Never delivered #22

 

In 1978, a Fokker F-28 Mk.4000 conducted a tour across America. This was the aircraft cn. 11130, belonging to Linjeflyg. Before being delivered to that airline, it was used by Fokker for its demonstration tour under the registration PH-JPV.

In February 1978, it landed in Minneapolis, where it was showcased to North Central Airlines.

This is how it would have looked if the company had purchased the Fokker F-28 Mk.4000.

Ghana Airways

 

9G-ADA (cn.11187) at Accra Kotoka International Airport, picture by Neil Pidduck published at Airliners.net.

 

Ghana’s flag carrier traces its origins to the Ghanaian subsidiary of West African Airways, established in the final years of the colonial period. Although the airline was founded by the Ghanaian government, its early years also saw the participation of private capital. This mixed ownership structure remained in place until February 1961, when the government assumed full control of the company following its nationalisation.

From an early stage, the airline showed a clear interest in modernising its fleet and adopting jet aircraft. Within this context, the Fokker F-28 Fellowship emerged as an attractive option for short- and medium-haul operations. As an initial step, Ghana Airways leased two aircraft directly from the manufacturer, allowing the airline to assess their operational capabilities prior to permanent acquisition.

The first Fokker F-28s, belonging to the Mk. 2000 series, were delivered in 1974, marking a major milestone for the country’s commercial aviation sector and signalling Ghana’s entry into the jet age. The arrival of the two aircraft was celebrated with an official ceremony at Accra Airport, underlining the symbolic and operational importance of the event. Until then, Ghana Airways had relied primarily on propeller-driven aircraft such as the Douglas DC-3, the Fokker F-27 and similar types, many of which were leased from the Ghana Air Force. The introduction of the F-28 enabled the airline to modernise its fleet, gradually replacing these older aircraft with faster, more comfortable services offering greater range on domestic and regional routes.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, the Fokker F-28 became a central component of Ghana Airways’ domestic and regional operations. Operating from its base in Accra, the aircraft served key internal routes such as Accra–Kumasi, Accra–Tamale and Accra–Takoradi, while also supporting an extensive regional network across West Africa and sub-Saharan Africa. International destinations regularly served by the type included Abidjan, Lagos, Dakar, Freetown and Monrovia, routes that were well suited to the Fellowship’s range and capacity.

On 11 March 1981, one of the airline’s Fokker F-28s, registered 9G-ACA, was involved in an accident during a training flight at Accra Airport. The aircraft made a heavy landing, suffered a collapse of the landing gear and slid along the runway before coming to a stop. Both pilots survived and there were no additional injuries, although the aircraft was damaged beyond economic repair. To compensate for the loss, Ghana Airways acquired another Fokker F-28 in 1982, this time from the Mk. 4000 series, ensuring continuity in its regional operations.

The remaining Fokker F-28s remained in service until the mid-1990s, becoming an integral part of the airline’s operational history as its principal short-haul aircraft for more than two decades. In 1996, the two aircraft still in service were withdrawn and sold, bringing to a close a significant chapter in the history of Ghana Airways and in the modernisation of air transport in the country.

* msn. 11003 PH-MOL li. Nov71 - Nov74 li. Fokker.

* msn. 11032 PH-ZAV li. Ago72 - Oct72 li. Fokker.

* msn. 11032 PH-ZAV li. Ago73 -  Sep73 li. Fokker.

* msn. 11062 9G-ABZ dd. Jul74 - May96.

* msn. 11077 9G-ACA dd. May74 - Mar81.

* msn. 11187 9G-ADA dd. Ago82 - 1993.

The detail of the two doors

    The history of aviation is fascinating, and gaining an in-depth understanding of a particular aircraft type even more so. When we began working on the Fokker F-28 Fellowship blog, we gathered a large number of images. As we examined them closely, one detail caught our attention.

    On some Fokker F-28 Mk.1000 Fellowship aircraft, the forward cargo hold was fitted with two doors, while others had only one. At first, we believed this feature to be exclusive to the Fairchild Hiller FH-228, as most of the complete fuselages built or assembled at the American manufacturer’s facilities displayed this configuration.

    Indeed, three of those four aircraft — with construction numbers 11991, 11992 and 11993 — had a forward hold with two doors, whereas cn 11994 (PH-FPT) was equipped with a single-door forward hold. It is worth noting that these F-28s carry out-of-sequence construction numbers, a characteristic used to identify their Fairchild origin.

    This detail also appeared in Fairchild Hiller advertising material, brochures, and in a Fokker diagram that ultimately clarified the matter: the forward cargo hold with two doors — one forward and one central — was not exclusive to Fairchild, but rather an optional feature offered by Fokker itself.

    This was further confirmed by photographs of the third Fellowship built, which was also the first production F-28, PH-MOL (cn 11003). This aircraft already featured a forward cargo hold fitted with both forward and central doors.

    The information was later verified with fellow enthusiasts and specialists with extensive experience on the Fellowship, who confirmed that this configuration was indeed a simple factory option: a forward cargo hold with two doors.

    Among the original operators to select this option were LTU — on the first two aircraft it acquired — Itavia, Linjeflyg, the first aircraft purchased by Aviaction (D-AHLA, cn 11027), and two F-28s operated by the Australian Department of Aviation.

    A total of ten Fokker F-28s were delivered to Fairchild Hiller in an attempt to market the type in the United States. These aircraft were N281FH (cn 11016), N282FH (cn 11018), N283FH (cn 11020), N284FH (cn 11024), N285FH (cn 11033), N286FH (cn 11038), N287FH (cn 11043), N288FH (cn 11044) and N289FH (cn 11047). All of them were fitted with the two-door forward cargo hold. However, there was one notable exception: N280FH (cn 11048), also operated by Fairchild Hiller, which did not feature this option.

 

   Three aircraft originating from Fairchild Hiller were later modified to the Mk.1000C standard, and the central door of the forward cargo hold was also sealed. These were aircraft cn 11018, 11020 and 11024, which became TC-54, TC-53 and TC-55 respectively, entering service with the Argentine Air Force. In the photographs below, details indicating the former presence of the sealed central door can be clearly observed.

    Garuda operated a mixed fleet. It included aircraft equipped with two-door cargo holds, such as cn 11037, originally ordered by Itavia but not taken up, which became PK-GJR, as well as two aircraft sourced from Fairchild Hiller: cn 11043 (N287FH), later registered PK-GVN, and cn 11044 (N288FH), re-registered PK-GVO.

    The F-28 cn 11053 was the prototype of the Mk.2000 and carried the registration PH-ZAX. It was later transferred to Nigeria Airways as 5N-ANB. Initially, it did not feature a two-door forward cargo hold, but after being returned to Fokker it was modified to include this configuration. It was subsequently seen in the colours of the French airline TAT, registered as F-GDUS.

    From the production Mk.2000 F-28s onwards, the two-door forward cargo hold became standard configuration, a feature also adopted on the Mk.6000 and Mk.4000 variants. This was not the case with the Mk.3000, which left the factory with a single-door forward cargo hold.

    Below is the list of all Fokker F-28 Mk.1000 aircraft fitted with a two-door forward cargo hold.

Msn. - Model - Registers

11003 Mk.1000 PH-MOL/ LN-SUM/ EP-PBF/ F-GOML/ P2-ANL/ F-GIMG/ F-GIMH/ C5-ADD/ TZ-AZH.

11004 Mk.1000 PH-ZAA/ D-ABAQ/ I-TIDU/ F-GECK/ C5-ADE.

11006 Mk.1000 PH-ZAB/ D-ABAX/ I-TIDB/ C-GTUU/ OB-1779-P.

11014 Mk.1000 PH-ZAI/ I-TIDA.

11015 Mk.1000 PH-ZAK/ I-TIDE.

11016 Mk.1000 PH-ZAL/ N281FH/ N27W/ N930TL/ VR-BNC/ C-FHCP/ N43AE/ N500WN.

11018 Mk.1000 PH-ZAN/ N282FH/ PH-EXW/ TC-54/ LV-VCS/ TC-54.

11020 Mk.1000 PH-ZAP/ N283FH/ TC-53.

11024 Mk.1000 PH-EXC/ N284FH/ TC-55.

11027 Mk.1000 D-AHLA/ PH-ZBG/ EP-PAS/ PH-ZBG/ F-GBBX/ C5-ACE/ F-GBBX/ 5V-TPO/ 5Y-AXH/ 5V-TPO.

11032 MK.1000 PH-EXB/ PH-ZAV/ LN-SUM/ PH-ZAV/ OB-R-390/ OB-R-1030/ TC-JAZ/ PH-ZAV/ PK-GVM/ N282N/ N461AU/ C-FAIF/ C-FCRU.

11033 Mk.1000 N285FH/ CF-TAV/ C-FTAV/ P2-ANE.

11037 Mk.1000 PH-EXE/ PH-EXH/ PH-ZBF/ PK-GJR/ PK-GVY/ PH-EZA/ N293N/ N458US/ C-FCRP.

11038 Mk.1000 PH-EXM/ N286FH/ CF-TAY/ P2-ANF/ VH-XNG.

11043 Mk.1000 PH-EXA/ N287FH/ PH-EXM/ PK-GVM/ PH-EZY/ N291N/ N459US/ C-FCRI.

11044 Mk.1000 N288FH/ PH-EXR/ PK-GVO/ PH-EXV/ N286N/ N460AU/ C-FCRC.

11047 Mk.1000 N289FH/ PH-EXI/ VH-ATD/ C-FTAR/ TU-PAB/ TU-TGW.

11049 Mk.1000 PH-EXD/ 5N-AGN/ P2-ANB.

11053 Mk.2000 PH-ZAX/ 5N-ANB.

11067 Mk.1000 PH-EXL/ SE-DGA.

11068 Mk.1000 PH-EXI/ SE-DGB.

11069 Mk.1000 PH-EXK/ SE-DGC.

11082 Mk.1000 PH-EXN/ VH-ATE/ C-GTAH.

11084 Mk.1000 PH-EXP/ VH-ATG/ C-FTAY.

11991 Mk.1000 I-TIDI/ C-GTEO.

11992 Mk.1000 FAC001/ FAC0002.

11993 Mk.1000 PH-ZAU/ 5N-ANA.

Acknowledgments: Sebastian Acosta, Daniel Carneiro, & Ron Mak.