The Junkers Ju 86 was a four-seat, medium bomber which was used by the Luftwaffe during World War II. It was also employed in civil aviation as a ten-passenger commercial aircraft by Deutsche Lufthansa. During the German invasion of Poland and Battle of France, it was massively used, along with the Junkers Ju 87, to provide support to the advancing Wehrmacht forces. During December 1942 and January 1943, it was also utilized as a military transport plane to supply the German 6th Army's troops during the Battle of Stalingrad to complement the Ju 52.
The Junkers Ju 86 was designed in April 1934 as an answer to the German Air Ministry's specifications for a medium-size bomber, competing with Heinkel's model. The prototype, V1, made its maiden flight on November 4, 1934, at Dessau. It was powered by two Siemens SAM 22 radial engines. Since it was deemed to be underpowered, the aircraft would soon be re-engined in 1935, with two Jumo 205C, inline, piston engines. It was finally introduced into service in May 1936 as the Ju 86A-1. In July that year the Ju 86D-1 version was also delivered to the Luftwaffe. The Ju 86E-1 variant would use a different power plant as it was equipped with two BMW 132F radial machines. When World War II broke out, the Ju 86G-1 was already in service.
In 1941, Junkers would develop the Ju 86P-1 and, the following year, the Ju 86R, which were both high-altitude bombers to prevent the Allies interceptors from reaching this German aicraft.
Technical Characteristics
The Junkers Ju 86 was a four-seat, twin-engine monoplane, with an all-metal fuselage. It featured straight, cantilever, low-wing, with both leading and trailing edge tapering towards the outer portion. The tail assembly had twin fins (vertical stabilizers), which were connected by a wide tail plane. It had retractable landing gear, which folded up into wing root.
Specifications (Ju 86D-1)
Type: medium bomber
Length: 17.87 m (58 feet, 8 inches)
Wing Span: 22.50 m (73 feet, 10 inches)
Wing Area: 82 m2 (883 square feet)
Height: 5 m (16 feet, 7 inches)
Power Plant: two Jumo 205C, 4-cylinder, diesel, inline, piston engines, each one delivering 600 HP.
Maximum Speed: 325 km/h (202 mph)
Range: 1,500 km (932 miles)
Crew: 4
Armament: three 7.92-mm machine guns, set up in the nose, and in dorsal and ventral position; 800-kg (1,764-lb) of bombs.
Below, a parked Ju 86E-1 at a Luftwaffe airbase in the Summer of 1940, at the end of the German invasion of France.
Two Junkers 86D-1 bombers in flight.
The Ju 86E-2, with the machine guns removed.
Below, the Ju 86G-1 in 1941. Notice the modified aircraft nose.
The high-altitude version of the bomber, the Ju 86P-1. Like the 86G-1, it had a conical nose, without the machine gun.
