Junkers Ju 488

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Junkers Ju 488
Junkers Ju 488 sketch.jpg
Type: bomber
Design country:

German Reich NSGerman Reich (Nazi era) German Empire

Manufacturer:

Junkers

Production time:

1945 (canceled)

Number of pieces:

2 (both destroyed by the Resistance before completion )

The Junkers Ju 488 is a four-engine mid - decker with retractable landing gear and a three-man crew. The aircraft was a further development based on the Junkers Ju 388 . It was propelled by four radial engines , type BMW 801 TJ , with turbochargers specially designed for high-altitude flights. The introduction should take place in the summer of 1945.

description

Compared to the original type Junkers Ju 388 , the fuselage and wing center section were essentially redeveloped. Wing ends and bow were taken from the K-series of the Ju 388. The tail was made similar to the C-series of the Ju 188 , while the tail unit was taken over from the Ju-288-C-series .

At the beginning of 1944, the construction of the prototypes Ju 488 V1 and V2 began at Latécoère in Toulouse , France . After the Allies landed in Normandy , it was decided in July 1944 to transfer the already completed components by rail to the Junkers factory in Bernburg (Saale) . Thereupon members of the French Resistance destroyed the fuselage and the middle wing section of the Ju 488 V1 on the night of 16./17. July 1944. After the German troops had evacuated Toulouse in August 1944, the front fuselage section of the V2 was found on a train wagon. After that she is missing. Construction work at Junkers was stopped in November 1944. They had also tried in vain to sell the construction to Japan .

Technical specifications

Parameter Data from the Ju 488A
crew 3
length 23.24 m
span 31.28 m
Wing area 88.00 m²
height 6.09 m
Empty mass 21,000 kg
Max. Takeoff mass 36,000 kg
Top speed 690 km / h (at 7200 m)
Marching speed 487 km / h
Service ceiling 11,350 m
Rate of climb 551 m / min
Range 3395 km
Engines four 24-cylinder in-line radial engines Junkers Jumo 222A-3 / B-3, water-cooled, each with 1864 kW (2500 PS)
Armament

See also

literature

  • Wolfgang Wagner: Hugo Junkers. Aviation pioneer - his aircraft. From the series: German aviation. Volume 24. Bernard & Graefe Verlag, Bonn 1996, ISBN 3-7637-6112-8 .
  • Heinz J. Nowarra : The German Air Armament 1933-1945. Aircraft types Henschel - Messerschmitt. Vol. 3, Bernard & Graefe, Bonn 1993, ISBN 3-7637-5467-9 .

Web links

Commons : Junkers Ju 488  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files