Junkers Ju 46

Ju 46
Role	Mail plane
Manufacturer	Junkers
Designer	Ernst Zindel, Hermann Pohlmann
First flight	March 1932
Introduction	April 1932
Primary user	Luft Hansa
Number built	5

The Junkers Ju 46 was a German shipborne catapult-launched seaplane derivative of the W 34, constructed for pre-war Luft Hansa's mail service over the Atlantic Ocean. The first production models were delivered in 1932 and replaced the Heinkel He 58, which, along with the He 12, had pioneered these ship-to-shore mail delivery flights.

The Ju 46 was a strengthened version of the Junkers W 34, modified for catapult launches. It was externally essentially identical to the W 33 apart from a revised vertical tail. Compared to the W 34, this carried a broader-chord rudder with a more rounded trailing edge and a noticeably squared-off top. This revision improved control of the aircraft during the low-speed launch. The ship to shore aircraft were all seaplanes (floatplanes), though some Ju 46 were used with a fixed wheeled undercarriage and tail-skid at times in their careers. The aircraft was equipped with a 441 kW (591 hp) BMW-C radial engine. A total of five aircraft were supplied, according to rebuilt civil registers, though other sources claim four. They were later equipped with more powerful BMW-E engines.

The aircraft was used in the postal link service across the Atlantic Ocean and were based on board the NDL-liners SS Bremen and Europa. Each aircraft was associated with its ship and bore its name. The first Bremen and Europa were both Ju 46fi seaplane variants and went into use in 1932. Two (or three) more, Ju 46hi variants, joined them in mid-1933, one having started life as a landplane.

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