Junkers Ju 90

what is it?

The Junkers Ju 90 was a four-engined airliner and transport aircraft designed and produced by the German aircraft manufacturer Junkers. Derived from the abortive Ju 89 strategic bomber, it was developed to be used as a long-distance commercial aircraft for the German flag carrier Deutsche Luft Hansa. It drew heavily upon the Ju 89, sharing the same wing and tail unit while adopting an all-new fuselage that could seat up to 40 passengers.

🔎How to recognise it: 4 piston engines with propellers · retractable tailwheel (taildragger) · 35 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 350 km/htop speed
• range 1,247 kmwithout refuelling
• seats 40passengers
• size 33.7 tmax take-off weight
• built 18made 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 89 years ago, in 1937.
• 🏎️Top speed is 2.7× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
• 🚗Wingspan of 35 m: about 8 cars parked nose to tail.
• 🐘Fully loaded it can weigh as much as 6 African elephants (~6 t each).
• 🌍Range of 1,247 km: 7× Amsterdam to Brussels.

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

spec sheet

first flight

1937-08-28

introduced

1939

number built

18

role

airliner, transport

origin

German Reich

makers

Junkers

engines

4× BMW 132 H-1 / BMW 132

passengers

40

length

26.3 m

wingspan

35 m

height

7.5 m

max take-off weight

33.7 t

top speed

350 km/h

cruise speed

320 km/h

range

1,247 km

ceiling

5,750 m

landing gear

retractable conventional landing gear

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