WW2's Most Strange Double-Winged Trimotor Plane

As dawn broke on April 26, 1937, the hum of Junkers Ju 52s pierced the stillness over Gerrikaraiz. Emerging from the pioneering mind of Hugo Junkers, these aircraft, with their corrugated metal skins and distinctive ‘double wing’ design represented a leap from the all-metal Junkers F-13 to the Ju 52, a symbol of 1930s aviation prowess.
The Condor Legion, preparing for a sinister task, had halted briefly to arm themselves. These Ju 52s, now instruments of warfare, were a far cry from their civilian origins, transformed from commercial airliners into armored bombers.
By 4:30pm, the first wave of these trimotors, their engines echoing the advances of the BMW 132, a descendant of Pratt & Whitney’s design, climbed to the skies. Shadows of the 1st and 2nd Squadrons stretched over Vitoria-Gasteiz, signaling a looming threat. Soon after, the 3rd Squadron joined, completing a fleet of twenty-nine aircraft.
As the sky turned to dusk, the formation, a mix of commercial ingenuity and military modification, converged over Guernica. The town, oblivious to its fate, was moments away from witnessing the Ju 52s’ transformation from connecting continents to delivering destruction.
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[@BV-fr8bf]

The Luftwaffe's Weirdest Plane Ju52/3? Blohm & Voss 141a says 'Hold my brau"

[@Cuccos19]

Blohm & Voss BV 138 was also something out of the box design.

[@magnusforsman9150]

😂

[@Karagianis]

@@Cuccos19 Ah yes, the flying clog!

[@m.r.3912]

Bräu?

[@nurglessohn9234]

Bier?

[@wldweaselx]

One of these trimotors showed up at an airport in northern IL in the early '70's, the story we heard was that it was brought up from South America, but wasn't clear why it was at Walgreen Field. Was parked off to the side for the better part of a year, then one day was gone. Years later, appears it found its way to Europe and is part of a display of early Lufthansa aircraft.

[@stephenwalton9646]

The owner ran out of money and Martin Cadin bought it, finished it and flew it for many years. He eventually sold it to Lufthansa. Interestingly, the aft most right hand seat was bigger and more thickly upholstered. Research showed the Adolph Hitler had used it during his political campaigns. They even found the markings during the paint stripping during restoration.

[@wldweaselx]

@@stephenwalton9646 ......and now I know the rest of the story.....thanks !!

[@stevenkmiller]

It was ferrying all the Nazi scientists from South America.

[@richardeikenburg7347]

My great uncle, who flew P-51s and was killed in the midair breakup of his aircraft caused by sloppy repair work in 1944, had only one confirmed kill - an unescorted Ju-52. It haunted him the (short) rest of his life, because he knew the people inside had no chance at all. But it was an enemy aircraft, and he knew it was his duty to destroy it regardless of anything else.

[@macjim]

If you thought this was the weirdest aircraft Germany produced then you haven’t delved deep enough… try the Blohm & Voss BV141, now that was truly weird!

[@Rotorhead1651]

Doesn't say "Germany". Says the Luftwaffe.

[@macjim]

@@Rotorhead1651 the luftwaffe didn’t make aircraft, the German war machine did.

[@waltergolston6187]

When Martin Cadin was flying Iron Annie around Gainesville Fl. My Father being a WW2 soldier would come out and look for it. He said that it was one of those unique sounds that you would not forget.

[@ebayerr]

Martin Caidin wrote a book about his plane in 1979 called, "The saga of Iron Annie" He evidently was a prolific writer and screenwriter.

[@brachio1000]

@@ebayerr: Yeah, some good books.

[@verilyheld]

I've read books by Martin Caidin. In one, he described flying B-25s from the USA to England for a war movie. One leg of the flight passed over the Portuguese coast, at night. Flying low, the crew passed over a fishing boat with one man on deck, looking up at them. Martin Caidin was convinced that fisherman is convinced he saw two ghost planes, because really, who expects to see actual B-25s flying at night over sea?

[@caldodge]

One of Caidin's Cyborg (the source for "The Six Million Dollar Man") novels featured a JU-52

[@robbierobinson8819]

A very worthy competitor with the amazing DC3 Dakota. Perhaps an episode on this plane could be done and a comparison?

[@greg-warsaw4708]

Represented a different, definitely earlier stage of development than the Dakota I think. Perhaps Savoia-Marchetti SM83 would be a more direct comparison. By the way, wasn't a Citroen Type-H loosely inspired by Ju-52? ;-)

[@robertmatch6550]

Ju52 an example of clumsy old fash tech compared to the C47.

[@steffenrosmus9177]

​Well, still more original Ju 52 (16) flying than original C 47 (9). And the Ju 52 was contructed in 1930 before the Nazi aera. 7​@@robertmatch6550

[@kevanhubbard9673]

I was flying with Lufthansa a few years ago and I saw in their in flight magazine that they still have one JU 52 on their books.I guess it's just used for special flights assuming it's still in action.

[@jan-eric-schacht]

Unfortunately, they retired it due to costs...

[@nos9784]

There's still "ju air" in switzerland. Or there was- unfortunately, they retired _hard_ . (stall while close to the ground, leading to a fatal crash)

[@raypurchase801]

I saw it flying across my town in southern England during the early 1990s. I was very surprised.

[@Genius_at_Work]

Lufthansa retired their D-AQUI within a Week or so after the fatal Crash of Ju-Air. Officially because it was becoming unprofitable, but it never turned a Profit and it's an open Secret that some Suits became terrified of the potential PR Disaster if D-AQUI had an Accident too. Ju-Air tried to somehow fly their other two Aircraft again for Years but eventually gave up.

[@martinaltmann4031]

I remember them well over the skies of Germany. The last one I saw, was HB-HOT over Cologne, on August 1, 2014, the plane which tragically crashed in Switzerland 4 years later. BTW,, the Swiss seem to intend to produce a JU52NG model, starting about end of 2025, equipped with turboprop engines.

[@colinbarron4]

That would seem logical because there is a firm which modernises Dakotas and equips them with turboprops and aircon etc.

[@kirkmorrison6131]

The Ju-52 was a great plane, the tri motor except for the Fokker Tri plane held up quite well. I remember when Spain retired the last of theirs in the 1970s

[@wolfgangkranek376]

One could make regular sightseeing flights with a JU-52 in Switzerland until 2018. It ended after a plane crash, all 20 people on board tragically lost their lives. And if I remember it correctly someone built a full functional replica, also in Switzerland.

[@stanleybest8833]

Junkers 52's also flew with Junkers Jumo diesel radial motors. The lifty efficient airfoil was an important part of the plane 's makeup. Except for their slow roll rate, Junkers Trimotors were quite manoeverable.

[@maisonraider4593]

It was indeed a fine aircraft. Then only thing I have to say about is it's excessive drag due several components and engine parts protruding and disrupting the smooth airflow.

[@Genius_at_Work]

The Junkers Diesels were Inline-6 Opposed Piston Two Stroke Engines with two Crankshafts though, not Radials.

[@alanm.4298]

In the 1990s I had the good fortune to get a ride on D-AQUI, a Ju 52 originally built in 1936 and then being operated by Lufthansa Airlines on a promotional tour around the country. The airplane had been restored to beautiful condition and was fitted with taupe leather seating for 17 passengers (plus 3 crew: pilot, co-pilot, steward). It was a little concerning before takeoff to see the pilot climb out on the wing to check the fuel level with what appeared to be a wooden yardstick. But returning from a 45-minute flight out of San Jose/Mineta Airport, it was even more disconcerting to notice that the automobile traffic on Hwy 880/17 was passing us! In landing configuration with the flaps lowered, the Ju 52 slows to approx. 62 mph (100 kph). It's top speed in optimal conditions and level flight is about 155 mph (260 kph), while a modest 130 mph (209 kph) is a practical and more economical cruising speed. I understand Lufthansa had plans to turn D-AQUI into a static display at their headquarters in Germany, but may have changed their minds as it's now undergoing another, even more extensive restoration. I never thought of the Ju 52 as weird or strange, always thought it was an attractive airplane, even if a bit unusual with the tri-motor arrangement. Its failed successor, the Ju 352, now THAT was weird looking and ugly!

[@tamahagane1700]

I think I saw that particular registration airplane in some documentaries from its era so it must be pretty famous, it's amazing it survived and was still flyable...

[@Jeppe-Covid1959]

I know that plane. I have flown with it, about 6 years ago, in Denmark.

[@rocketcello5354]

it flies so slow it practically is a static display

[@phil4986]

4:20 Hugo Junkers was forcibly removed from his own company because he despised the Nazi's. And actually saw them for the cancer they were. This one sentence completely changed the way I view this airplane and the name. i always called it as JUNK ERS . The American way of saying the name. I never knew the guy who made the plane was a true German patriot in every sense of the word. Bravo Hugo Junkers.

[@mrwhips3623]

you literally couldn't even define nazi if your life depended on it🤡 Also there's no such this as a Weimer patriot but I wouldn't expect you to know that In your universe the definition of patriot is hating Nazis🤦

[@DataWaveTaGo]

*At **12:28** actually the Ju-252. Great aircraft by any count.* The Ju-352 was somewhat more angular with rectangular windows plus wood & steel tube construction.

[@MrCateagle]

Ju-52/3m appears in the opening scenes of "Triumph of the Will", carrying the Chancellor to a rally.

[@dimitrihayez6502]

You can also see one in "Where eagles dare"

[@MrCateagle]

@@dimitrihayez6502 INdeed! Which always amused me a touch because, for what they were doing, it made more sense than the Mosquito they parachuted from in Alastair MacLean''s novel that the movie worked from. I also was amused tat Martin Caidin managed to get both a non-fiction book and a novel out of working on one.

[@daleupthegrove6396]

If I remember correctly the plane they jumped from in the novel was an Avro Lancaster.@@MrCateagle

[@littlefluffybushbaby7256]

@@daleupthegrove6396 Lancaster sounds closer. I'm not aware of either being used outside of a novel though. The RAF did use other more obsolete bombers for paratroops (Whitley?) as well as C-47's and gliders of course. The Lysander was used for dropping off a couple of people. For a book the Lancaster or Mossie would have more recognition I guess.Neither would have been very good for that purpose. The Mossie wouldn't fit many parachutists. Maybe one, if he left his parachute and equipment behind.

[@lancerevell5979]

Tante Ju wasn't anywhere near the Luftwaffe's 'weirdest aircraft". Blohm Und Voss enters the chat. 😅

[@patrickstewart3446]

If anything, it was it’s most conventional aircraft. Tri-motors weren’t all the unusual in the 1930’s. 😁

[@littlefluffybushbaby7256]

Oh no! Game over.

[@littlefluffybushbaby7256]

@@patrickstewart3446 True

[@o2benaz]

I volunteer at a museum with a flying “Tante Ju” (Aunt Ju). The skin was corrugated as the aluminum wasn’t strong enough to withstand flight without wrinkling. It also created drag, which turned it into an LST, “Large Slow Target” for Ivan during the battle for Stalingrad.

[@peterrollinson-lorimer]

I flew on one of these a number of years ago, out of Mönchengladbach, sponsored by Rimova Luggage - "The One With the Grooves". Thrill of a lifetime, a sweet ride. Sadly, several years later, the sister ship crashed in the Alps and all were killed.

[@petercarter9034]

Really interesting thank you posting

[@glencrandall7051]

Thank you for sharing.🙂🙂

[@citadelchase8858]

Where Eagles Dare!

[@northernblue1093]

Calm down, no need to get so excited.

[@citadelchase8858]

@@northernblue1093 Danny boy calling broadsword come in broadsword.

[@MWM-dj6dn]

A wonderful channel that deserves the best regards, appreciation, admiration and pride. It provides accurate and useful information. I thank you for all the beautiful words and sincere feelings for your distinguished posts. I wish you continued success and all the best. My utmost respect and appreciation

[@johnruiz1296]

I knew they use the junker 52 as a transport, But I didn’t know they use it as a bomber

[@shaunmcclory8117]

Haha Hitler thought every plane should be a bomber!...Feisler stork?...make it carry bombs...ME262? How many bombs can it carry?!...JU52? Hmm🤔 dive bomber!😅

[@MWM-dj6dn]

CHARMING DOCUMENTARY .. VERY BEAUTIFUL

[@evante20]

I had the chance to join two flights with the "Berlin Tempelhof" D-AQUI. One flight was with the original 2 bladed propellers the other with 3 bladed. I had the tickets for another flight, but the a structurual problem occured and the plane did not fly with passengers again. The sound was amazing. We all recognized this plane by it's sound long before you could see it. And in summertime in the rhine main area it flew quite often over the river and sometimes in low level.

[@classicarts5616]

thanks bro..

[@chriscarbaugh3936]

Nothing strange about the plane; just based on solid 1930 tech when the allies had the modern and excellent t DC-3, which became the legendary C-47 👍

[@user-wg8zj7dq1g]

The title is misleading. The BV-141 was a whole lot stranger.

[@daniel_lucio]

A tear came to my mind now remembering the Discovery documentary Wings of Luftwaffe and the introduction describing Iron Annie, the plane purchased from Martin Caidin

[@535tony]

The DC-3 outclassed the JU-52.

[@Rotorhead1651]

Potato? Meet Potahto.

[@kingnorlen]

The DC-3 is a very much directly inspired by the JU-52, and also came 5 whole years later.

[@paktahn]

@@kingnorlen yeah you cant really compare the 2 as at that time in history technology was developing rapidly its like comparing a nokia brick to the first iphone not much time between the 2 but mobile communication was advancing quickly between them

[@littlefluffybushbaby7256]

They are a generation apart though. Not really a fair comparison.

[@535tony]

@@littlefluffybushbaby7256 Nazis used them for transport just like Allies used the DC-3. Allie’s had the much better plane

[@tsegulin]

00:46 "... trimotors, their engines echoing the advances of the BMW-132..." Footage shows a Jumo 211 on a Heinkel He-111, not a Ju-52. 01:17 "...[Guernica] was moments away from witnessing the Ju-52's transformation from connecting continents to delivering destruction..." Footage is a cockpit shot of what appears to be an He-111 during a bomb drop. 04:35 "... the visionary mind behind [the Ju-52] faced a bitter fate..." So true and virtually nobody knows the story about how the Nazis forcibly took control his companies, forced him out of them under house arrest and stole his scores of patents. People see his name on the Ju-87 'Stuka" and the Ju-88 fighter bomber and have no idea that Hugo Junkers had nothing to do with either. The Hugo Junkers story alone would rate a decent documentary. IMHO Hugo Junkers and Otto Mader rarely get the recognition they deserve for the remarkable aviation and engine achievements made by the Junkers companies. Like the Heinkel He-70 'Blitz' and the Focke-Wulf FW-200 'Condor', the Ju-52 was intended for civilian operations but pressed into military service. Unlike the Blitz and Condor, it provided exemplary service throughout the war, but like most transports it was effectively defenseless against fighter aircraft. For all its accomplishments and the history behind it the Ju-52/3m was the end of the pioneering Junkers corrugated duralumin metal airframe. By 1935 the Douglas DC-3 emerged and it represented yet another revolution in civil aviation. Thanks for making this video.

[@ThreenaddiesRexMegistus]

That takeoff at 12:38! 😲

[@nicolastello3528]

more than 10 years ago I made the arrival at the parking of a ju-52, the noise was impressive, at night, the plane was very large. I received c-130s, but the d-52 was more impressive.

[@Sam_Green____4114]

Divers found one at the bottom of the sea near where l live a couple of years ago !

[@DavidSawe]

According to Wikipedia's article on the Ju-52, there are a handful of these aircraft still that are still operational today, being used for sightseeing and aerial displays.

[@michaeltelson9798]

I remember seeing Lufthansa’s Tante Ju fly off from SFO. It was a nice sight. Others that I saw there were a B-25 sitting next to a QANTAS 747, a Dumbo (Catalina) drift up into the air as it took off and then at Moffett being on the tarmac as NASA’s U2 jump almost straight up into the sky.

[@allenantrim3676]

Stationed outside Madrid at around 1975 the Spanish gov gave a licensed built one to the boy scouts (that was the story). They flew it in and put it on static display. The Air force (ours) then sent a radial engine guy down from Germany to change the oil and put desiccant plugs in the cylinders. I noticed this from the gun shop where I worked and went over to see if I could get inside before it got locked up. He showed me around the engine and such and let me spend time inside. I would have liked to have taken a ride in it--don't know its fate after the air forced left the base. I did get to ride in one of the Fords that was touring around-suppose it was similar.

[@charleskloentrup9153]

The JU 52 was Germany's copy of the Fords try motor !

[@Kanas83]

reminds me of the Ford Trimotor

[@xfirehurican]

Ford copied (stole) Fokker's design.

[@ytty5183]

Those are nice, too. 🤙

[@deepwoods_dave7368]

Incredible and amazing aircraft. Not many tri-motor planes that were successful.

[@shockwave326]

was it really ? it was a tried and true design based on the ford tri motor at the time a solid aircraft

[@SemperParatus1234]

Not sure which came first really. But they were competing in the USA at their prime. At some point the German went home.

[@phil4986]

Yup, the Ford Tri motor and this plane look almost identical.

[@lancerevell5979]

Junkers G24 trimotor first flew in 1924, the Ford Trimotor in 1926. Junkers sued Ford when Ford tried to sell the Trimotor in Europe. So, it was Ford who "went home".

[@philliprobinson7724]

@@phil4986 Hi Phil. The Ford was a high wing, the Ju 52 a low wing. I'd guess the Ju had a slower landing speed due to "ground effect". Cheers, P.R.

[@jessegreenwood1956]

@@lancerevell5979 True, Ford was guilty...but it was not the JU-52 that Ford copied and lost in court over. It was the Fokker FVII Trimotor that Ford copied. Almost a dead on copy.

[@oxcart4172]

There's a company trying to market new updated Ju52s!

[@user-McGiver]

DC3 Dakota will always fly in our hearts...

[@loganpollock1689]

I saw a Ford Trimotor at Fulton airport. It looks a lot like the Ju-52.

[@sleipnir694]

Aunty Ju, is most memorable one 😊

[@greg-warsaw4708]

One correction: the Spanish Civil War brought no end to the Ju-52's use as a bomber. There were a few bombing raids during September 1939 German invasion of Poland done using them. For example, on 25 Sep '39 about 30 Ju-52 bombed Warsaw with incendiary bombs. As a proof, one of urban folk songs (emerging from lower class society, typically joking and lighthearted to alleviate the mood of a city at war) from Sep 39 mentions: _Up there there'a bomber, a three-engined bomber_ / _he rules now, glad with the hell he sends down upon us_- so the folk must have seen and associated Ju-52's with air raids.

[@derin111]

Considering powered flight had not even occurred at the beginning of the century, the pace of subsequent aeronautical engineering progress never fails to astound.

[@johncunningham6928]

Strange...?? The 'Tante Ju' was a reasonably conventional tri-motor. Both Fokker and Ford also produced tri-motors at about the same time. Even the corrugated skin was something of a Junkers trademark.

[@jamesallen2045]

Enjoyable video, just wondering what the title means? The Germans had zero problems finding things for their Ju-52s to do. Not sure where the strange comes in either.

[@macjim]

There was one used to fly tourists in Europe but it crashed killing all on board some years ago…

[@marcbeebee6969]

The one in Frankfurt from Lufthansa is still flying

[@frostyfrost4094]

Was very lucky that the directors and managers did not want to fly for free in the Lufthansa JU52 some 20 years ago at Duxford. Sat in the jump seat for part of the 45 minutes something to tell the grandchildren.

[@marcbeebee6969]

Ok, i saw in Switzerland shame. Poor people

[@dakwa1]

This was designed after the 1925 Ford Tri-Motor, which was made until 1933, but was used as a transport and bomber in WWII. The difference is the Ju 52 was biger than the Ford Tri-Motor, they were designed the same.

[@cody481]

Why were the wing motors tilted outboard ?

[@stanleybest8833]

Compensate for engine out trimming.

[@littlefluffybushbaby7256]

@@stanleybest8833 Not sure that's the reason or they'd be pointing in rather than out I would have thought. If you lost the right engine you wouldn't want the left engine to be pulling you even more to the left.

[@AlexanderJScheu]

Die- JU-52 - war - vor dem Kriege - auch..ausgerüstet mit Motor - Pratt and Whitney, die Wenigen noch fliegen, wie aktuell bei der Lufthansa - ebenso mit P & W's, konnte.. vor einigen Jahren - eine solche Ju-52 besichtigen..

[@zach2830]

hey this might sound weird, but has anyone ever told you your voice is identical to the cutscene voice acting in ace combat 4?

[@davidbabcock5172]

Just looked it up and the Ford Tri-motor was built first in 1926.

[@WayneKitching]

My late grandfather was in the South African Air Force during WWII. At the time, several airlines from South African Airways were transferred to the air force, including the Ju 52/3. As South Africa fought on the side of the Allies, this means that both the Axis and the Allies had Ju 52/3s. I wonder if there are other plane types that were used by both sides, apart from captured planes.

[@CreRay]

2:32 that's not the interior of a Ju52... 2:38 shows the route of a postal service, of which the transatlantic part was served by a Dornier Wal.

[@Karagianis]

Ju52/3m. Just Ju52 means the single engine variant.

[@michaellinner7772]

If you want to talk weirdest planes you've got to look at some of the more obscure manufacturers like Arado, Blohm und Voss, Horten, Caspar and the like.

[@tomtompkins7546]

Blohm and Voss has entered the conversation.

[@littlefluffybushbaby7256]

...and I heard Blackburn are on their way. It's gonna get ugly.

[@EdwardKelly-vi9sg]

JU-52

[@MrAoDo]

The strange plane that Germany wasn't totally sure what to do with.

[@derin111]

After my Grandfather was wounded on the Eastern Front in 1943, he was flown out on one of these.

[@nibotkram7743]

Ford Tri-motor?

[@regesterw]

It’s not a Dakota !!

[@enricomercado4671]

What I find strange about the JU52 is, the two outboard engines/nacelles are actually splayed away from the fuselage, if the plane is viewd at plan form. I remember wanting to build a model of the Ju52 when I was a kid, but when I realized that the engines have this strange splayed angle, I lost interest in the plane and never got a model of it, because I thought it would not look good, because of it

[@bobd1805]

Why did they do that? It seems as a gross waste of power pulling the wings in opposite directions

[@jessegreenwood1956]

@@bobd1805 They did it because it made the plane easier to control if any other wing engine went out. When that happens, the wing with the dead engine drops back, the plane flies at a slant and the other outward splayed engine is now "somewhat: straight.

[@nos9784]

​@@jessegreenwood1956I suspected that was the reason. Where did you learn this, is there more information?

[@stevebird7265]

That was not their wierdest plane! Take a look at the Blohm & Voss BV 141 and some of their other designs.

[@curiouscat8396]

Why were the wing engines canted/angled like that!?

[@nos9784]

I wonder, too. Maybe to improve handling with an engine failure- but I don't know if that would work, And I suppose if it didn't, they would have figured that out even in the 1930's. (look up "critical engine" if you don't already know what i am talking about.)

[@JOEGUNN1990]

Looks like a flying bus 🚌

[@kwestionariusz1]

Airbus😂

[@kaidzaack2520]

It is…😊

[@whiskey_tango_foxtrot__]

If only it had a bigger door both the German paratroopers and aerial resupply might have changed key battles...

[@nos9784]

Ah yes, door sizes, the famous limit of german logistics, as opposed to numbers, fuel, and taking on the rest of the world.

[@DavidJones-pv8zu]

Interesting how both USA & Britain provided different powerplants to improve its efficiency.

[@bob2161]

Please explain what the "double wing" is. You mentioned it more than once, but didn't explain what it is, or why it is significant. This plane is a "mono" plane, as you stated. That means it only has a single wing, vs. a "bi"plane, which has two wings. Technically, this plane does have two wings, one on the left and one on the right. However, they are symmetrical, on the same plane.

[@marcoflumino]

In the video look at each wing, at the rear of the wing, you will see the small strip of ailerons going from the centre body to the tip of the wing, that is the "double wing". Reason it was so large that looked like a second wing!

[@nos9784]

Junkers double wing (junkers doppelflügel) just means that the control surfaces ( and high lift surfaces) are seperate parts attached to the wing, not integrated flush. You can see the sky in between, in shots from below. This allows air to pass in between, afaik, and thereby keeps air flowing along the profile and control surfaces longer- improving stall characteristics.

[@groupcaptainbonzo]

Who in the world has never heard of the Ju 52? It’s as famous and ubiquitous as the DC3.

[@caldodge]

Not exactly. Over 3 times as many DC-3s were built, and they were efficient enough that many were being used in commerce decades later.

[@jeffapplewhite5981]

Ford trimotor or junkers first?

[@CanetCinema2024]

Ford Trimotor first flight June 1926, Junkers October 1930.

[@AlbertaGeek]

Happy Superb Owl Day, everyone!

[@stevehayward1854]

Why where the wing engine pods an engines at an angle to the aircraft centre line, any one know ?

[@nos9784]

People plausibly say it's for better handling with an engine failure. That was my suspicion, too, but i'd like to see a good source on that.

[@tamahagane1700]

Looked like a flying tool shed, still was an irreplaceable workhorse.

[@johnking6252]

Very apt description.... flying toolshed !!! 👍

[@maksimsmelchak7433]

👍🏻😎

[@Eddewardeke]

Certainly a good plane. And many were lost over the Netherlands in May 1940. Why is that not mentioned in this documentay?

[@billevans7936]

❤

[@lukeyeates8595]

Where the hell Karnacac?

[@rogermanlove1901]

Wasn't Totally...

[@johnking6252]

But was unable to perform valuable re-supply missions to the degree needed for modern warfare..... just saying ? Thx. 👍

[@littlefluffybushbaby7256]

Anyone know why it was corrigated? I'm guessing it was the easiest way to give it strenght. Also why the engines are angled outward. I'm guessing simply because they fitted the wing better that way. I'm guessing neither were acts of design genius but essentially cost and the technology of the time. Like fixed undercarriage and other drag inducing choices.

[@nos9784]

Yup, strength- unless that's a well- circulated myth, and there's other important reasons i don't know about. Angled engines: probably to make the plane more controllable with an engine failure.

[@jmcfintona999]

Germans seemed to know what to do with.😊

[@American_Jeeper]

There is no doubt that the Junkers Ju-52 was Germany's Douglas DC-3/C-47, a workhorse.

[@wintersbattleofbands1144]

Man, the literacy rate is in serious trouble! The word in the title should be "Wasn't."

[@littlefluffybushbaby7256]

But it wasn't, were it. 😀

[@HDBoyWonder]

“wasn’t” NOT “weren’t”

[@adrianwaygood7156]

'Germany weren't...'???

[@russvague2748]

Wasn’t

[@sim.frischh9781]

Geez, 4:30? Ten minutes earlier and they would have RUINED an entire beloved cultural phenomenon!

[@ThomasWLalor]

Curious to know what the pane may have performed if three- or four-bladed props had been employed?!?! -- longer range? greater speed?

[@philliprobinson7724]

Hi Thomas. Bigger props would need bigger engines, the props alone don't do it. Better performance could have been gained by adding a retractable undercarriage, and having a smooth rather than corrugated skin. These two factors are why the DC3 only needed two engines to deliver a superior performance. Cheers, P.R.

[@nos9784]

Bigger, slower props might improve efficiency on the same engine with reduction gears, but more blades isn't the way to go- larger diameter is. Afaik, the theoretical optimum is a single bladed propeller, but practical reasons like balance and ground clearance limits lead to multi-bladed props as the best compromise. Also, efficency doesn't automatically lead to more range if the parts for it are too heavy... something i accept, but should propaply go through the numbers for one day to really understand.

[@garymiller5624]

​@@philliprobinson7724Retractable gear not compatible with rough fields as opposed to improved dirt fields where their was accessible earth equipment. These planes often operated close behind front lines from unimproved dirt strips.

[@philliprobinson7724]

@@garymiller5624 Hi Gary. That's a good point. The DC3 has retractable U/C and can land on fairly rough ground, but the fixed gear would be more robust. Cheers, P.R.

[@garymiller5624]

During WWll the C-47(DC-3) indeed did well with unimproved strips. Where possible for all weather operations the Allies overlaid steel matting over an improved dirt strip. The SeeBees were on top of the game and in many cases were under sniper fire building the strip. This was so critical in the Pacific theater and island hopping keeping pressure on the Japanese. This is where the C-47 excelled as a hospital ship transporting the wounded and supplies to the islands.

[@1joshjosh1]

I don't get what the big sweat over 6,000 or 7,000 casualties for Crete. It's not that small of an island and they did manage to capture it. To me that's a success. You could lose that many in Russia in 1 day.

[@garymiller5624]

1joshjosh1 Relative to the total number parachuted in the losses were high. Hitler ordered parachuted troops stopped.

[@ballbag3460]

as soon as narrative voice starts I’ve got to turn off. Sorry I didn’t watch your material

[@auro1986]

anything made by somebody else than you is strange, isn't it?

[@peabase]

In a weird twist of fate, German-born designer Dr. Erich Schatzki, a Jew, was behind the tri-motor conversion of the Ju 52, as the earlier model had a single nose-mounted engine only. Dr. Schatzki left Germany for the Netherlands, where he designed the Fokker D.XXI. In Dutch hands, the D.XXI accounted for several Ju 52s when Germany invaded the Netherlands in 1940. Later in the war, Ju 52s fell prey to P-47 Thunderbolts, which Dr. Schatzki had worked on at Republic Aviation in the US.

[@shaggybreeks]

Germany, no it weren't sure what to do with that their plain. So it done took and putted stuff insides it.

[@jimoconnor2958]

Ford tri- motor a copy or inspiration

[@CanetCinema2024]

Ford Trimotor is older than Junkers Ju-52. Ford first flight June 1926, Junkers October 1930.

[@MHPloni-kl5ec]

Isn't it strange that the German Nazis' iconic airplane is a JŪ?

[@ConradAinger]

'Germany weren't '? You mean Germany wasn't. 'Germany' is singular, not plural.

[@joemckibben7757]

Never heard of? Someone don’t get out much.