The first major civil aircraft designed and built by Fokker after WW II was the F27. During 1950, Fokker determined what operators would like for a DC-3 replacement, and they developed the P.275 concept, with a shoulder-height wing, powered by a pair of turboprops. By 1953, this had developed into the F27 with Rolls-Royce Dart engines, seating 32 passengers in a pressurized cabin and capable of operating from small airfields. The Dutch government was so confident that Fokker had a winner that they funded the production of two flying and two test aircraft. The prototype flew on November 24, 1955, and the project soon began to yield orders. Fairchild Aircraft also saw the plane's potential, and secured a license-production agreement for airlines in the United States. The Fairchild machines had a longer nose for weather radar, extra fuel tankage, American instrumentation, and seating for up to 40. This version received its FAA Type Approval on July 16, 1958. The F27/F-27 went on to become the best selling turboprop aircraft, with over 700 built.
The initial type was followed by the F27 Mk 200/F-27A, with uprated engines, and then the Mk300/F-27B with freighter features. The first major change was made in the F27 Mk 500, which had a fuselage stretch of almost 5 feet, while Fairchild developed the FH-227, which instead stretched the fuselage by 6 feet. F-27's were very popular with the smaller regional and local airlines as DC-3 and Convair/Martin replacements. They were very reliable, and many passengers enjoyed the fine views from the large windows unimpeded by the wing. A few F-27's are still in service today, and manufacture of this popular plane was extended by the development of the Fokker 50, with new engines and avionics. However, the closure of the Fokker company seems to have finally ended the story of this fine aircraft, although those examples flying today give good evidence of this fine aircraft's longevity.
FH-227 Demonstrator Base Pack (by permission of Mike Stone; should remain on this server). Thanks Mike for your help! Last updated on 10/12/12. FSX native version by Bjoern Kesten. Last updated on 3/20/2015.
Please add any liveries you might have for the F-27 using Mike Stone's model to the Pacific Air Lines Base Pack, using the Adding Liveries.txt file for details.
FS2004/FSX
Pacific Air Lines F-27A Base Pack.
Bernward Bockheim and I have modified Mike Stone's F.27-200
into an F-27A, complete with proper pitot tubes, landing lights, and
folding airstairs. Bernward has added a VC too! It also has a
reshaped vertical tail, improved nacelle shape and main gear
retraction sequence, along with a host of other improvements. It is
also now FSX compatible. We've painted it into the colors of a Pacific
F-27A, a California regional airline. Pacific was later merged
into Air West, which was bought by Howard Hughes and called Hughes
Airwest, and was eventually merged into Republic and then into
Northwest. I saw many of these when I was a kid in Sacramento. Also includes an updated panel by Matthias
Lieberecht and Tom Gibson. Thanks so much Mike for your permission
for this project! Last updated on 11/16/15. FSX native version by Bjoern Kesten. Last updated on 3/20/2015.
FS2004/FSX Pacific Airlines F-27A 1965. Gary Harper has painted
up the new F-27 in the later gray and red colors of Pacific. Thanks! Textures
only - you must also download the Pacific Air Lines version
above. Last updated on 11/16/15.
FS2004/FSX Pacific Airlines F-27A 1967. This time it is Frank
Gonzalez doing the honors, painting up this very sharp livery of Pacific Air
Lines. This was their last livery before being merged into Air West. Thanks
Frank! Textures
only - you must also download the Pacific Air Lines version
above. Last updated on 11/16/15.
FS2004/FSX
West Coast Airlines F-27. I've also created an F-27 with round tip
prop blades, and painted it into the interesting color scheme of West Coast
Airlines. West Coast was a regional airline serving Washington, Oregon,
and Northern California. It was another component of the Air West merger,
but this is how I remember the F-27's. Dave McQueen graciously furnished
a photo to get this job done - thanks, Dave! Textures only - you must
also download the Pacific Air Lines version above.
Last updated on 11/16/15.
FS2004/FSX West Coast Airlines
F-27 1967. Here is the F-27 that Frank Gonzalez has painted into the
later jet delivery colors of West Coast - enjoy! Textures
only - you must also download the Pacific Air Lines version
above. Last updated on 11/16/15.
FS2004/FSX Air West F-27A
Friendship (Blue/Mustard). I've painted up the four Air West original
paint schemes, and this is the first, a blue/mustard combination. While
this paint job doesn't look unusual today (in fact, it looks just like one of
many), this was one of the first white fuselage schemes, resulting from the
merger of Pacific, West Coast, and Bonanza Air Lines in 1968. For that
time, the paint job was considered radical, but was eventually emulated by many
of the world's airlines. Textures only - you must also download
the Pacific Air Lines version above. Last
updated on 11/16/15.
FS2004/FSX Air West F-27A Friendship
(Green/Blue). Here's another of the four schemes, once thought to
be very avant garde. Textures only - you must also download
the Pacific Air Lines version above. Last
updated on 11/16/15.
FS2004/FSX Air West F-27A
Friendship (Mustard /Rust). Actually my first Air West paint job
from long ago, this paint job was quite revolutionary back in the late '60's.
Dave McQueen supplied a photo for this paint job - thanks, Dave! Textures
only - you must also download the Pacific Air Lines version
above. Last updated on 11/16/15.
FS2004/FSX Air West F-27
Friendship (Pink/Orange). The final Air West scheme was pink and orange
- very bright! Textures only - you must also download the Pacific
Air Lines version above. Last updated on 11/16/15.
FS2004/FSX Hughes Airwest
F-27A. After the Air West merger, the airline went through some
lean times. Howard Hughes decided to dabble in the airline business again
after losing control of TWA, and bought Air West, which became Hughes Airwest.
This plane is in the "banana" paint scheme, after Hughes took over
Air West, but before merger into Republic (which was bought by Northwest). This
has to be one of the brightest paint jobs ever - check out the futuristic lettering
under the windows - in blue/purple! Dave McQueen provided photos for this
paint job - thanks, Dave! Textures only - you must also download
the Pacific Air Lines version above. Last
updated on 11/16/15.
FS2004/FSX
Bonanza Air Lines F-27A. Henry William has repainted the F-27 into
the southern component of the Air West merger, Bonanza. Basing much of
their operations out of Las Vegas, Bonanza's Silver Darts served the Southwest,
including all of Southern California. Textures only - you must also download the Pacific
Air Lines version above. Last updated on 11/16/15.
FS2004/FSX Connect Air F-27A. I've painted up this incredibly
bright paint job of Connect Air, a small airline that flew between Los Angeles
and Santa Barbara around 1984. Textures only - you must also download
the Pacific Air Lines version above. Last
updated on 11/16/15.