Type Turbojet
National origin Germany
Manufacturer Junkers
First run 1940
Major applications Arado Ar 234 / Messerschmitt Me 262
The feasibility of jet propulsion had been demonstrated in Germany in early 1937 by Hans von Ohain working with the Heinkel company. Most of the Reich Air Ministry (RLM) remained uninterested, but Helmut Schelp and Hans Mauch saw the potential of the concept and encouraged Germany's aero engine manufacturers to begin their own programmes of jet engine development. The companies remained skeptical and little new development was carried out.
The first prototype 004A, which used diesel fuel, was first tested in October 1940, though without an exhaust nozzle. It was bench-tested at the end of January 1941 to a maximum thrust of 430 kgf (4,200 N; 950 lbf), and work continued to increase the thrust, the RLM contract having set a minimum of 600 kgf (5,900 N; 1,300 lbf) thrust.
Vibration problems with the compressor stators, originally cantilevered from the outside, delayed the program at this point. Max Bentele, as an Air Ministry consulting engineer with a background in turbocharger vibrations, assisted in solving the problem. The original aluminium stators were replaced with steel ones in which configuration the engine developed 5.9 kN (1,300 lbf) in August, and passed a 10-hour endurance run at 9.8 kN (2,200 lbf) in December. The first flight test took place on March 15, 1942, when a 004A was carried aloft by a Messerschmitt Bf 110 to run up the engine in flight. The 004 used an eight-stage axial-flow compressor, with six straight-through combustion chambers (made from sheet steel), and a one-stage turbine with hollow blades
Trust
axial compressor
Weight
Length
During its service with Luft Hansa, the Ju 52 had proved to be an extremely reliable passenger airplane. This positive experience contributed to its adoption by the Luftwaffe as a standard aircraft model.
Lightly armed, and with a top speed of only 265 km/h (165 mph) — half that of a contemporary Hurricane — the Ju 52 was very vulnerable
The Colombian Air Force used three Ju 52/3mde bombers equipped as floatplanes during the Colombia-Peru War in 1932–1933.