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The Luftwaffe’s primary transport aircraft was the three-engined Junkers 52/3m, nicknamed Tante Ju . However, by the outbreak of war, the Luftwaffe was looking for a replacement. This would be the shortlived Ju 252 and its slightly more successful successor the Ju 352 Herkules.
The wings were made of wood, the forward and rear sections of the fuselage were aluminium and the centre section steel tubing was covered in fabric. What made the Ju 352 and its predecessor unique was the Trapoklappe, which theoretically allowed vehicles to be driven up the ramp into the aircraft. In practice, to save damage to the airframe, wheeled loads were winched aboard. Like the Ju 252, the Ju 352 had the same limited defensive armament.
No Ju 352s are known to have been lost in combat, although it is possible that a number were shot down near the end of the war trying to resupply the German 9th Army or while flying reinforcements into Berlin in April 1945. At the end of the war, the Allies captured several Herkules.
The RAF took control of at least five Ju 352s of which three were flyable. These were used for both transport duties and trials only to be scrapped in 1946.
The wings were made of wood, the forward and rear sections of the fuselage were aluminium and the centre section steel tubing was covered in fabric. What made the Ju 352 and its predecessor unique was the Trapoklappe, which theoretically allowed vehicles to be driven up the ramp into the aircraft. In practice, to save damage to the airframe, wheeled loads were winched aboard. Like the Ju 252, the Ju 352 had the same limited defensive armament.
No Ju 352s are known to have been lost in combat, although it is possible that a number were shot down near the end of the war trying to resupply the German 9th Army or while flying reinforcements into Berlin in April 1945. At the end of the war, the Allies captured several Herkules.
The RAF took control of at least five Ju 352s of which three were flyable. These were used for both transport duties and trials only to be scrapped in 1946.
