Junkers Ju 290

what is it?

The Junkers Ju 290 was a large four-engine long-range transport and maritime patrol aircraft designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Junkers. Derived from the Ju 90 airliner, it was a dedicated military heavy transport developed on behalf of the Luftwaffe as a wartime replacement for Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor. In comparison to the standard Ju 90, it had a lengthened fuselage, more powerful engines, and a Trapoklappe - a hydraulically operated rear loading ramp.

🔎How to recognise it: 4 piston engines with propellers · tail-wheel gear · 42 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 439 km/htop speed
• range 6,148 kmwithout refuelling
• size 45 tmax take-off weight
• built 65made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

• 🎂First flew 84 years ago, in 1942.
• 🏎️Top speed is 3.4× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
• 🚗Wingspan of 42 m: about 9 cars parked nose to tail.
• 🐘Fully loaded it can weigh as much as 7 African elephants (~6 t each).
• 🌍Range of 6,148 km: Amsterdam to New York (≈5,850 km) without stopping.

piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.

spec sheet

first flight

1942-07-16

introduced

1942

number built

65

role

maritime patrol, transport, heavy bomber

origin

🇩🇪 Germany

makers

Junkers, Junkers Motorenbau und Junkers Flugzeugwerk

engines

4× BMW 801G / reciprocating engine

length

28.6 m

wingspan

42 m

height

6.8 m

max take-off weight

45 t

top speed

439 km/h

cruise speed

361 km/h

range

6,148 km

ceiling

6,000 m

wings

monoplane

landing gear

tail-wheel gear

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.