Lufthansa Junkers Ju 52

The iconic and legendary Junkers Ju 52 first flew in 1930. Designed and built by the Junkers Aircraft Company of Dessau, Germany, the Ju 52 was originally intended as a single-engine cargo aircraft. An upgraded model, the Ju 52/3m, was powered by three engines and excelled as an eighteen-seat airliner. By the late 1930s, hundreds of the safe, reliable and much loved Ju 52/3ms were serving with airlines in more than twenty countries, including the pre-war British Airways. Also, it was used as a bomber by the Luftwaffe, particularly in the Spanish Civil War. During the Second World War, the Ju 52/3m was the mainstay of Luftwaffe transport squadrons. Affectionately known as 'Faithful Old Annie' and 'ron Annie', the Ju 52/3m was used during the invasions of Norway, the Low Countries, Crete and the resupply of Stalingrad and Rommels Africa Korps. In all, around 5,000 were built and after the war, production continued in France and Spain. Amazingly, captured Ju 52/3ms were rebuilt post-war and briefly operated as airliners on domestic routes in Great Britain.

As with the other recent books in this series, this Classic study of the Ju 52 will offer the most comprehensive account published in recent years of this bulwark of the Luftwaffe which first saw military service in the 1930s and was then engaged in operations from the Spanish Civil War through to the end of World War 2. The all-metal, three-engined Ju 52/3m enjoyed a solid reputation amongst its crews and the troops and paratroops who used it and depended on it. It is a machine synonymous with the images of the German attacks on Holland and France in 1940 and Crete in 1941 when hundreds of 'Tante Jus' were used to drop paratroopers to successfully to capture key tactical and strategic areas. The full history, however, goes back much further. Built as a passenger aircraft for Deutsche Lufthansa, the Ju 52 ranged as far as South Africa, Mozambique, India and Latin America, as well being operated by several other European countries such as Belgium, Sweden and Finland as well as airlines in Brazil, Equador, Peru and Uruguay. Britain operated several Ju 52s. The aircraft was first blooded in the Spanish Civil War, where it was pressed into service as a crude, but effective bomber with the Legion Condor. From then on the Luftwaffe deployed it on every battle front in the West, in the Mediterranean and in the East. An example also flew in Iraq. The Ju 52 served as a stalwart transport, often operating in the most hostile conditions, with ice or dust, lifting men, animals, food, supplies, ammunition, mail, and spare parts vital for German military operations, such as on the North African supply routes, at Demyansk, Stalingrad and also in the Ardennes in 1944. It was also converted into the ambulance and mine-hunting roles, and was adapted as a seaplane. After the war, the Ju 52 flew on as late as the 1980s, testimony to its strength and reliability.

The famous "Tante Ju" in its legendary transport role over a variety of war fronts.

Brochure om Lufthansa's veteranfly Junkers Ju 52, Berlin-Tempelhof.

The main aspect of this publication is the development and utilization of the Junkers Ju 52. Starting with the single engined Ju 52/1m, Nowarra links to the development of the three engine version and civil utilization first. Large parts of the book are dedicated to the military applications of the Ju 52, starting in the Spanish Civil War, leading to the travelling aircrafts of major Nazi leaders, and finally, the major missions of Ju 52s in WW II, like the Netherlands, Creta, Stalingrad, North Africa, Norway, etc. Also mentioned are the French built Ju 52, which were named AAC 1 Toucan, as well as the Spanish built Casa 352. Finally, Nowarra also mentioned the existing Ju 52 of today, like the Lufthansa D-AQUI or the Swiss Ju52 or JuAIR.

A tale of a lifelong passion for a WWII aircraft that changed the author’s life: “It is almost like an adventure novel except it is true” (Air Classics). This book tells the story of a Dutch boy who grew up during the 1950s in postwar Borneo, where he had frequent encounters with an airplane, the Douglas DC-3, a.k.a. the C-47 Skytrain or Dakota, of World War II fame. For a young boy living in a remote jungle community, the aircraft reached the proportions of a romantic icon as the essential lifeline to a bigger world for him, the beginning of a special bond. In 1957, his family left the island and all its residual wreckage of World War II, and he attended college in The Hague. After graduation, he started a career as a corporate executive—and met the aircraft again during business trips to the Americas. His childhood passion for the Dakota flared up anew, and the fascination pulled like a magnet. As if predestined, or maybe just looking for an excuse to come closer, he began a business to salvage and convert Dakota parts, which meant first of all finding them. As the demand for these war relic parts and cockpits soared, he began to travel the world to track down surplus, crashed, or derelict Dakotas. He ventured deeper and deeper into remote mountains, jungles, savannas, and the seas where the planes are found, usually as ghostly wrecks but sometimes still in full commercial operation. In hunting the mythical Dakota, he often encountered intimidating or dicey situations in countries plagued by wars or revolts, others by arms and narcotics trafficking, warlords, and conmen. The stories of these expeditions take the reader to some of the remotest spots in the world, but once there, one is often greeted by the comfort of what was once the West’s apex in transportation—however now haunted by the courageous airmen of the past.

The all-metal Junkers Ju 52/3m enjoyed a solid – indeed, revered – reputation amongst its crews and the troops and paratroopers who used and depended on it. For more than ten years, it saw service as a successful military transport, with its distinctive, three-engined design and corrugated metal construction becoming instantly recognisable. It was a mainstay in the Luftwaffe's inventory, first seeing service in the 1930s in bombing and transport operations in the Spanish Civil War, and subsequently during the German invasion of Poland. It then served on every front on which the Luftwaffe was deployed until May 1945. The Junkers served as a stalwart transport, confronting both freezing temperatures and ice, and heat and dust, lifting men, animals, food and supplies vital for German military operations. This, the first of two books on the Ju 52/3m, details its service as a bomber in Spain and in South America, followed by its pivotal role in early war operations during the invasions of Poland and France, the airborne invasion of Crete and the early stages of Operation Barbarossa.

The Ju 52 was an essential part of the Luftwaffe and it proved itself a versatile and reliable aircraft in almost six years of conflict. The Ju 52 first saw service as a civil airliner in the 1930s but, on the outbreak of war in 1939, it found a demanding role as the Luftwaffe's primary transport aircraft, deployed in the transportation of supplies and personnel and, on occasion, flying paratroopers to their target destination or evacuating wounded from isolated pockets. In 1942, for example, JU 52s were heavily involved in dropping supplies to trapped Wehrmacht personnel in Stalingrad and, later, in attempts to fly out wounded soldiers. This important contribution to the Luftwaffe at War Series highlights the contribution made by the JU 52 and covers all the major types and variants of this rugged aircraft. Morten Jessen includes rare and unpublished photographs taken on nearly every front of the war and ably demonstrates why the Ju 52 was viewed with such affection by Luftwaffe personnel.

In the mid-1930s, contracts were placed with Dornier and Junkers for prototype four-engined strategic bombers. The Junkers aircraft, the Ju 89, was by far the better of the two. However, the program was abandoned in 1937 and Junkers used parts designed for the Ju 89 to construct a new civilian type for Lufthansa. The wings, tail and engines of the Ju 89 were added to a new fuselage to create the Ju 90. The 40-passenger aircraft flew for the first time in August 1937 and entered Lufthansa service in 1938. A production batch of 10 aircraft were ordered. Two Ju 90s were also ordered by South African Airways but were never delivered because of the war. The Ju 90 was pressed into military service with the Luftwaffe, first as a transport during the Norwegian campaign and later flying supply missions to the beleaguered German forces at Stalingrad. The more widely used Ju 290 was developed as a result of the rebuilding of early Ju 90s. This book covers the antecedents of the Ju 90 as well as providing a comprehensive account of its design and construction. Its operational history, both military and civilian, is discussed. The book contains many detailed photographs of the aircraft and the various types of engine used.