Junkers Ju.52/3m even more European users

 

The Junkers Ju.52/3m is a transport aircraft that was designed and manufactured by German aviation company Junkers. It was employed by many countries in either a civilian or military role and, together with the countries previously covered, in this post we're going to cover the next ones:

• Greece: Greece national airline back in the 1930s, Elliniki Eteria Enaerion Sinkinonion (EEES) acquired three Ju.52/3m which arrived to Greece on 28th June 1938. They served in various aerial routes with Athens as the main hub until they were requisitioned by the Ellinikí Vasilikí Aeroporia (Royal Hellenic Air Force - RHAF) when Italy declared war on Greece in late October 1940. In the RHAF they served as transports to ferry troops, supplies and medical evacuation from the frontlines, at the North-Eastern part of the country and the interior. When Germany invaded Greece on 6th April 1941, they were captured and put to use with the Luftwaffe.
• Netherlands: The Rijksluchtvaartschool (RLS - the Dutch civilian flying academy, forerunner of the actual KLM Flight Academy) had in inventory three ex-German Ju.52/3m which were bought from the British in early 1946. In April they were transferred to the RLS where they served as crew trainers until 1st October 1949. They all were written off two months later and sold in early 1950.
• Italy: In January 1935, Ala Littoria (Fascist Italy's national airline) bought three Junkers Ju.52/3 without engines in order to replace some older Junkers G.24 they had. They were engined with Italian-built Alfa Romeo 126 R.C. 34 and another one (registered as I-BIZI) with the Piaggio P.X. R. engines. Of those original three, only one survived (I-BIZI) as two of them were lost to accidents and were replaced with three more machines, two of them having Alfa Romeo engines and one retaining the original BMW ones.
  In June 1940 all four of them were militarised and taken in charge by the Nucleo Comunicazioni Ala Littoria, which belonged to the Italian S.A.S. (Servizi Aerei Speziali - Special Air Services). One of them, registered as I-BERO, suffered an accident on 7th September 1940 while landing at Brindisi airport, which left the machine badly damaged and another was sent to serve with the Corpo Aereo Italiano (Italian Air Corps) to Belgium to take part in the Battle of Britain. After the Italian armistice in early September 1943, all of them were taken over by the Luftwaffe.

Sources:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Junkers_Ju_52_operators

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ala_Littoria

3. https://www.airhistory.net/photo/287118/PH-UBA

4. Ali Straniere in Italia 4 - Gli Altri Tedeschi