shells, and then move ,
he shells to their destination by pc .
rol power They had really lost faith
q the use of big guns.
"Of course, each one of these air
lanes with its engine would be blown /
p when the bomb exploded The t
hole thing was not much more ex-
ensive than firing long-range shells,
nd it would be far more sure and
lore deadly.
War Office Bunsed. d
sMy plans were accepted by the
uthorities and then the war Office I
ade their great mistake. They de- n
ded to make the airplane itself. The ;,
ar Office bungled along with the
of planes for many
onths, and when they had finally :
rned out few machines they found
lat they could not be depended on. 5
I'm the summer of 1918 they came tt
me and gave me huge order for :
e wireless-steered airplanes. I had
st got ready to manufacture them in
holesale quantities when the end of
e war came
NJ. Fokker displayed a photograph
+ an airplane without an engine
his is my very latest idea," he said
oudly. ut is a secret as yet. Sport
9 contests with such machines would
very much like coasting contests
the winter runs in the Alps. An
: coaster could be towed by another
plane to a height of 5000 feet or
IRE, and then the airmen could cut
,se and plane down. / think the day
Il come when air coasting without