Production
The first production model, the F27-100, was delivered to Aer Lingus in November 1958. Other early Friendship customers included Braathens SAFE, Luxair, Ansett, New Zealand National Airways Corporation, Trans Australia Airlines and Turkish Airlines.
In 1956, Fokker signed a licensing deal with the US aircraft manufacturer Fairchild for the latter to construct the F27 in the USA. The first U.S.-built aircraft flew on April 12, 1958. Fairchild also independently developed a stretched version, called the FH-227. Most sales by Fairchild were made in the North American market.
Basic price for an RDa.6 powered F-27 in 1960 was £239,000.
At the end of the Fokker F27’s production in 1987, 586 units had been built (plus another 207 F-27s and FH-227s in the USA by Fairchild), more than any other western European civil turboprop airliner.
Many aircraft have been modified from passenger service to cargo or express-package freighter roles and remain in service in 2009. The last major cargo user of the F27 in the United States was Fedex Express, as cargo "feeder" aircraft. These were retired and replaced by ATR42 and ATR72 aircraft by the end of 2009, with the last of the aircraft being donated to Hickory Aviation Museum. The United States Army Parachute Team continues to use a C-31A Troopship for its diving exhibitions in 2011.
In the early 1980s, Fokker developed a successor to the Friendship, the Fokker 50. Although based on the F27-500 airframe, the Fokker 50 is virtually a new aircraft with Pratt & Whitney Canada engines and modern systems. Its general performance and passenger comfort were improved over the F27.
Read more about this topic: Fokker F27 Friendship
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