https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Junkers_Ju_88
The Junkers Ju 88 was a German World War II Luftwaffe twin-engined multirole
combat aircraft. Junkers Flugzeug- und Motorenwerke (JFM) designed the plane in
the mid-1930s as a so-called Schnellbomber (fast bomber) that would be too fast
for fighters of its era to intercept. It suffered from a number of technical
problems during its development and early operational periods but became one of
the most versatile combat aircraft of the war. Like a number of other Luftwaffe
bombers, it served as a bomber, dive bomber, night fighter, torpedo bomber,
reconnaissance aircraft, heavy fighter and at the end of the war, as a flying
bomb.
Despite a protracted development, it became one of the Luftwaffe's most
important aircraft. The assembly line ran constantly from 1936 to 1945 and more
than 16,000 Ju 88s were built in dozens of variants, more than any other
twin-engine German aircraft of the period. Throughout production the basic
structure of the aircraft remained unchanged.
Dive bomber
In October 1937 Generalluftzeugmeister Ernst Udet had ordered the development of
the Ju 88 as a heavy dive bomber. This decision was influenced by the success of
the Ju 87 Stuka in this role. The Junkers development center at Dessau gave
priority to the study of pull-out systems and dive brakes. The first prototype
to be tested as a dive bomber was the Ju 88 V4 followed by the V5 and V6. These
models became the planned prototype for the A-1 series. The V5 made its maiden
flight on 13 April 1938, and the V6 on 28 June 1938. Both the V5 and V6 were
fitted with four-blade propellers, an extra bomb bay and a central "control
system". As a dive bomber, the Ju 88 was capable of pinpoint deliveries of heavy
loads; however, despite all the modifications, dive bombing still proved too
stressful for the airframe, and in 1943, tactics were changed so that bombs were
accordingly modified and dive brakes were removed.
Fighter-bomber
The Ju 88C series of standard fighter-bomber versions from the C-2 onwards
culminated in the Ju 88 C-6, applying experience acquired with the A-4 bomber,
equipped with the same Jumo 211J engines but replacing the "beetle's eye" nose
glazing with a smoothly curved all-metal nose, pierced only by the barrels of
its forward-firing offensive armament. The C-6 was used mostly as fighter-bomber
and therefore assigned to bomber units. As a reaction to the increasing number
of attacks on German shipping, especially on U-boats in the Bay of Biscay, from
July 1942 it started flying anti-shipping patrols and escort missions from bases
in France. V./Kampfgeschwader 40 being formed to operate the C-6.
Attack bomber
The Ju 88P was a specialized variant for ground attack and to function as a
bomber destroyer, designed starting from 1942 and produced in small numbers,
using examples of the Bordkanone heavy calibre aviation autocannon series, which
required the omission of the Bola undernose gondola for clearance. The
prototype, derived from a standard Ju 88 A-4, was armed with a 7.5 cm anti-tank
gun derived from the 7.5 cm PaK 40 installed in a large conformal gun pod under
the fuselage. This was followed by a small batch of Ju 88 P-1, which
standardized the solid sheet metal nose of the C version for all known examples
of the P-series, and used the new 7.5 cm PaK 40L semi-automatic gun, also known
as the Bordkanone BK 7,5, which was also meant for use in both the later
Henschel Hs 129B-3 dedicated anti-armor aircraft, and a never-achieved
production version of the He 177A-3/R5 ground-attack Flak-suppression
Stalingradtyp field-improvised version.
Heavy fighter and night fighter
The Ju 88C was originally intended as a fighter-bomber and heavy fighter by
adding fixed, forward-firing guns to the nose while retaining some bomb carrying
ability of the A-series bomber. The C-series had a solid metal nose, typically
housing one 20 mm MG FF cannon and three 7.92 mm (.312 in) MG 17 machine guns.
The aircraft retained the ventral Bola gondola under the crew compartment though
individual units sometimes removed this to reduce weight and drag to enhance
performance. The Ju-88C was later used as a night fighter, and this became its
main role.
Role
Tactical / dive / torpedo bomber
Night / heavy fighter
Reconnaissance aircraft
Manufacturer
Junkers
Designer
Ernst Zindel, W. H. Evers, and Alfred Gassner
First flight
21 December 1936
Introduction
1939
Retired
1951 (France)
Primary user
Luftwaffe
Number built
15,183
Variants
Junkers Ju 188
Battle of France
The Luftwaffe's order of battle for the French campaign reveals all but one of
the Luftwaffe's Fliegerkorps (I. Fliegerkorps) contained Ju 88s in the combat
role. The mixed bomber units, including the Ju 88, of Kampfgeschwader 51 (under
the command of Luftflotte 3) helped claim between 233 and 248 Allied aircraft on
systems, paralysing French logistics and mobility. On 17 June 1940, Junkers Ju
88s (mainly from Kampfgeschwader 30) destroyed a "10,000 tonne ship", the 16,243
grt ocean liner RMS Lancastria, off Saint-Nazaire, killing some 5,800 Allied
personnel. Some 133 Ju 88s were pressed into the Blitzkrieg, but very high
combat losses and accidents forced a quick withdrawal from action to re-train
crews to fly this very high-performance aircraft. Some crews were reported to be
more scared of the Ju 88 than the enemy, and requested a transfer to an He 111
unit. By this time, major performance deficiencies in the A-1 led to an all-out
effort in a major design rework. The outcome was a longer, 20.08 m (65 ft ?10
1/2 in) wingspan, from extended rounded wing tips that had already been
standardised on the A-4 version, that was deemed needed for all A-1s; thus the
A-5 was born. Surviving A-1s were modified as quickly as possible, with new
wings to A-5 specifications.
Battle of Britain
By August 1940, A-1s and A-5s were reaching operational units just as the battle
was intensifying.
The Battle of Britain proved very costly. Its higher speed did not prevent Ju 88
losses exceeding those of its Dornier Do 17 and Heinkel He 111 stablemates
despite being deployed in smaller numbers than either. Ju 88 losses over Britain
in 1940 totaled 303 aircraft between July and October 1940. Do 17 and He 111
losses for the same period were 132 and 252 machines destroyed respectively.
Of all the losses suffered by the Ju 88 at that time, however, a number were due
to the tricky behavior of the plane, especially when compared to the proven He
the Ju 88 only shortly before. Of the 39 losses recorded for July 1940, for
example, only 20 were due to enemy action. The others being written off in
training accidents, crashes, or malfunctions over the mainland Europe. A series
of field modifications were made to make the Ju 88 less vulnerable, including
the replacement of the single MG 15 rear machine gun by a twin-barreled MG 81Z
machine gun and the fitting of additional cockpit armour.
Specifications Ju 88 A-4
General characteristics
Crew: 4 (pilot, bombardier/front gunner, radio operator/rear gunner,
navigator/ventral gunner)
Length: 14.36 m (47 ft 2? in)
Height: 5.07 m (16.63 ft)
Wing area: 54.7 m2 (587 ft2)
Loaded weight: 8,550 kg (18,832 lb)
Max. takeoff weight: 14,000 kg (30,865 lb)
PS, 1,401 hp) each
Performance
Maximum speed: 510 km/h (317 mph) at 5,300 m (17,389 ft) without external bomb
racks or 433 km/h (269 mph) at 4,500 m (14,765 ft) at 14,000 kg (30,865 lb)
Range: 2,430 km (1,429 mi) maximum internal fuel
Service ceiling: 9,000 m (29,500 ft) at average weight, without bombs
Rate of climb: 235 m/min (770 ft/min)
Armament
Guns:
forward with 1,000 rounds.
firing forward with 1,000 rounds.
canopy, firing aft with 1,000 rounds each.
position, firing aft with 1,000 rounds.
Bombs: Up to 1,400 kilograms (3,100 lb) of ordnance internally in two bomb bays
rated at 900 kg (2,000 lb) and 500 kg (1,100 lb) or up to 3,000 kg (6,600 lb)
externally. Carrying bombs externally increased weight and drag and impaired the
aircraft's performance. Carrying the maximum load usually required
rocket-assisted take-off.
Armament optionsAdditional option for a pair of 7.92 mm (.312 in) MG 15 machine
guns on flexible "Donut" mountings firing laterally, one on each side of the
cockpit canopy.
A single 13 mm (.51 in) MG 131 machine gun was sometimes used instead of the
7.92 mm (.312 in) MG 81J or MG 81Z machine guns in the A-Stand, B-Stand or
ventral Bola positions.
Aircraft may carry one 20 mm MG FF cannon in the nose for ground attack
purposes, with 90 rounds of ammunition, in place of the Lotfernrohr 7 bombsight
bomb racks for ground attack duties, each "watering can" containing three 7.92
mm (.312 in) MG 81Z twin machine guns, for strafing enemy troops.
Specifications Ju 88 P-3
Heavily armed anti-tank and anti-bomber version.
General characteristics
Crew: 3
Length: 14.85 m (48.72 ft)
Wingspan: 20 m (65.61 ft)
Height: 4.85 m (15.91 ft)
Wing area: 54.56 m2 (179 ft2)
Empty weight: c. 11,080 kg (c. 24,430 lbs)
Max. takeoff weight: c. 12,670 kg (c. 28,000 lbs)
hp) each
Performance
Maximum speed: 360 km/h (223 mph) at 1,600 m, 5,250 ft
Range: 1,580 km (981 mi)
Service ceiling: c. 5,500 m (c. 18,000 ft)
Armament
Guns:
fuselage, firing forwards.
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