Fokker Scourge

The Fokker Scourge, a term coined by the British press, was a period of time in World War I in the summer of 1915. The newly arriving Fokker E.I designs, the first with the interrupter gear, proved to be able to outfight every other fighter aircraft in the sky, quickly downing a huge number of Allied aircraft. By the end of the summer the German Luftstreitkrafte had complete air superiority, denying any access to allied scouts.

Although newer allied designs were a technical match for the Fokker, the months in which they had complete mastery allowed them to develop pilots and techniques with relative safety. By the end of this period their fighter corps were all experienced technicians, able to outfight better aircraft without too much trouble. When the Albatros D.III was introduced in August 1916, these pilots immediately put it to good use, once again winning the skies completely.