Our Managing Editor has done it again! His latest book starts with a quick, interestingly illustrated canter through all the early aircraft Fokker built, which were either not very good or, bluntly, copies of other manufacturers designs, (although Leaman says that the triplane was not a copy of the Sopwith as many people assume). It appears that it was only his own brave and brilliant piloting of his products that kept his company alive in the early days. Then, after the War broke out, his series of monoplane fighters were successful, mainly because they could be pointed at their targets and fire through their propellers. However, he was fairly soon ordered to stop designing and became merely a building contractor, and was often in trouble because of bad workmanship and materials. It is astonishing that, having started so badly, he and his aircraft became such icons. This book argues that Fokker himself was intuitive and a great salesman, and was lucky enough to find Reinhold Platz, who was a brilliant craftsman, as Works Manager, after sacking more than one unsatisfactory predecessor. With this team, the Company never looked back. But even so, the Dr.I had to be withdrawn from service because of bad assembly of the top wing which caused structural failure. By the time it was finally righted, the Dr.I was already obsolescent, and never equipped the number of Jastas originally intended. Further, although forever linked with von Richthofen and Voss, these two Aces scored the majority of their victories in other aircraft. So why the iconic status? This marvellous book gives, I think, the answer – charisma, plus the fact that the pilots loved flying it.

After descriptions and photographs of nearly every Dr.I ever built, (there are nearly 500 in the book), we move on to Flying the Triplane, construction, finish and markings – Harry Dempsey has done the subject proud with 30 profiles – and a series of Appendices covering everything from technical data to Richthofen’s victories flying a Triplane. Leaman’s previous book Fokker Aircraft of World War One was good. This one is better, and very well presented.