The Fokker D.VII in Switzerland

The Swiss ‘Fliegertruppe’ used the D.VII from 1920 to 1938. Altogether there have been 27 in service, which were numbered ‘608’, ‘609’ and ‘616’ to ‘639’.
The first two were bought in 1920 from a private source. In 1922, ten were bought from the IAACC, which were overhauled by the Eidg. Konstruktions-Werkstätte. One of these, the ‘615’ was equipped with a 300 hp Hispano-Suiza HS-42 8FB engine, but in 1932 it was replaced by a Mercedes D.III. In 1925, Alfred Comte bought six D.VII from the IAACC. He overhauled them, and sold them to the ‘Fliegertruppe’. In 1928, the ‘Fliegertruppe’ was able to buy ten new Mercedes D.III engines. From these engines, eight were used to equip new D.VII’s, which were build by Alfred Comte. They were put into service in 1929.

Swiss D.VII ‘621’ from the first batch bought from the IAACC

One D.VII has not been mentioned. This one was bought from surplus by Carl Högger in 1920 in Berlin. He flew it to Friedrichshafen, where he came in trouble with the customs: they would not let him leave. So, on 6 november 1920, Högger made a surprise take-off, out of the empty Zeppelin hangar, and flew to Dübendorff. The D.VII was registered as ‘CH-46’, and was used by Högger and Comte until the end of 1925. It was sold to the ‘Fliegertruppe’, and was put into service as the ‘631’. In 1936, this D.VII was presented to the German Museum in Berlin, and it was flown out of Dübendorff by Ernst Udet, wearing the civil registration D-EIRA, and a swastika.

Swiss D.VII ‘631’, the former ‘CH-46’

The ‘D-EIRA’ which was the former ‘631’