Source: Lufthansa Group
The Junkers Ju 52 will move to the newly built Lufthansa Group Conference and Visitor Center in the coming weeks. The historic aircraft, affectionately known as “Aunt Ju,” was officially bid farewell in Paderborn-Lippstadt, where it had been stationed since 2020 for restoration by the Quax Association. The aircraft remains the property of the Deutsche Lufthansa Berlin Stiftung (DLBS) and will be on display in Frankfurt from 2026, just in time for the 100th anniversary of the founding of the first Lufthansa.
At a farewell ceremony in Paderborn, the Lufthansa Group paid tribute to the support provided by the Quax Association and Paderborn Airport over many years for both the Ju 52 and the Lockheed Super Star. The Quax Association will also continue to maintain two other DLBS aircraft, a Dornier Do 27 and a Messerschmitt Bf 108, in Paderborn.
Wolfgang von Richthofen, Project Manager of the Lufthansa Group Conference and Visitor Center: “With our Ju 52, we are preserving the history of Lufthansa and aviation. The historic aircraft will enrich the exhibition in our new visitor center as an essential exhibit and will be accessible to customers, employees, aviation enthusiasts, and the general public.”
Werner Knorr, CEO of DLBS: “The departure from Paderborn is not a final farewell, but the beginning of a new chapter for the Ju 52, one that honors its history and significance for aviation.”
The Junkers Ju 52
The Ju 52 has had an eventful history with Lufthansa. Since its introduction in the 1930s, it has become a symbol of aviation. The Junkers Ju 52 was added to the Lufthansa fleet in 1932 and quickly became the backbone of the aircraft fleet. It accounted for around 50 percent of the fleet and was valued for its reliability and economy. Originally designed as a single-engine aircraft, it was later developed into a three-engine model that was characterized by its robust construction and ease of maintenance.
The Lufthansa Group Conference and Visitor Center
In the immediate vicinity of the Lufthansa Aviation Center (LAC), the Lufthansa Group has begun construction of a new conference and visitor center at Frankfurt Airport in 2024. It will be a place for new forms of collaboration for employees and, at the same time, for customers, business partners, and aviation enthusiasts.
Lufthansa’s pioneering spirit and expertise will be tangible – especially in shaping the future of aviation, but also in relation to the company’s history. The main historical attractions will be two restored Lufthansa aircraft on permanent display: the Junkers Ju 52 (D-AQUI) and, for the first time, the legendary Lockheed Super Star with the registration D-ALAN, which is currently being painted at Münster-Osnabrück Airport. Thanks to a large transparent façade, both aircraft will also be visible from a distance.
Visitors will be able to explore numerous exhibits from Lufthansa’s corporate history in an open gallery, some of which will be on public display for the first time. Like the Group’s training and conference hotel, “Lufthansa Seeheim,” the Frankfurt conference and visitor center will also be open for external events and will offer visitors culinary delights in a coffee lounge.