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Here is an interview I found about someone who flies a Fokker VII. The "hang on the propeller" characteristic he mentions is represented in the game by the curved stall moves and the "stall" move that isn't a stall.
In all the world perhaps two original Fokker D-VII's are still flying. One is the proud property of Cole Palen, of Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome, New York. We asked him how it flies. "Like a puff of warm air," was his graphic answer. "It'll break ground for no reason at all, without nosing up or you making any real effort. It just floats away. I would say it's very sensitive on the elevators- so many of the early machines were. And it's a rudder airplane. Give it rudder and automatically you're going to get the right angle of bank to make your turn. The ailerons are there just to keep the angle of bank where you want it.
"The stalling speed I would guess to be about 40 to 45 mph. It stalls pretty much straight ahead, without undue wing-dropping."It will definitely ground-loop, though it's not so bad as the Triplane. But you do have to land into wind; this applies to almost any of the early airplanes. But I would say it is the easiest flying of the World War I fighters. I think it would compare favorably with a Piper Cub, except for that damn rollout.
"From my machine I don't think it was as fast as Fokker claimed. I don't think it ever could go more than 100 mph. Like the Triplane, it was the kind of airplane you couldn't very well run away from a fight in, but its exceptional characteristic is its rapid rate of turn. It will out-turn anything else I've flown. And that story of D-VII's being able to hang on the propeller and still fly is absolutely true. It will hang at about forty-five degrees and still be in full flight and very controllable. The vertical reversement and the Immelmann are very nice, and the Lufbery circle is very rapid.
"The engine is reliable, though I think mine is turning unusually slowly. It isn't giving quite the power these days that it used to. I get about 1,270 rpm when I should get 1,400.
"The engine is a high-compression straight-six in-line. The carburetor air is crankcase warmed, and it has a dual ignition- and in a sense dual carburetion-for there are two bowls and jets each feeding three cylinders. You can almost fly on three cylinders. Well, you can't really, but you can make a very long glide.
"The engine starts itself, without a starter, and you don't have to crank it. You just pull the propeller through a few times with the engine on low compression, and you can hear the carburetor drawing, sucking gas, and then you turn it over a few times till you know you've got a good mixture in the cylinders. Then you wind the old Bosch hand crank to make a spark, which goes through the distributor and into a cylinder. It may kick backwards at first, but it's got sense and eventually it will settle down and run properly. It will idle very slowly. We can keep it running at 150 rpm.
"Would you believe. I am still using original World War I spark plugs?"
Mark, have you looked closely at the maneuver deck for the Fokker VII? One of the short stall cards is not marked with a diamond - which means it can be played in front of (or behind) one of the diamond-marked stalls! (This was confirmed by the author on the Wings of War group discussion board to represent the Fokker VII's ability to "hang on its propeller"). Basically, the plane can stall twice in a row - and combined with the curved stall...
And, if one wanted, one could play a stall, the "hang" card which looks like a stall, then play another stall card!
Seriously, I think that sometimes too many options can confuse. I noticed some new maneuvers being played when other old ones would have succeeded. I also think the newer speed gives you a less tight turning radius.
The best thing I think it gives over the original is the increased HP.
__________________ I think we're all bozos on this bus.
The Fokker VII is clearly superior to the other planes. I did not see any situation in which I could have flown better by choosing a different card. I did get rather unlucky on the last fight, but I don't think this was due to any bad choices I was making as far as particular cards--- though I did get into a dangerous position. This is not always avoidable, however.
The stall turns can be quite devastating in the right situations. In essence a pilot can follow a guy passing in front of him, or even a plane trying to turn around him. The turn radius is larger, but I have not been in a fight yet where that mattered. Any time there is a looping chase, not much actually happens between either plane. (I am thinking of several fights Vince and I had at his house.)
I would put up a Fokker VII against any plane in the game at this point. I don't know if my endless kills and wins give my opinion any clout, though...
__________________ The natural unintended meaning of any abstract, symbolic language is rhubarb.
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