Airlines, Aviation, Pioneers - History of flight - Britannica
The company's inaugural flight occurred on Aug. 25, 1919, when the plane flew from London to Paris with its sole passenger, an enterprising newspaper reporter.
Anthony Fokker
In 1919 the Netherlands organized a new airline, KLM, and began service between London and Amsterdam using aircraft built by <anchor>Anthony Fokker</anchor>. (KLM now proudly claims the title of the world’s oldest continuously operating airline.) By 1930, KLM offered weekly service to Batavia (now Jakarta), the colonial capital of the Dutch East Indies, and competed with Imperial Airways in the Far East. Pioneering air services also sprang up in Africa, Asia, and Australia.
Anthony Herman Gerard Fokker | Aviation Pioneer, Innovator, Entrepreneur | Britannica
Anthony Herman Gerard Fokker \| Aviation Pioneer, Innovator, Entrepreneur \| Britannica

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[Anthony Herman Gerard Fokker](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Anthony-Herman-Gerard-Fokker)

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Introduction
[References & Edit History](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Anthony-Herman-Gerard-Fokker/additional-info) [Quick Facts & Related Topics](/facts/Anthony-Herman-Gerard-Fokker)

[Images](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Anthony-Herman-Gerard-Fokker/images-videos)

[![Anthony Fokker](https://cdn.britannica.com/01/11801-004-636E1B3C/Anthony-Fokker.jpg)](https://cdn.britannica.com/01/11801-004-636E1B3C/Anthony-Fokker.jpg)[![Anthony Fokker, 1922.](https://cdn.britannica.com/08/129808-004-85FACDDC/Anthony-Fokker-1922.jpg)](https://cdn.britannica.com/08/129808-050-8513BCB5/Anthony-Fokker-1922.jpg)[![Fokker, Anthony Herman Gerard](https://cdn.britannica.com/61/76161-004-6A61C13A/Anthony-Fokker-glider-1922.jpg)](https://cdn.britannica.com/61/76161-050-E79C1394/Anthony-Fokker-glider-1922.jpg)

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[![](https://cdn.britannica.com/01/11801-004-636E1B3C/Anthony-Fokker.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/01/11801-004-636E1B3C/Anthony-Fokker.jpg)

[Anthony Fokker](https://cdn.britannica.com/01/11801-004-636E1B3C/Anthony-Fokker.jpg)(more)

# Anthony Herman Gerard Fokker

Dutch aircraft manufacturer



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External Websites


- [National Aviation Hall of Fame - Biography of Anthony Fokker](https://www.nationalaviation.org/our-enshrinees/fokker-anthony/)
- [Spartacus Educational - Biography of Anthony Fokker](https://spartacus-educational.com/FWWfokker.htm)
- [New Netherland Institute - Biography of Anthony Herman Gerard Fokker](https://www.newnetherlandinstitute.org/history-and-heritage/dutch_americans/anthony-herman-gerard-anthony-fokker/)

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- [Spartacus Educational - Biography of Anthony Fokker](https://spartacus-educational.com/FWWfokker.htm)
- [New Netherland Institute - Biography of Anthony Herman Gerard Fokker](https://www.newnetherlandinstitute.org/history-and-heritage/dutch_americans/anthony-herman-gerard-anthony-fokker/)

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Table of Contents


Quick Facts

Born: April 6, 1890, [Kediri](/place/Kediri-Indonesia), Java, [Netherlands East Indies](/place/Dutch-East-Indies) \[now Indonesia\]_(Show more)_

Died: Dec. 23, 1939, [New York City](/place/New-York-City), N.Y., [U.S.](/place/United-States) (aged 49)_(Show more)_

[See all related content →](/facts/Anthony-Herman-Gerard-Fokker)

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**Anthony Herman Gerard Fokker** (born April 6, 1890, [Kediri](https://www.britannica.com/place/Kediri-Indonesia), Java, [Netherlands East Indies](https://www.britannica.com/place/Dutch-East-Indies) \[now Indonesia\]—died Dec. 23, 1939, [New York City](https://www.britannica.com/place/New-York-City), N.Y., U.S.) was a Dutch airman and pioneer aircraft manufacturer who during [World War I](https://www.britannica.com/event/World-War-I) produced more than 40 types of airplanes (designed by Reinhold Platz) for the German High Command. Initially, he offered his designs to both combatants, but the Allies turned him down.

[![](https://cdn.britannica.com/08/129808-050-8513BCB5/Anthony-Fokker-1922.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/08/129808-050-8513BCB5/Anthony-Fokker-1922.jpg)

[Anthony Fokker, 1922.](https://cdn.britannica.com/08/129808-050-8513BCB5/Anthony-Fokker-1922.jpg)(more)

Fokker built his first plane in 1910 and taught himself to fly. In 1912 he established a small aircraft factory at Johannisthal, near [Berlin](https://www.britannica.com/place/Berlin). During World War I he introduced the gear system that made it possible to fire a [machine gun](https://www.britannica.com/technology/machine-gun) through the propeller arc without hitting the blades; the propeller itself, by means of levers and gears, operated the gun at properly timed intervals.

[![](https://cdn.britannica.com/61/76161-050-E79C1394/Anthony-Fokker-glider-1922.jpg?w=300)](https://cdn.britannica.com/61/76161-050-E79C1394/Anthony-Fokker-glider-1922.jpg)

[Fokker, Anthony Herman Gerard](https://cdn.britannica.com/61/76161-050-E79C1394/Anthony-Fokker-glider-1922.jpg) Anthony Fokker in his glider, 1922.(more)

In the early 1920s Fokker sold an increasing number of planes to the U.S. military, and in 1922 he established the Atlantic Aircraft Corp. in [New Jersey](https://www.britannica.com/place/New-Jersey). He also maintained a large aircraft factory in the Netherlands. The first nonstop flight across the [United States](https://www.britannica.com/place/United-States) was made in the Fokker T-2 transport. [Richard Byrd](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Richard-E-Byrd) and [Floyd Bennett](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Floyd-Bennett) flew over the [North Pole](https://www.britannica.com/place/North-Pole) (May 9, 1926) in one of Fokker’s trimotor planes. During the 1920s and the 1930s Fokker concentrated on the design and development of commercial aircraft that were widely used in the [fledgling](https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/fledgling) U.S. commercial [aviation](https://www.britannica.com/technology/aviation) industry. His autobiography, _The Flying Dutchman,_ was published in 1931.

This article was most recently revised and updated by [Encyclopaedia Britannica](/contributor/encyclopaedia-britannica/12989892).