The F.28 In Australian Service

In Australia, the experience which followed some airlines’ efforts to introduce jet airliners onto secondary routes showed the pitfalls which lay ahead. The upgrading of facilities, airports and the need for a ready supply of passengers to meet the increased productivity of airliners such as the Fellowship, proved to be a headache. The problems which surfaced were to defer some of the airlines’s plans and cause disappointment to manufacturers such as Fokker.

Announced during April 1962, the F. 28 was contemplated by Fokker as an aircraft fulfilling the dual role of an F. 27 replacement and also an airliner to be operated in parallel with the Friendship on routes requiring the benefits of pure jet operations. The name ‘Fellowship’ was decided on during 1964 after a contest was conducted amongst Fokker employees to select a suitable name for the F. 28 airliner. The go ahead for the project followed the granting of a Dutch Government advance of Dfl. 103 million on 18th February 1964.

The Fellowship was developed and built in a collaborative effort with the German companies Messerschmitt-BolkowBlohm and VFW-Fokker together with Short Brothers in the UK. Under this arrangement, members of the consortium were responsible for production of different parts of the structure. Fokker-VFW built the forward fuselage to a position aft of the flight deck, the central part of the fuselage and the wing fairings. VRW-Fokker looked after the fuselage aft of the flight deck to the wing leading edge, the rear fuselage and the tail unit. The fuselage section from the trailing edge of the wing to the rear pressure bulkhead together with the engine nacelles and support stubs were constructed by MBB. Shorts completing the picture with their responsibility for the wings and undercarriage doors. Final assembly took place at Schiphol-Oost. Fokker decided to share the workload of the F. 28 to minimise the space required for the production of the airliner within their own plant. This would enable them to better cope with heavy commitments of military production for the NATO countries. Based on their earlier involvement with F-104 production and later substantial workload with the F- 16, the decision to farm out F. 28 work was a wise one.

In an echo of their earlier successful Friendship link up with Fairchild, Fokker entered into a contract with the US company for the production in the USA of a shortened F. 28 to be designated the F. 228. However this project was not proceeded with and Fairchild ordered 10 F. 28s from Fokker instead. The original proposal for the F. 28 was for an airliner powered by two rear mounted Rolls-Royce RB. 183 Spey Junior turbofans carrying 50 passengers over a 994 mile range. When construction of the three prototypes commenced during July 1964 the basic accommodation of the initial production aircraft to follow was lifted to 60 passengers. The first prototype PH-JHG was rolled out on 4 April 1967 and had its maiden flight on 9 May 1967 followed some months later by the second prototype PH-WEV on 3 August. The third F. 28, PH-MOL flew on 20 October and was brought up to production standard by the middle of 1968. The Dutch CofA was received by the F. 28 on 24 February 1969 and FAA Type Approval the following month on 24 March. The first order for the F. 28 was placed by LTU during November 1965. Their initial Fellowship was the first production aircraft which first flew on 21 May 1968 and was delivered to them on 19 March 1969. The first F. 28 commercial service was operated by Braathens Safe on 28 March 1969.

During its production life the Fellowship was offered in several versions. The initial Mk. 1000 version accommodated up to 65 passengers, had an initial gross weight of 62,000lb which was progressively increased to 65,000lb and maximum range of 1,300 miles. The prototype F. 28 was modified to Mk. 2000 standard and first flew in that configuration on 28 April 1971. With a 7ft 3in fuselage stretch this variant could seat up to 79 passengers but the range was reduced to 805 miles. The Mk. 6000 and Mk. 5000 were improved versions of the earlier two models. Announced during 1972 the Mk. 6000 first took to the air on 27 September 1974. Powered by the improved Spey 555- 15H, it incorporated a wing span increase of 4ft 10 ¾in to 82ft 3in, was fitted with leading edge slats and could carry up to 85 passengers with a decreased fuel load.

The Mk. 3000 and Mk. 4000 are developments of the Mk. 1000 and Mk. 2000 fitted with the increased span wing, minus the slats, of the Mk. 5000 and Mk. 6000. Loads vary commensurate with fuselage length. The Mk. 3000 with a 71,00Olb gross weight can carry up to 65 passengers over a 1,725 mile range while the 73,000lb max weight Mk. 4000 can accommodate 85 passengers with a 1,125 mile range. Apart from the basic versions other derivatives have been produced. These included a freight version of the Mk. 1000 designated the Mk. 1000c with a side loading cargo door and the Mk. 3000C convertible freight version with a 8ft 2in wide by 6ft 1 ¾in high door on the left side forward of the wing.

Sales of the F. 28 continued at a subdued pace although Fokker did eventually break even with the project. At the end of 1971, 50 Fellowships had been sold and the breakeven point was then estimated at 200 aircraft. By June 1979, the order book stood at 145 and when production of the Fokker F. 28 ceased in 1987, a total of 241 aircraft had been built over a 20 year period. It is not surprising that the first application of the Fellowship in Australia was on intrastate routes in Western Australia. The introduction of Friendships commencing in 1959 had resulted in greater comfort for the far flung passenger network of MacRobertson Miller Airlines. The further progression to pure jet operation was a natural. evolutionary step and the Fellowship offered the right combination of capacity and economy for the task. Earlier aircraft such as the Boeing 727 and Douglas DC-9 were not suitable. What was required was a smaller aircraft suitable for low density routes capable of operating from secondary airports. To augment the existing Friendship fleet Ansett transferred two Vickers V. 700 Viscounts to cope with the traffic but the time had obviously come for a jet airliner to join the fleet.

During the early part of 1968, MMA was looking at the BAC One-Eleven, Fokker F. 28, Fairchild-Hiller F. 228, Douglas DC-9 Series 10 and the VFW-614. The evaluation was carried out by Mr Lloyd Butcher from MMA and he was considering these types with a view to their introduction on MMA and other Ansett member airlines’ routes during the early 1970s. In December 1968, Mr R M Ansett announced that subject to Government approval, MMA would initially lease one F. 28 from August 1969 pending delivery of their first Fellowship at a cost of $2. 4m for February 1970 delivery. Strong passenger growth over a five year period at ports such as Port Hedland, Dampier, Tom Price and Kalgoorlie in WA and Gove and Groote Eylandt in the NT had indicated that the passenger volume was available to support the introduction of jet airliners.

The predicted time savings were significant with the F. 28 time for Perth/Port Hedland being 2hr 6min compared with the Viscount’s 3hr 30min. Even more impressive was the F. 28’s 4hr 46min for Perth/Port Hedland/ Darwin compared with 7hr 40min for the Viscount and 8hr 9min for the Friendship.

During April 1969 MMA announced that the leased F. 28 would commence services on 12 August on the Perth/Port Hedland/ Derby/Darwin service. Another important development was the announcement on 28 May 1970 by Captain Stewart Middlemiss, General Manager of Airlines of New South Wales stating that two options on F. 28s had been converted into firm orders for an October 1970 introduction into service. This leased F. 28 was not however the first of its type to be seen in Australia. During February 1969 Fokker demonstrated PH-MOL during an extensive tour of Australia and New Zealand.

On 2 September 1969, MMA’s chartered F. 28 VH-MMJ left Perth at 6. 50am on its first scheduled service, a return flight to Port Hedland. At a ceremony prior to departure, the aircraft was named ‘RMA Pilbara’ by Mrs Charles Court, the wife of WA’s Minister for Industrial Development and the North West. Kununurra was added to the F. 28’s route on 3 February 1970 making it the fifth port to be offered jet services. By then, VH-MMJ was noteworthy in notching up a daily utilisation rate of 8½ hours per day, which was the highest figure achieved of by F. 28s then in service.

The first of MMA’s F. 28s on order, VH-FKA ‘Pilbara’ arrived in Perth on 8 June 1970 after a three day delivery flight from Amsterdam. It commenced regular services to Port Hedland on 11 June. The chartered Fellowship VH-MMJ ceased operations with MMA on 10 June and was returned to Fokker in Amsterdam three days later. MMA’s second F. 28 arrived in Perth on 12 July and made its first regular flight to Derby on 16 July where during a ceremony after arrival it was named ‘RMA Kimberley’ by Lady Brand, the wife of the WA Premier. The impact of these two F. 28s was quite significant. In conjunction with the delivery of another F. 27 for MMA it effectively doubled the airline’s capacity compared with a year earlier. This fleet of the two F. 28s, four F. 27s and a Twin Otter enabled their remaining DC-3 to be retired. The third F. 28 VH-FKC ‘RMA Arnhem Land’ arrived in Perth on 20 October further strengthening MMA’s fleet. This enabled a further expansion of services to additional ports such as Kalgoorlie, Newman, Broome and Dampier. Satisfaction with the F. 28 led to additional orders being placed by the Ansett group. An order and options on an additional three aircraft were placed with the intention of having them join the Airlines of New South Wales fleet. Through circumstances beyond Ansett’s control though this did not proceed quite according to plan.

Airlines of NSW launched their first F. 28 into operation on the 1st December 1970 when VH-FKD went into regular service. Flying from Sydney into the airlines’ three main destinations of Dubbo, Wagga Wagga and Broken Hill, Airlines of NSW was able to offer the comfort of jet travel coupled with useful time savings The new flight times for these routes were Sydney/Dubbo 40min (F. 27 time 60min), Sydney/Wagga 45min (70min) and Sydney/ Broken Hill 80min (120min). Airlines of NSW had embarked on a major training programme during 1970 which saw 26 employees undertake training with Fokker in Holland. Airport facilities were upgraded at Wagga and Dubbo and the latest T-Vasis lighting system was installed at all three country airports served by the F. 28. The Airlines of NSW Fellowship was operated in a one class, five abreast, 58 seat configuration with a MTOW of 63,000lb. The low pressure 70psi tyres enabled the type to operate from low bearing capacity country airstrips 100ft wide.

With all the planning and optimism which inevitably was associated with the introduction of the airline’s first jet the future looked bright. Unfortunately the economic scenario in the rural community was not good and the hoped for load factors did not eventuate. It must have been a bitter disappointment for the airline when they announced in late March the temporary withdrawal of the F. 28 from operations in NSW. This aircraft joined the MMA fleet in WA and by the end of 1971, MMA boasted a fleet of five F. 28s. Following this setback in NSW, several years were to pass before Ansett’s NSW subsidiary would again be in the position to operate jet aircraft and it was not until mid 1983 that VH-FKD returned to the Air New South Wales fold. The first service operated on its re-introduction was a four times a week return flight linking Sydney, Williamtown, Coolangatta and Brisbane.

It is worth noting that East-West Airlines also had problems with their initial plans to introduce a jet airliner into NSW service. During their quest for a suitable type they had narrowed their choice to the F. 28 Mk. 1000 or Mk. 2000, the BAC-111-475 or DC-9 Series 1o. However a combination of factors such as the lack of traffic growth coupled with a depressed rural economy intervened. During mid 1971 they announced the postponement of plans to acquire jet airliners and thus the operation of jet airliners in NSW was further delayed for several years.

With the more favourable economic outlook of the 1980s, the Ansett group has acquired additional F. 28s and both Ansett WA and Air NSW have obtained further aircraft in the form of either the MK. 1000 or the improved Mk. 4000. With the introduction of the British Aerospace 146s by Ansett WA, the outlook is for further F. 28s to be diverted to NSW.

As for East-West, over 12 years were to pass before they were to again endeavour to introduce jet aircraft into service. The initial move in this direction saw the purchase of tour F. 28 Mk. 4000s during 1983/84. Amongst the factors influencing East-West’s selection were the F. 28’s proven reliability and superior fuel economy. Confronted with the need to replace the F. 27 on the long 905nm overwater service to Norfolk Island and maintain the even longer 1,130nm Sydney/Alice Springs route the F. 28 Mk. 4000 offered the required performance and economy. To cope with the long haul nature of some of their routes the EastWest Mk. 4000s incorporated three changes from the standard version. The range was increased to 2,100nm by lifting total fuel capacity to 3,445 US gallons with the installation of centrewing bag tanks of 870 US gallons capacity. A Global VLF/Omega long-range navigation system was fitted and the seating was reduced from the normal 85 to 72 with a generous 33inch pitch. To further aid passenger comfort on long flights additional galley equipment and a second toilet were installed.

With the acquisition of the Fellowship fleet, East-West have been able to effectively expand their network. The transformation from the small airline initially created to cater for the needs of the New England area of New South Wales has been quite remarkable. From humble beginnings with a single Avro Anson, EastWest’s routes now stretch from Yulara/Ayers Rock to Norfolk lsland and from Cairns to Hobart. In a major expansion commencing on 30 October 1988, Rockhampton, Mackay, Proserpine and Mt Isa were added as destinations. East-West is also licensed to fly to Townsville but at presstime this service is not yet operated.

The urgent need for additional capacity over the last couple of years has prompted East-West to further expand their fleet and 119 two F. 28 Mk. 3000s were leased from Cimber Air during 1987.

East-West, in company with the other domestic airlines, is currently experiencing the benefits of the overseas tourist boom in Australia. The immense popularity of many locations in its diverse network are fully utilising its existing aircraft. During 1988, East-West received Federal Government approval to acquire four additional F. 28 Mk. 4000s. This has initially resulted in a seventh F. 28 being placed into operations during December 1988. This Fellowship is VH-FKJ, formerly a member of the Ansett WA fleet. With this most recent acquisition East-West now has a fleet of five 72 seat F. 28 Mk 4000s, two 65 seat F. 28 Mk 3000s and seven F. 27 Mk 500s. Current planning is for further F. 28 Mk. 4000s to be obtained after March 1989.

If traffic continues to grow at the present rate, particularly over some of the airline’s longer stage lengths, larger aircraft than the F. 28 may be required. It will be interesting to see if the Ansett WA experience with the British Aerospace 146 as a Fellowship replacement is to repeated with Ansett owned East-West.

The acquisition of East-West by Ansett now also means that most of the F. 28s in Australia are operated by the Ansett group. The notable exceptions to this are the two remaining Mk. 1000 aircraft operated by the CAA and used for the calibration of airways equipment. Three aircraft were obtained during 1976/77 and one of these, VH-ATE was sold abroad in Canada during 1987. The other Fellowship in Australia is the Mk. 4000 operated by Lloyd Aviation Jet Charter.

The F. 28 occupies an important niche in Australian aviation history as the first jet airliner to bring the benefits of speed and comfort to many of our smaller population centres. As the smallest jet airliner yet to be produced in quantity in the West it has proven to be ideally suited for lower density routes of varying stage lengths in many parts of Australia. Ultimately, the next generation of vastly more fuel efficient small airliners will replace the F. 28. The expanding Ansett WA British Aerospace 146 fleet is already gradually displacing the F. 28 from a region it has served so well for almost 20 years.

The Fokker Fellowship has made a valuable contribution in extending the spread of jet airliner services within Australia. During its period of operation, the original role of an airliner to serve some our more remote areas has expanded significantly. The lift in standards initiated by the Friendship has been further fostered by the Fellowship. The Fellowship, like the Friendship before it, will always be well regarded in our area.