Deutsche Luft Hansa

Deutsche Luft Hansa
Founded 1926
Ceased operations 1945
Hubs Berlin Tempelhof Airport
Headquarters Berlin, Germany

Deutsche Luft Hansa A.G. (from 1933 styled as Deutsche Lufthansa and also known as Luft Hansa, Lufthansa, or DLH) was a German airline, serving as flag carrier of the country during the later years of the Weimar Republic and throughout Nazi Germany.

Even though Deutsche Luft Hansa was the forerunner of modern German airline Lufthansa (founded in 1953), there is no legal connection between the two.

History

1920s

A Deutsche Luft Hansa Albatros L 73, named Brandenburg, at Stettin Airport (1927). In the foreground is Yngve Larsson, the then mayor of Stockholm.
A preserved Junkers F.13, a type which was operated by Luft Hansa

Deutsche Luft Hansa was founded on 6 January 1926 in Berlin. The name of the company was a composite of "Deutsche Luft" ("German Air" in German), and "Hansa" (after the Hanseatic League, a powerful mediaeval trading group). The airline was created by a merger between Deutscher Aero Lloyd (an airline formed in 1923 out of the earlier airline DLR or Deutsche Luft-Reederei by AEG, Luftschiffbau Zeppelin and Dornier as a co-operation between the shipping companies Norddeutscher Lloyd and Hamburg America Line) and Junkers Luftverkehr, the in-house airline of Junkers.[1] This action was taken due to an initiative of the German government which hoped to reduce the amount of financial support it provided to the two partly state-owned airlines, which were both plagued by heavy debts at that time.The stylised flying crane symbol had been used by DLR.

The foundation of the airline coincided with the lifting of restrictions on commercial air operations imposed on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles. This allowed the route network to be quickly expanded to cover major European cities. The initial fleet consisted of 162 aircraft, nearly all of them outdated World War I types, and the company had 1,527 staff. The most important airfield for DLH was Berlin Tempelhof. From there a Fokker F.II took off on 6 April 1926 for the first scheduled flight to Zürich via Halle, Erfurt and Stuttgart. In the same year, Deutsche Luft Hansa acquired a stake in Deruluft, a joint German-Soviet airline, and launched non-stop flights from Berlin to Moscow, which was then regarded as an exceptionally long distance. Shortly after that flights to Paris were commenced. Deutsche Luft Hansa was one of the first airlines to operate night flights, the first of which connected Berlin with Königsberg using Junkers G 24 aircraft. This route proved so successful that the night train connection was discontinued some years later. During its first year, the airline operated more than six million flight kilometres, transporting a total of 56,268 passengers and 560 tons of freight and mail.

Over the following years, the domestic network grew to cover all the important cities and towns of Germany. More international routes were added through co-operation agreements. With the newly founded Iberia in Spain its longest scheduled route was 2,100 kilometres from Berlin to Madrid (though with several stopovers). The establishment of Syndicato Condor in Brazil served the airline's interests in South America where there were important German minorities at that time. The first East-West crossing of the Atlantic Ocean (from Baldonnel Aerodrome in Ireland to Greenly Island, Canada) was made by the Luft Hansa pilots Hermann Köhl and Ehrenfried Günther Freiherr von Hünefeld and the Irish pilot James Fitzmaurice using the Junkers W 33 aircraft Bremen in April 1928. The airline launched scheduled multi-leg flights to Tokyo. A Heinkel HE 12 aircraft was launched (by catapult) off the NDL liner Bremen during her maiden voyage crossing the Atlantic in 1929, shortening the mail delivery time between Europe and North America.

1930s

Junkers Ju 52/3mte delivered to DLH in the mid-1930s. Painted as 'D-2201', the first of many examples operated by the airline
A scale model of a Deutsche Lufthansa Focke-Wulf Fw 200

Even though the early years of the decade saw a difficult financial situation due to the Great Depression, Deutsche Luft Hansa further expanded its international route network in South America, and launched scheduled flights from Germany to the Middle East. Politically, the company leaders were linked to the rising Nazi Party; an aircraft was made available to Adolf Hitler for his campaign for the 1932 presidential election free of any charge. Erhard Milch, who had served as head of the airline since 1926, became a high-ranking official at the Aviation Ministry when Hitler came to power in 1933.

A key interest of Deutsche Luft Hansa at that time was the reduction of mail delivery times. In 1930, the Eurasia Corporation was established as a joint-venture with the Chinese transport ministry, granting Luft Hansa a monopoly position for mail transport between Germany and China, as well as access to the Chinese market. To this end, the Shanghai-Nanjing-Beijing route was launched in the following year using Junkers W 34 specially deployed there. A record was set in 1930 when the mail route from Vienna to Istanbul (with stopovers in Budapest, Belgrad and Sofia) was completed in only 24 hours. By comparison, the first transatlantic passenger flight by the airline (from Warnemünde to New York City using a Dornier Wal flying boat) took roughly one week.

After several years of testing, the first scheduled postal route between Europe and South America was inaugurated in 1934. For this purpose, catapult-launched Wal flying boats were used.[2] These were replaced by the Dornier Do 18 in 1936 making operations in non-visual conditions possible. The European network saw the introduction of the Junkers G.38 (at that time the largest passenger aircraft in the world) on the Berlin-London route via Amsterdam, as well as the Junkers Ju 52/3m and Heinkel He 70, which allowed for faster air travel. This was promoted by so-called "Blitz Services" (German: Blitzstrecken) between Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne and Frankfurt. In 1935, the first aircraft not manufactured in Germany were introduced into the Luft Hansa fleet: two Boeing 247s and one Douglas DC-2.

The grip on the domestic South American markets was further tightened in 1937, when the Sociedad Ecuatoriana de Transportes Aéreos (SEDTA)[3] and Lufthansa Perú were founded as Luft Hansa co-operations in Ecuador and Peru respectively, operating Junkers W 34 aircraft. The Middle Eastern network was expanded with the launch of the Berlin-Baghdad-Tehran route in the same year. In 1938 the Focke-Wulf Fw 200 long range aircraft was introduced making it possible to fly non-stop between Berlin and New York and from Berlin to Tokyo with only one intermediate stopover. This last year prior to the outbreak of World War II turned out to be the most successful one in the history of the airline, with 19.3 million flight kilometres on the scheduled European routes and a total of 254,713 passengers and 5,288 tons of mail transported.

On 1 April 1939, Deutsche Luft Hansa launched scheduled transatlantic flights between Port Natal, South Africa and Santiago de Chile using Fw 200 aircraft, a route which had previously been operated by Syndicato Condor. With Bangkok, Hanoi and Taipeh, further Asian destinations were added to the route network.

During the 1930s, Luft Hansa aircraft had also been deployed on a number of experimental and survey missions, most notably for developing the best airborne crossing of the South Atlantic, and during the Third German Antarctica Expedition in 1938-39, when two Dornier Wal aircraft performed a photographic survey of 350,000 square kilometres, an area which became known as New Swabia.

During World War II

With the outbreak of the war on 1 September 1939 all civilian flight operations of Luft Hansa came to an end, and the aircraft fleet came under command of the Luftwaffe, along with most staff as well as maintenance and production facilities. There were still scheduled passenger flights within Germany and to occupied or neutral countries, but bookings were restricted and served the demands of warfare. During the later years of the war, most passenger aircraft were converted to military freighters.

The Luft Hansa co-operations in foreign countries were gradually dismantled: Deruluft ceased to exist in March 1940, and by November of that year, the Eurasia Corporation had to be shut down following an intervention by the Chinese government. Syndicato Condor was nationalised and renamed Cruzeiro do Sul in 1943, in an attempt to erase its German roots.

The last scheduled flight of Deutsche Luft Hansa - from Berlin to Munich took place on 21 April 1945, but the aircraft crashed shortly before the planned arrival. Another (non-scheduled) flight was performed the next day, from Berlin to Warnemünde, which marked the end of flight operations. Following the surrender of Germany and the ensuing Allied occupation of Germany, all aircraft in the country were seized and Deutsche Luft Hansa was dissolved. The remaining assets were liquidated on 1 January 1951.

Legacy

A Junkers Ju 52 preserved by Lufthansa in the colours of Deutsche Luft Hansa (2000)

Lufthansa, today's German flag carrier, acquired the name and logo of the 1926–1945 airline upon its foundation in 1953 and claims DLH's history as its own. However, there is no legal link between the two companies. Between 1955 and 1963, the newly founded East German national airline operated under the same name but, having lost a lawsuit with the West German company, it was liquidated and replaced by Interflug.

Route network

European passenger flights

From 1926 until the outbreak of World War II in 1939, Deutsche Luft Hansa built up an extensive network centred on its base at Berlin Tempelhof Airport covering many German cities and towns, as well as the major European cities. There were early interline agreements which granted Luft Hansa passengers access to the flight network of leading European airlines of that time and vice versa. The agreements were with air lines including Aerotransport, Ad Astra Aero, Adria Aerolloyd, Aero Oy, Air Union, Balair, CIDNA, CSA, DDL, Imperial Airways, KLM, Lignes Aeriennes Latécoère, LOT, ÖLAG, Malert, SABENA, SANA, SGTA, and Ukrvozdukhput, as well as Syndicato Condor from Brazil and SCADTA from Colombia.

During that period, the following European destinations saw scheduled passenger flights:[4][5]

Middle east passenger flights

During World War II

Due to the war and the de facto end of commercial air transport in Germany, Luft Hansa operated scheduled passenger flights only on some domestic trunk routes and international services on a limited number of routes to occupied or Axis-affiliated countries. These routes deteriorated during the war as Germany came closer to defeat.

As of 1940/41, the following destinations were served. At that time, interline agreements were in force with Iberia, Aeroflot, Malert, LARES (Romania), Aero Oy (Finland), DDL (occupied Denmark), ABA (Sweden), and CSA (occupied Czechoslovakia).

Additionally, there were scheduled sea plane flights along the Norwegian coast (from Trondheim to Kirkenes), which was then part of the Atlantic Wall.

Fleet

The Deutsche Luft Hansa Ju 52 Otto Falke with running engines at Belgrade-Dojno polje Airport, Kingdom of Yugoslavia. (1941)

Over the years of its existence, Deutsche Luft Hansa operated the following aircraft types:

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
Deutsche Luft Hansa fleet history
Aircraft Introduced Retired Notes
Arado V I 1929 1929 1 only, cargo, lost in crash
BFW M.20 1929 1943 14
Blohm & Voss Ha 139 1937 1939 cargo floatplane
Blohm & Voss BV 142 1939 1940 cargo
Boeing 247 1935
Dornier Do 18 1937 1939 cargo flying boat
Dornier Do R 1928 1932 flying boat
Dornier Komet III 1926 1933
Dornier Wal 1926 1940 cargo flying boat
Douglas DC-2 1935
Douglas DC-3 1940 1944
Focke-Wulf A 17 1927
Focke-Wulf A 32 1934 2 aircraft from NOBA
Focke-Wulf A 33 1937 1938 1 only
Focke-Wulf A 38 1931 1934 4 aircraft
Focke-Wulf Fw 58 1938 1943 5 aircraft
Focke-Wulf Fw 200 1938 1945
Fokker-Grulich F.II
Fokker-Grulich F.III		 1926 1935
Heinkel HE 12 1929 1931 mail plane, 1 only, written off after crash
Heinkel He 58 1930 1932 mail plane, 1 only
Heinkel He 70 1934 1937 passenger, mail
Heinkel He 111 1936 1940 passenger
Heinkel He 116 1938 mail plane
Junkers F.13 1926 1938
Junkers G 24 1926 1938
Junkers G 31 1928 1935 8 aircraft
Junkers G.38 1930 1939 2 only, one written off after crash in 1936.
Junkers Ju 46 1933 1939 mail plane
Junkers Ju 52 1935 1945
Junkers Ju 86 1936 1945 5 aircraft
Junkers Ju 90 1938 1940
Junkers Ju 160 1935 1941 21 aircraft
Junkers Ju 290 1943 1945 3 examples
Junkers W 33
Junkers W 34		 1929
1926		 1929 mail plane
Rohrbach Ro VIII 1927 1936
Rumpler C.I 1926
Udet U-11 1929 1929 1 only, lost in crash

Accidents and incidents

1920s

  • On 8 March 1926, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers F.13 (registered D-290) crashed at Stakken during a left turn while on a training flight, killing the pilot.[8]
  • On 22 April 1927, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Fokker-Grulich F.III (registered D-729, named Unstrut) crashed at Floh due to engine failure, killing the pilot and passenger.[9]
  • On 27 July 1927, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers F.13 (registered D-206) crashed at Amoneburg after attempting a forced landing due to engine failure, killing all five on board.[10]
  • On 23 September 1927, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Dornier Merkur (registered D-585, named Puma) crashed at Schleiz en route to Munich from Berlin due to a broken wing strut, killing all six on board.[11]
  • On 19 April 1928, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers G 24 (D-946, Prometheus) force-landed in a forest near Spaichingen; all eight on board survived (one passenger was injured), but the aircraft was written off.[12]
  • On 26 May 1928, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers F.13 (registered D-583, named Wildente) crashed at Radevormwald due to pilot error, killing three of five on board.[13]
  • On 25 September 1928, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers G 31 (D-1427, Deutschland) crashed at Arnsberg due to engine fire; all nine on board survived, but the aircraft was written off.[14]
  • On 1 December 1928, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers G 31 (registered D-1473, named Rhineland) crashed at Letzlingen in a snowstorm, killing three of four on board, including pilot Heinrich Doerr.[15]
  • In December 1928, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers G 31 (D-1137) crashed in Germany.[16]
  • In February 1929, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers G 24 (D-899, Juno) crashed at Epinais, Bretagne, France.[17]
  • On 22 July 1929, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Fokker-Grulich F.II (registered D-780, named Havel) crashed shortly after takeoff from Templehof Airport due to engine failure, killing the pilot.[18]
  • On 10 September 1929, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Rohrbach Romar (registered D-1734) crashed in the Baltic Sea off Grömitz, Germany.[19]
  • On 6 November 1929, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers G 24 (registered D-903, named Oberschlesien) en route from Croydon to Schiphol crashed in thick fog at Godstone, Surrey, United Kingdom, resulting in the deaths of seven of the nine people on board.[20][21]
  • On 18 November 1929, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Rohrbach Romar (registered D-1693) was damaged during takeoff; the crew survived, but the aircraft was not repaired and was written off.[22]
  • On 19 December 1929, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Arado V I (registered D-1594, named Tenerife) force-landed near Neuruppin, killing both pilots; the flight engineer survived.[23]

1930s

  • On 4 April 1930, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers F.13 (registered D-422, named Eiderente) crashed in the Frauenwald forest near Idstein in fog while on a Frankfurt-Cologne passenger service; the pilot and passenger survived, but the aircraft was written off.[24]
  • On 7 April 1930, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers W33 (registered D-1649) crashed at Limpsfield Common, Surrey while on a freight flight to Croydon en route from Berlin, killing both crew.[25]
  • On 7 July 1930, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Dornier Do J Wal (registered D-864) force-landed in a storm in the Atlantic off Bornholm, Denmark en route from Stettin to Norway due to engine failure; the aircraft was capsized by a wave and sank while under tow three hours later; five of eight on board died.[26]
  • On 6 August 1930, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers W33 (registered D-1826, named Karpathen) was on a Stockholm-Stralsund mail flight when it struck a mountain near Valdemarsvik, Sweden at night and crashed into the sea and sank; both pilots drowned, but their bodies were never found. The aircraft was salvaged and rebuilt in the Soviet Union with registration CCCP-H4.[27]
  • On 6 October 1930, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Messerschmitt M 20 (registered D-1930, named Lechfeld) was blown onto a hill while on approach to Dresden, killing all eight on board.[28]
  • On 14 April 1931, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Messerschmitt M 20 (registered D-1928, named Rheinpfalz) crashed near Letschen due to structural failure of the tailplane, killing two of three crew; all seven passengers survived.[29]
  • On 18 April 1931, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers G 24 (D-896, Düsseldorf) crashed in a forest near a road at Gex (Ain), France; all six on board survived. The aircraft was rebuilt to F 24 standard in December 1931 and re-registered D-ULIS; the aircraft was later used as a testbed for the Jumo 4 diesel engine and the Daimler-Benz DB 600 and DB 601 V12 engines, but was written off following a 1939 crash.[30]
  • On 13 June 1931, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Dornier Merkur (registered D-1455, named Weissfuchs) crashed at Saarbrücken after a loss of control caused by engine failure, killing all four on board.[31]
  • On 6 October 1931, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Heinkel HE 12 (registered D-1717, named New York) crashed at Cobequid Bay, Nova Scotia in fog, killing all three on board.[32]
  • On 29 July 1932, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-2201, named Oswald Boelke) collided in mid-air over Munich with a DVS Udet U 12a (registration D-1296). The Ju 52 was repaired and returned to service and later re-registered D-ALOM; this registration was cancelled in January 1939.[33]
  • On 29 October 1932, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers W33 (registered D-2017, named Marmara) was on a freight flight from Croydon Airport to Cologne when it crashed off the Kent coast.[34]
  • On 2 November 1932, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers F 13 (registered D-724) crashed in mountainous terrain near Echterpfuhl after a wing separated, killing all five on board.[35]
  • On 3 April 1933, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers F 13 (registered D-534) crashed and burned at Hemkenrode, killing one of two on board.[36]
  • On 18 December 1933, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Focke-Wulf A 17 (registered D-1403, named Luneburg) crashed on landing at Hamburg after striking an obstacle, killing six of ten on board.[37]
  • On 10 March 1934, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers F 24 (registered D-1019, named Rotterdam) crashed near Gliwice, Poland; the aircraft was initially built as a three-engine G 24 and was converted to a single-engine F 24 in May 1928.[38]
  • On 29 March 1935, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers F 13 (registered D-OHIL) crashed off Brüsterort (now Mayak, Kaliningrad, Russia) during a training flight, killing all five on board; the wreckage was never found.[39]
  • On 25 April 1935, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-AJYR, named E. Schäfer) struck a mountain near Hallgarten, Germany in bad weather, killing three of six on board.[40]
  • On 2 November 1935, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Dornier Do 18 (registered D-AHIS, named Monsun) crashed into water at Travemünde during a high-speed low-altitude test flight, killing three of five on board.[41]
  • On 24 December 1935, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Heinkel He 70 (registered D-UVOR) crashed at Breslau (now Wroclaw, Poland) due to pilot error, killing all three on board.[42]
  • In 1935, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers F.24 (registered D-ULET) was reportedly written off in Germany.[43]
  • On 15 February 1936, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Dornier Do J Wal (registered D-ADYS, named Tornado) disappeared over the South Atlantic with four on board.[44]
  • On 17 April 1936, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-ASOR) struck a mountain near Orvin, Switzerland after the crew became disorientated, killing three of five on board. The aircraft was operating a passenger service from Lechfeld to Frankfurt.[45]
  • On 13 June 1936, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 160 (registered D-UPYM, named Puma) crashed at Hannover due to engine failure, killing one of six on board.[46]
  • On 22 July 1936, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 160 (registered D-ULUR, named Schakal) crashed at Cholmek, Czechoslovakia (now Czech Republic) while on approach to Prague, killing both pilots.[47]
  • On 26 July 1936, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers G.38 (registered D-AZUR, formerly D-2000) crashed at Dessau due to mechanical failure during a test flight; the pilot survived, but the aircraft was written off.[48]
  • On 1 November 1936, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-APOO, named Heinrich Kroll) crashed into mountains near Tabarz while en route to Erfurt from Frankfurt, killing 11 of 15 on board.[49]
  • On 17 November 1936, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-ASUI, named Hans Berr) crashed into a mountain near Lauf an der Pegnitz while on approach to Nurnburg-Marienburg Airport on a Leipzig-Marienburg passenger service, killing four of 16 on board. The pilot became disorientated in heavy snow and poor visibility.[50]
  • On 4 December 1936, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-ASIH, named Rudolf Windisch), struck a mountain at Le Grand-Bornand in the French Alps, killing all six on board. The aircraft was operating a Lisbon–Geneva–Stuttgart passenger service.[51]
  • On 12 March 1937, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Heinkel He 111 (registered D-ALIX, named Rostock) crashed on approach to Bathurst (now Banjul), Gambia for reasons unknown, killing all four crew on board; 90% of the mail on board was recovered, but the crew was never found.[52]
  • In March 1937, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 160 (registered D-UPOZ, named Wolf) crashed at Wätzum due to engine failure, killing all six on board.[53]
  • On 20 May 1937, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Heinkel He 70 (registered D-UXUV) crashed on takeoff from Stuttgart, killing all four on board.[54]
  • On 13 August 1937, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Boeing 247 (registered D-AKIN) crashed on takeoff from Hannover during a test flight for an experimental autopilot, killing seven of eight on board.[55]
  • On 12 November 1937, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Heinkel He 111 (registered D-AXAV, named Köln) crashed in the Weissen Stein mountains at Oldenwald, Germany due to possible spatial disorientation, killing 10 of 12 on board.[56]
  • On 26 November 1937, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-AGAV, named Emil Schäfer) crashed in fog into a hangar on takeoff at Croydon Airport, killing all three on board.[57]
  • On 4 January 1938, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-ABUR, named Charles Haar) crashed in a snowstorm at Frankfurt en route from Milan due to wing icing, killing all six on board.[58]
  • On 22 February 1938, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-APAR, named Otto Parschau) crashed in fog near Pontoise, France, killing the three crew. The aircraft was operating a Berlin–Cologne–Paris mail service.[59]
  • On 1 October 1938, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-AVFB) crashed into a mountain near Graubünden en route to Milan from Frankfurt, killing all 13 on board. A postal bag from the aircraft was found in a glacier in 1952.[60]
  • On 26 November 1938, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 90 (registered D-AIVI, named Pruessen) struck a palm tree and crashed at Bathurst (now Banjul), Gambia after double engine failure during take-off while on a tropical trial flight, killing 12 of 15 on board.[61]
  • On 4 August 1939, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-AUJG, named Hans Wende) crashed in the Llaberia mountains near Tivissa, Spain, killing all seven on board.[62]
  • On 24 August 1939, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers F 24 (registered D-ULIS, named Düsseldorf) force-landed in flames near Glindow, Germany, due to engine fire during a test flight for the Daimler-Benz DB 601 V12 engine, killing both pilots.[63]
  • On 30 August 1939, Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-AFOP, named Karl Hochmuth) crashed on takeoff from Hannover Airport, killing all seven on board. The aircraft was operating a Berlin–Hannover–Cologne–London passenger service.[64]

1940s

  • On 9 August 1940, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Douglas DC-2 (registered D-AIAV) crashed near Lämershagen en route to Hannover due to pilot error, killing 2 of 13 on board.[65]
  • On 29 October 1940, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Douglas DC-3 (registered D-AAIH, named Prag) crashed on takeoff from Tempelhof Airport in bad weather, killing both pilots; all 13 passengers survived.[66]
  • On 8 November 1940, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 90 (registered D-AVMF, named Brandenburg) crashed at Schönteichen en route to Budapest from Berlin due to tail icing, killing all 6 crew and 23 passengers on board in the worst-ever accident involving the Junkers Ju 90 and the deadliest accident for the airline.
  • On 1 March 1941, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 floatplane (registered D-AQUB) crashed on landing in Hommelvik Bay off Trondheim due to waves and later sank. Three of 12 on board drowned.[67]
  • On 22 October 1942, A Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-AYGX, named Johannes Höroldt) struck the side of Fruška Gora at 380 m (1,250 ft) near Bukovac, Serbia while flying through clouds, killing all 17 passengers and crew on board. The pilot had received incorrect weather information and thought the cloud base was at 600 m (2,000 ft).[68]
  • On 9 December 1942, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Douglas DC-3 (registered D-ABBF) struck trees and crashed on landing at Barajas Airport in fog; all 24 on board survive, but the aircraft was written off.[69]
  • On 15 January 1944, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-ADQW, named Harry Rother) crashed at Belgrade, Serbia due to pilot error, killing all five on board.[70]
  • On 21 February 1944, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-AWAS, named Joachim Blankenburg) went missing off Eretria, Greece with 16 on board; the wreckage was never found.[71]
  • On 17 April 1944, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registration D-AOCA, named Harry Rother) was shot down during an Allied fighter sweep and crashed near Belgrade, killing three of five on board. The aircraft was one of two that were shot down.[72]
  • On 21 April 1944, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Douglas DC-3 (registration D-AAIG) ditched in Oslofjord off Fredrikstad, Norway after a signal flare started a fire on board, killing nine of 20 on board.[73]
  • On 9 August 1944, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 90 (registration D-AURE, named Bayern) burned out on the ground at Stuttgart during an Allied bombing raid, there were no casualties as no one was on board.[74]
  • On 2 September 1944, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registration D-AUAW, named Gerhard Amann) was shot down over Belgrade, killing all five on board.[75]
  • During the war, on 27 September 1944 at 20:30 local time, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Focke-Wulf Fw 200 (registered D-AMHL) was shot down by a Bristol Beaufighter near Dijon. The aircraft had been on a scheduled passenger flight from Stuttgart to Barcelona with five passengers and four crew members on board, all of which were killed.[76]
  • On 16 October 1944, Deutsche Luft Hansa Flight 7, a Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-ADQV, named Hermann Stache), crashed into Skorvefjell mountain in Flatdal, Seljord, Norway in poor visibility conditions, killing all 15 people on board,[77] including discharged Frontkämpfer Kjell Marthinsen, son of Nazi police general Karl Marthinsen.[78]
  • On 17 October 1944, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registration D-ASHE, named Friedrich Dahmen) was attacked by British fighters and force-landed at Komárom County, Hungary, killing one of nine on board.[79]
  • On 29 November 1944 at 10:25 local time, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Focke-Wulf Fw 200 (registered D-ARHW, named Friesland) was accidentally shot down by a German "patrol boat" off the Swedish coast during a flight from Berlin to Stockholm, killing the six passengers and four crew members on board.[80]
  • On 10 January 1945, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-AUSS, named Joseph Langfeld) crashed near Prnjavor, Bosnia and Herzegovina, killing all seven on board.[81]
  • On 20 April 1945, during the Battle of Berlin, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Junkers Ju 52 (registered D-ANAJ) was shot down by Soviet fighters while on a Berlin-Munich-Prague evacuation flight, killing 3 crew and 15 passengers on board, including film director Hans Steinhoff. Two passengers survived.[82]
  • On 21 April 1945, during the Battle of Berlin, a Deutsche Luft Hansa Focke-Wulf Fw 200 (registered D-ASHH, Hessen) escaped from Berlin for a flight to Munich, but crashed near Obertraubling in Bavaria, killing the sixteen passengers and five crew members.[83][84]

References

  1. ↑ Lufthansa – Chronicle at the Wayback Machine (archived October 10, 2009)
  2. ↑ "First Transatlantic air line", Popular Science, February 1933
  3. ↑ "WAR FRONT: Sedta Cuts the Rates". Time Magazine. January 27, 1941. Retrieved 2007-09-14.
  4. ↑ "Index of /ttimages/complete/dlh27/". www.timetableimages.com.
  5. ↑ "Index of /ttimages/complete/dlh32/". www.timetableimages.com.
  6. ↑ http://www.timetableimages.com/ttimages/complete/dlh38/dlh38-12.jpg
  7. 1 2 3 4 http://www.timetableimages.com/ttimages/complete/dlh38/dlh38-03.jpg
  8. ↑ "Accident Junkers F13 D-290". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  9. ↑ "Accident Fokker-Grulich F.III D-729". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  10. ↑ "Accident Junkers F13bi D-206". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  11. ↑ "Accident Dornier Merkur II D-585". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  12. ↑ Accident description for D-946 at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 31 August 2018.
  13. ↑ "Accident Junkers F13ci D-583". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  14. ↑ Accident description for D-1427 at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 31 August 2018.
  15. ↑ Accident description for D-1473 at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 29 March 2013.
  16. ↑ Accident description for D-1137 at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 31 August 2018.
  17. ↑ Accident description for D-899 at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 31 August 2018.
  18. ↑ "Accident Fokker-Grulich F.II D-780". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  19. ↑ Accident description for D-1734 at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  20. ↑ "Luft Hansa disaster", Flight, 15 November 1929
  21. ↑ Accident description for D-903 at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 2015-10-01.
  22. ↑ Accident description for D-1693 at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  23. ↑ "Accident Arado V1 D-1594". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  24. ↑ "Accident Junkers F13di D-422". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  25. ↑ "Accident Junkers W.33d D-1649". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  26. ↑ "Accident Dornier Do J Wal D-864". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  27. ↑ "Accident Junkers W.33d D-1826". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  28. ↑ "Accident Messerschmitt M20b D-1930". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  29. ↑ "Accident Messerschmitt M20b D-1928". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  30. ↑ Accident description for D-896 at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 31 August 2018.
  31. ↑ "Accident Dornier Merkur II D-1455". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  32. ↑ "Accident Heinkel He 12 D-1717". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  33. ↑ Accident description for D-2201 at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 29 March 2013.
  34. ↑ "Airport News - Croydon". Flight. No. 3 November 1932. p. 1027.
  35. ↑ "Accident Junkers F13 D-724". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  36. ↑ "Accident Junkers F13 D-534". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  37. ↑ "Accident Focke-Wulf A17a Möwe D-1403". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  38. ↑ Accident description for D-1019 at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  39. ↑ "Accident Junkers F13ce D-OHIL". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  40. ↑ Accident description for D-AJYR at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  41. ↑ "Accident Dornier Do 18A D-AHIS". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  42. ↑ "Accident Heinkel He 70 G-1 D-UVOR". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  43. ↑ Accident description for D-ULET at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  44. ↑ "Accident Dornier J-IIf Bos Wal D-ADYS". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  45. ↑ Accident description for D-ASOR at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  46. ↑ "Accident Junkers Ju 160A-0 D-UPYM". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  47. ↑ "Accident Junkers Ju 160D-0 D-ULUR". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  48. ↑ Accident description for D-AZUR at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 13 December 2012.
  49. ↑ Accident description for D-APOO at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 13 December 2012.
  50. ↑ Accident description for D-ASUI at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 13 December 2012.
  51. ↑ Accident description for D-ASIH at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  52. ↑ "Accident Heinkel He 111 C D-ALIX". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
  53. ↑ "Accident Junkers Ju 160A-0 D-UPOZ". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  54. ↑ "Accident Heinkel He 70 D-UXUV". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
  55. ↑ "Accident Boeing 247 D-AKIR". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
  56. ↑ "Accident Heinkel He 111 C-03 D-AXAV". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
  57. ↑ Accident description for D-AGAV at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 13 December 2012.
  58. ↑ Accident description for D-ABUR at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 29 March 2013.
  59. ↑ Accident description for D-APAR at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  60. ↑ Accident description for D-AVFB at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 13 December 2012.
  61. ↑ Accident description for D-AIVI at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 13 December 2012.
  62. ↑ Accident description for D-AUJG at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  63. ↑ Accident description for D-ULIS at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  64. ↑ Accident description for D-AFOP at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  65. ↑ Accident description for D-AIAV at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 13 December 2012.
  66. ↑ Accident description for D-AAIH at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 20 March 2014.
  67. ↑ Accident description for D-AQUB at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 13 December 2012.
  68. ↑ Accident description for D-AYGX at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  69. ↑ Accident description for D-ABBF at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  70. ↑ Accident description for D-ADQW at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 29 March 2013.
  71. ↑ Accident description for D-AWAS at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 13 December 2012.
  72. ↑ Criminal description for D-AOCA at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  73. ↑ Accident description for D-AAIG at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 20 January 2018.
  74. ↑ Criminal description for D-AURE at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 29 March 2013.
  75. ↑ Criminal description for D-AUAW at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 29 March 2013.
  76. ↑ Criminal description for D-AMHL at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 13 December 2012.
  77. ↑ Accident description for D-ADQV at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  78. ↑ Nøkleby, Berit. Politigeneral og hirdsjef. Karl A. Marthinsen (in Norwegian). Oslo: Aschehoug. pp. 102–103. ISBN 978-82-03-29226-2.
  79. ↑ Accident description for D-ASHE at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 29 March 2013.
  80. ↑ Criminal description for D-ARHW at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  81. ↑ Accident description for D-AUSS at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  82. ↑ Criminal description for D-ANAJ at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 13 December 2012.
  83. ↑ Accident description for D-ASHH at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 5 January 2018.
  84. ↑ "Dorf Binabiburg - Artikel : Mysteriöser Flugzeugabsturz vor 60 Jahren". www.dorf-binabiburg.de.

Further reading

  • Joachim Wachtel, Günter Ott: Im Zeichen des Kranichs. Die Geschichte der Lufthansa von den Anfängen bis 1945. Piper, München 2016, ISBN 978-3-492-05788-2.
  • Lutz Budraß: Adler und Kranich. Die Lufthansa und ihre Geschichte 1926-1955. Blessing, München 2016, ISBN 978-3-89667-481-4.
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