WW2 - Junkers JU52 & JU87 STUKA

First flown in the 1930&as a civil airliner, the Junkers JU52 was used extensively as a transport aircraft by the Luftwaffe during World War II. In the early campaigns, and, in particular, in the invasions of Norway and the Low countries the JU52 performed a vital role transporting airborne forces and running supplies. In later years the JU52 saw service in Crete, the Mediterranean and the Eastern Front, but its slow speed and low altitudinal ceiling made it highly vulnerable unless operating under the umbrella of German air superiority. From 1943 onwards, as German air power gradually waned, the JU52 was largely relegated to rear line duties, transporting casualties and assisting in retreats. The Junkers JU87 was also to become obsolete during the course of the war, but in the first three years of the conflict it was to prove one of the most effective and terrifying weapons in the German armoury. Universally known as the Stuka, it carried three machine guns, an array of bombs, and was fitted with airflow operated sirens. As a dive bomber and straffing aircraft the Stuka played an important role in the early blitzkrieg offensives, its Sirens adding the dimension of terror to its attacks. But the Stuka, like its stablemate the JU52, was largely dependent on German air superiority. Although formidable, its slow speed rendered it increasingly vulnerable as the war progressed, and from 1943 its use was restricted to an anti-tank role on the Eastern Front.