Fokker D . VIII The Fokker E . V was a German parasol - monoplane fighter aircraft designed by Reinhold Platz and built by Fokker - Flugzeugwerke . It entered service with the " Luftstreitkräfte " in the last months of World War I . After several fatal accidents due to wing failures , the aircraft was modified and redesignated Fokker D . VIII . Dubbed the " Flying Razor " by Allied pilots , the D . VIII had the distinction of scoring the last aerial victory of the war . Design and development . In early 1918 , Fokker produced several rotary - powered monoplane prototypes . Of these , Fokker submitted the V . 26 and V . 28 , small parasol - winged monoplanes with his usual steel - tube fuselages , for the second fighter trials at Adlershof in May / June 1918 . The V . 28 was tested with both the 108 kW ( 145 hp ) Oberursel UR . III and 119 kW ( 160 hp ) Goebel Goe . III , though neither of these engines were ready for operational service . The V . 26 utilized the standard Oberursel UR . II engine , producing only 82 kW ( 110 hp ) . While this engine was obsolete , the V . 26 ' s low drag and light weight meant that it was nevertheless quite fast . The Fokker designs were only barely beaten by the Siemens - Schuckert D . III with the complex bi - rotary Siemens - Halske Sh . III engine . In the end , the V . 26 was ordered into production as the Fokker E . V . Four hundred were ordered immediately with either the UR . III or Goe . III . Because neither engine was available in any quantity , all production examples mounted the UR . II . Operational history . The first production E . V aircraft were shipped to " Jasta " 6 in late July . The new monoplane was also delivered to " Jasta " 1 , " Jasta " 19 , " Jasta " 24 and " Jasta " 36 . " Leutnant " Emil Rolff scored the first kill in an E . V on August 17 , 1918 , but two days later he was killed when his aircraft ' s wing collapsed in flight . After another E . V of " Jasta " 19 crashed , the " 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 fail . Fokker claimed that this defect was resolved by reverting to his original design . According to most other accounts , the source of the wing failures lay not in the design , but in shoddy and rushed construction . 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 . Tests showed that , when properly constructed , the original E . V wing had a considerable margin of safety . Satisfied that the basic design was safe , the " Idflieg " authorized continued production , after personnel changes and improved quality control measures were introduced at the Perzina factory . Deliveries resumed in October . At the suggestion of the " Kogenluft " ( " Kommandierenden General der Luftstreitkräfte " ) , the " Idflieg " redesignated the modified aircraft D . VIII . Henceforth , the " E . " and " Dr . " designations were abolished and all fighters received the " D . " appellation . The first new examples of the D . VIII started arriving at front - line units late that month and started operations on the 24 October with " Jasta " 11 . During its short time in service , it had little time to prove its worth . It was agile , easy to fly and proved to be an excellent fighter . Some considered it a worthy rival to the bigger and more powerful D . VII . " Jasta " 5 was issued a D . VIII . The famed ace Erich Lowenhardt used the aircraft for a short time and scored a few victories in it , but he continued to favour the Fokker D . VII . A total of 381 aircraft were produced , but only some 85 aircraft reached front - line service before the Armistice . Some reached Italy , Japan , the United States , and England as trophies , but most were scrapped in accordance with the terms of the Armistice . It was the last Fokker design to fly in the war and the last to score a victory . Allied pilots nicknamed the plane " The Flying Razor ' , because of its sleek appearance and single wing . Postwar . The Polish Air Force captured 17 aircraft , but only seven ( six E . V and one D . VIII ) were in airworthy condition . All were used against Soviet forces in the Polish - Soviet War of 1919 - 1920 . Lieutenant Stefan Stec earned the first kill for the Polish Air Force , by shooting down a Ukrainian Nieuport fighter on 29 April 1919 . In 1921 , the remaining Fokkers were withdrawn from front - line units and transferred to the " Szkoła Obsługi Lotniczej " ( Air Personnel School ) at Poznań - Ławica airfield . In late 2011 , The Vintage Aviator Ltd . of New Zealand , built a faithful reproduction D . VIII , which first flew on 20 October of that year . Survivors . The fuselage of one D . VIII is preserved at the Caproni Museum in Trento , Italy .