It was a conventional biplane flying boat design, with staggered sesquiplane wings braced by struts arranged as a Warren truss.

The B.I was amphibious, equipped with main undercarriage that folded back along the hull, but this feature was omitted in the B.III.

The B.I was flown in the Dutch East Indies by the Naval Air Service for a number of years, and although it gave good service, no further examples were ordered from Fokker.

[2] The manufacturer hoped that the modernised and improved B.III flying boat would stimulate renewed interest in the type.

[3] When the aircraft failed to sell to the Dutch Navy Fokker had a passenger cabin installed in the hope of attracting commercial customers.