Anthony Herman Gerard Fokker

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Anton Herman Gerard Fokker (April 6, 1890 – December 23, 1939), was born in Kediri (Dutch East Indies, now Indonesia) and became a Dutch aircraft manufacturer.

At age 20, Fokker created his first plane — the Spin (Spider) — in 1910. In his own country, he became a celebrity by flying around the tower of the Sint-Bavokerk in Haarlem on August 31, 1911. He also added to his fame by flying on the birthday of Queen Wilhelmina. During World War I he designed and built many aircraft for the German air force, including the Fokker Dr.I, the triplane made famous in the hands of aces such as Manfred von Richthofen.

After the war's end, the Treaty of Versailles forbid Germany to build any aircraft or aircraft engines. Fokker returned to the Netherlands and started a new aircraft company in 1919. His focus shifted from military to civil aircraft. In 1922, he moved to the United States and later became an American citizen. He died in New York in 1939 of complications of sinus surgery. He was just 49 years old.

[edit] Trivia

Fokker's nickname was The Flying Dutchman.
Anthony Fokker was the inventor of the interrupter gear.
Roy Focker, a central character in The Supe Dimension Fortress Macross (adapted as Roy Fokker in the Macross Saga of Robotech), was most likely named after Anthony Fokker and his Fokker aircraft. In flashback sequences, Roy flies a Fokker D.VII in his youth, and even gives his friend Hikaru Ichijyo (Robotech's Rick Hunter) a model of one as a gift.