Koolhoven FK.41
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Desoutter is a British monoplane liaison aircraft manufactured by
Desoutter Aircraft Company The Desoutter Aircraft Company was a British aircraft manufacturer based in Croydon. It was founded by Marcel Desoutter and produced aircraft during the late 1920s and the 1930s. History The company was formed in December 1928 to manufacture t ...
at Croydon Aerodrome,
Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...
.


Design and production

In the late 1920s,
Marcel Desoutter André Marcel Desoutter (31 January 1894–13 April 1952) was an English aviator, who lost a leg in an early flying accident, but went on to a successful career in the aviation industry. Early life Desoutter was one of six children of Louis A ...
, a well known pilot, formed the Desoutter Aircraft Company Ltd to follow up his marketing idea to licence manufacture the
Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...
aircraft
Koolhoven F.K.41 N.V. Koolhoven was an aircraft manufacturer based in Rotterdam, Netherlands. From its conception in 1926 to its destruction in the Blitzkrieg in May 1940, the company remained the second major Dutch aircraft manufacturer (after Fokker). Although ...
. This aircraft had drawn a lot of attention due to its modern design. The licence was obtained and Desoutter began production at Croydon Aerodrome in the former
ADC Aircraft The Aircraft Disposal Company (ADC), or Airdisco, was a British firm established in March 1920 to take advantage of the large number of World War I-surplus military aircraft on the market.Gunston 2005, p.7. The company changed name in 1925 to A ...
factory. The second production Dutch F.K.41 (registered G-AAGC) was flown to Croydon and was modified by Desoutter and displayed at the Olympia Aero Show,
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
in July 1929 as the Desoutter Dolphin. This aircraft was later sold in
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
with registration ZS-ADX and was impressed into service with the South African Air Force. The name ''Dolphin'' was not used again and the British production aircraft was known as the Desoutter and then following the introduction of an improved version the following year the Desoutter I. The
National Flying Services National Flying Services Ltd was a company aiming to create and manage a large number of airfields and flying clubs around Britain. It relied on government subsidy, and it collapsed when the subsidy was withdrawn in 1934, because the aims had not ...
Ltd placed a large order and received 19 aircraft. These were all painted black and bright orange and soon became a familiar sight at
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
flying clubs, where they were used for instruction, pleasure flights and taxi flights. The first aircraft for another customer left Croydon for
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
on 9 February 1930. It was flown to
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
arriving on 13 March 1930, it was then shipped to New Zealand. In 1930 an improved version, the Desoutter II was produced. It had a
de Havilland Gipsy III The de Havilland Gipsy is a British air-cooled four-cylinder in-line aircraft engine designed by Frank Halford in 1927 to replace the ADC Cirrus in the de Havilland DH.60 Moth light biplane. Initially developed as an upright 5 litre (300 ...
engine, redesigned
aileron An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement aroun ...
s and tail surfaces and wheel brakes.


Operational history


Production

41 aircraft were built at Croydon Aerodrome – 28 Mk.Is and 13 Mk.IIs, in contrast only six of the original F.K.41 were produced.


New Zealand

The Desoutter also became famous due to its involvement in New Zealand's first commercial air disaster, which occurred six days after the
1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake The 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake, also known as the Napier earthquake, occurred in New Zealand at 10:47am on 3 February, killing 256,The exact number of deaths varies according to different sources; the ''New Zealand Listener'' article cited be ...
on 8 February 1931 near
Wairoa Wairoa is the largest town in the Wairoa District and the northernmost town in the Hawke's Bay region of New Zealand's North Island. It is located on the northern shore of Hawke Bay at the mouth of the Wairoa River and to the west of Mā ...
. The Desoutter belonged to
Dominion Airways Desoutter is a British monoplane liaison aircraft manufactured by Desoutter Aircraft Company at Croydon Aerodrome, Surrey. Design and production In the late 1920s, Marcel Desoutter, a well known pilot, formed the Desoutter Aircraft Company Ltd ...
and carried the identification code ZK-ACA. The small airliner had been making three round trips a day between Hastings and Gisborne, carrying passengers and supplies. All three on board were killed.


Australia

Late in 1931 Australians H. Jenkins and H. Jeffrey purchased the 30th production aircraft EI-AAD from Irish owners
Iona National Air Taxis Iona (; , sometimes simply ''Ì'') is an island in the Inner Hebrides, off the Ross of Mull on the western coast of Scotland. It is mainly known for Iona Abbey, though there are other buildings on the island. Iona Abbey was a centre of Gaelic ...
and flew it as G-ABOM from
Heston Aerodrome Heston Aerodrome was an airfield located to the west of London, England, operational between 1929 and 1947. It was situated on the border of the Heston and Cranford areas of Hounslow, Middlesex. In September 1938, the British Prime Minister, ...
to
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
between 29 December 1931 and February 1932. Here it was soon sold to L. MacKenzie Johnson as VH-UEE ''Miss Flinders'' who began a regular service between Launceston and
Whitemark Whitemark is a rural residential locality on Flinders Island in the local government area (LGA) of Flinders in the North-east LGA region of Tasmania. The 2021 census recorded a population of 308 for the state suburb of Whitemark. It is the mai ...
on
Flinders Island Flinders Island, the largest island in the Furneaux Group, is a island in the Bass Strait, northeast of the island of Tasmania. Today Flinders Island is part of the state of Tasmania, Australia. It is from Cape Portland, Tasmania, Cape Portl ...
, most of the 108-mile route being over the waters of south-eastern
Bass Strait Bass Strait () is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The ...
. Competition with regular shipping services by William Holyman & Sons saw the formation of Holymans Airways, the forerunners of
Australian National Airways Australian National Airways (ANA) was Australia's predominant aerial carrier from the mid-1930s to the early 1950s. The Holyman's Airways period On 19 March 1932 Flinders Island Airways began a regular aerial service using the Desoutter Mk.I ...
, later the same year. VH-UEE has been preserved by the Queen Victoria Museum in Launceston. Three other Desoutter IIs were purchased by Hart Aviation Services of Melbourne, including the still-extant VH-UPR (damaged in an accident on Deal Island in Bass Strait in 1933). VH-UPR is now located at the Nhill aerodrome in country Victoria


Denmark

The Danish Air Society (''Det Danske Luftfartselskab'') bought the second last manufactured Desoutter Mk.II in 1931. This aircraft was given the registration OY-DOD. In 1934, this aircraft was sold to lieutenant Michael Hansen, and in the following year to the Nordisk Luftrafik company. In 1938 it was sold to Nordjysk Aero Service, but Michael Hansen bought the aircraft back the same year and used it to fly to Cape Town and in the
MacRobertson Air Race The MacRobertson Trophy Air Race (also known as the London to Melbourne Air Race) took place in October 1934 in aviation, 1934 as part of the 1934 Centenary of Melbourne, Melbourne Centenary celebrations. The race was devised by the Lord Mayor o ...
. The aircraft completed the journey from Mildenhall,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
to
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
in 129 Hours 47 Minutes, it gained 7th position in the handicap race.


Finland

During the
Winter War The Winter War was a war between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with a Soviet invasion of Finland on 30 November 1939, three months after the outbreak of World War II, and ended three and a half months later with the Moscow Peac ...
, the
Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...
of
Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...
raised money in order to purchase an ambulance aircraft for Finland. In October 1941 the Danish aircraft registered OY-DOD was bought for this purpose and was donated to Finland. The aircraft was flown by Michael Hansen to
Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...
, Finland on 28 October 1941. The Mk.II was given both Finnish Air Force and Red Cross markings and was used until 14 November 1944 as a liaison and ambulance aircraft. After the war, the
Karhumäki brothers The Karhumäki brothers (), consisting of Niilo (1902–1978) and Valto Karhumäki (1905–1985), were Finnish airline founder and aircraft manufacturer brothers. Born in Multia, Finland in 1902 and 1905, Niilo and Valto Karhumäki moved to Jyv ...
, who were aircraft manufacturers, bought the aircraft and sold it without the engine to Torsti Tallgren and Armas Jylhä in
Tampere Tampere is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Pirkanmaa. It is located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Tampere is approximately , while the metropolitan area has a population of approximately . It is the most populous mu ...
, who repaired it and registered it as OH-TJA on 17 November 1947. The aircraft crashed near Tampere on 4 December 1947.


Variants

;Koolhoven F.K.41: Original Dutch version, six built, powered variously by
ADC Cirrus The ADC Cirrus is a series of British aero engines manufactured using surplus Renault parts by the Aircraft Disposal Company (ADC) in the 1920s. The engines were air-cooled, four-cylinder inline types. They were widely used for private and l ...
,
Siemens-Halske Sh 11 The Siemens-Halske Sh 11 was a seven-cylinder, air-cooled, radial engine for aircraft built in Germany in the 1920s. First run in 1925, it was rated at 75 kW (100 hp). Applications * Albatros L 68 * Bach 3-CT-2 Air Yacht * Bach 3-CT ...
, or any suitable engine in the range ;Desoutter Dolphin: One Desoutter modified F.K.41 ;Desoutter Mk.I: (previously known as the Desoutter for a few months) – British licence-made version. Modified tail, powered by
Cirrus Hermes The Cirrus and Hermes or Cirrus-Hermes are a series of British aero engines manufactured, under various changes of ownership, from the 1920s until the 1950s. The engines were all air-cooled, four-cylinder inline types, with earlier ones upright a ...
engine, 28 built. ;Desoutter Mk.II: (''Sports Coupé'') Modified version of the Mk.I with new inverted engine, redesigned vertical rudder and windscreen, 13 built.


Surviving aircraft

Three of the 41 aircraft survive: * G-AAPZ a flyable Desoutter I is operated by the
Shuttleworth Trust The Shuttleworth Collection is a working aviation, automotive and agricultural collection located at Old Warden Aerodrome in Bedfordshire, England. History The collection was founded in 1928 by aviator Richard Ormonde Shuttleworth. While ...
,
Old Warden Old Warden is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of the county of Bedfordshire, England, about south-east of the county town of Bedford. The 2011 census shows its population as 328. The ...
,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
. * VH-UEE is on display at
Launceston Airport Launceston Airport is a regional airport on the outskirts of Launceston, Tasmania. The airport is located in the industrial area of Western Junction, 15 kilometres from Launceston city centre. It is Tasmania's second busiest after Hobart Airpo ...
in
Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...
. * VH-UPR is a flyable Desoutter II owned by the
Australian National Aviation Museum The Moorabbin Air Museum is an aviation museum at Moorabbin Airport in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It was founded in 1962 as the Australian Aircraft Restoration Group, in an attempt to maintain a World War II-era Bristol Beaufighter aircr ...
in Melbourne Australia


Operators


Civil operators

; ; ; ; ;: The Danish airliner ''Det Danske Luftfarssselskab'' (DDL; 1932–1934; OY-DOD) ;:
Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...
; ; ; ; ; ;
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
;


Military operators

;:
Finnish Air Force The Finnish Air Force (FAF or FiAF; ; ) is one of the branches of the Finnish Defence Forces. Its peacetime tasks are airspace surveillance, identification flights, and production of readiness formations for wartime conditions. The Finnish Air ...
(Desoutter II, ex-Danish OY-DOD given by the Danish Red Cross) ;:
South African Air Force The South African Air Force (SAAF) is the air warfare branch of South African National Defence Force, with its headquarters in Pretoria. The South African Air Force was established on 1 February 1920. The Air Force saw service in World War II a ...
(F.K.41) ;:
Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...
(Desoutter I and II)


Specifications (Mk.II)


See also


References


Bibliography

* * Kalevi Keskinen, Kari Stenman: ''Koulukoneet – Suomen ilmavoimien historia 22'', Itä-Uudenmaan paino, Loviisa, 2003, * Tervonen, Ismo: ''Veljekset Karhumäki Suomen ilmailun pioneereina 1924–1956'', Apali Oy, . * Timo Heinonen: ''Thulinista Hornetiin – Keski-Suomen ilmailumuseon julkaisuja 3'', 1992. * Ove Hermansen: ''Da Hansen fløj til Melbourne i '34 – 75-året for dansk deltagelse i verdens største flykapløb fra England til Australien'', Copenhagen: Dansk Flyvehistorisk Forening, 2009. * *


External links


edcoatescollection
{{Koolhoven aircraft 1930s British civil utility aircraft High-wing aircraft Desoutter aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1930