Baade 152

Following the end of the Second World War in Europe, Germany was divided into West Germany and East Germany. In the East, the Soviet Union became politically dominant over the region; Soviet officials sought to obtain all possible aerospace-related material in East Germany, the engineers and scientists associated with such projects were deported to the Soviet Union.[1] During October 1946, it was announced that all East German aerospace-related projects would be transferred to the Soviet Union, while material that could not be transferred was deliberately destroyed. Following the formation of German Democratic Republic during 1949, many of the deported German scientists were allowed to return to East Germany and to practice their professions once more.[2]

During 1952, new aeronautical facilities were established in East Germany; initially, these were operated with a focus upon military aircraft, however, following a popular uprising in the following year, military ambitions were renounced in favour of civil aircraft.[1] The revival of the East German aerospace industry had occurred at a faster rate than that of neighbouring West Germany.[3] Development of what would become known as the Baade 152 can be traced back as early as 1953 to a team of German aeronautical engineers headed by Brunolf Baade, for whom the type is named after, working in Sawjelowo, Russia. However, when members of the team were allowed to return to East Germany, all documentation relating to the 152 had to be left behind; the Soviets retained this cache and eventually released it to East Germany after a protracted period.[4]

Based in East Germany, a new aerospace company, VEB Flugzeugwerke Dresden, was able to recruit Baade and several other returning engineers, and decided to commit itself to completing development of the envisaged 152.[2][5] VEB planned to develop the 152 as a four-engined commercial transport aircraft; an assembly line capable of producing up to 18 aircraft per year was to be established in Dresden to manufacture the type. As intended, the 152 would have been developed initially as a 57-seater airliner, plans were made to accommodate alternative seating layouts, such as a high-capacity 72-passenger configuration or a more spacious 42-passenger arrangement.[5]

During 1955, VEB formally commenced work on the 152, having to effectively redesign the aircraft in the process.[4] During the previous year, work had also commenced at Berlin-based Industriewerke Ludwigsfelde (IWL) on the development of the Pirna 014 turbojet engine; it was this powerplant that would be selected for the 152.[6] According to Baade, work was hindered by a lack of optimal facilities present in East Germany. According to aviation periodical Flight International, East Germany was keen to involve Western industry in the project as well, particularly in the provision of components and materials; it was also hoped the sales of the 152 could be garnered from the west as well.[5] Reportedly, East German officials regarded the 152 as filling a relatively unique niche upon the global airliner market, and that its nearest competitor was the French-built Sud Aviation Caravelle.[5]

Sketch of the two prototype variants of the 152 that flew between 1958 and 1961

A total of three airworthy prototypes were constructed; two of them being flown on three flights. The design of the first prototype was largely derived from the OKB-1 150, an early jet bomber designed by former Junkers engineers in the Soviet Union. It included a tandem landing gear and glazed nose for the navigator, which was a common feature in many Eastern Bloc aircraft. The 152's landing gear was unusual for a passenger plane in that the main gear was housed along the centerline of the fuselage with outrigger wheels in the wing-tips, similar to the better-known Boeing B-47.[5] The tail of the airplane was tested on a VEB 14.

On 4 December 1958, the maiden flight of the first prototype V1/I (DM-ZYA) took place, which lasted for 35 minutes.[1] Tragedy struck during its second flight, the aircraft being lost in a crash at Ottendorf-Okrilla on 4 March 1959, killing the entire crew. It is believed that the pilots, having lacked experience with operating jet-propelled aircraft, may have been unfamiliar with the slow response time of such engines, contributing to a stall and subsequent crash.[4] The reasons for the crash were never fully investigated and the results of the limited investigation were only made public in 1990.[7] The loss has been attributed as having been a major setback to the programme and later having played a factor in its termination.[4]

Following the accident, test flights continued using the second prototype V4/II (DM-ZYB), although this aircraft did not fly until 1960.[1] It would be the first to be powered by the indigenously-developed Pirna 014 turbojet engine.[4] Other changes made on the second prototype included a different landing gear configuration, involving an unusual configuration of the main landing gear that shared the same pylon as the engines,[5] as well as the glazed nose for the navigator being dispensed with. The third prototype, V5/II (DM-ZYC), would never be flown, being solely used for ground-based testing.[8]

The flight test programme was abruptly terminated after conducting only three flights; reportedly, a serious malfunction involving the fuel tanks, which interrupted sufficient fuel supply during a steep descent, had been discovered. The question of whether this design flaw had contributed to the crash of the first prototype remains unanswered. There were still about 20 aircraft in production for the East German state airline Deutsche Lufthansa until mid-1961. On 28 February 1961, the East German government issued an order for the dissolution of its national aeronautical industry; this decision was reportedly heavily influenced by the Soviet Union, which was then promoting its own similar-sized airliner, the Tupolev Tu-124; despite earlier promises, it no longer wanted to purchase any Baade 152s or provide further support towards its development. Similar curtailing of autonomous aviation-related programmes was carried out throughout the Eastern Bloc during this period.[9]

All examples of the aircraft were scrapped. However, during 1995, a restoration effort involving the abandoned 152/II #011 fuselage was initiated at EADS EFW (Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH) in Dresden, which is the direct successor company of VEB Flugzeugwerke Dresden. Furthermore, one consequence of the project's cancellation was that engine manufacturer Industriewerke Ludwigsfelde (IWL) was left with 30 completed Pirna 014 powerplants without any customer for them.[10] These surplus engines were subsequently used to power a number of minesweepers operated by the Volksmarine.[10]

Sketch of the 152 as it would have appeared in service with Interflug

Toy of the 152 in the livery of the East German Deutsche Lufthansa

• 12 October 1956 – First test run of jet engine Pirna 014
• March 1958 – First presentation of airplane 152 and jet engine Pirna 014 at the Leipzig Spring Fair
• 30 April 1958 – Roll out of first 152/I V1 prototype plane without engines
• 4 December 1958 – First flight of prototype 152/I V1 for 35 minutes with jet engines Tumansky RD-9
• 4 March 1959 – Second flight of prototype 152/I V1 for 55 minutes. Plane crashed after rapid descent killing the crew of four.
• 9 September 1959 – Testing of Pirna 014 jet engines on test plane Ilyushin Il-28R
• 30 July 1960 – Start of ground testing for 152/II V4 plane
• 26 August 1960 – First flight of prototype 152/II V4 for 22 minutes with Pirna 014
• 4 September 1960 – Second flight of prototype 152/II V4 for 20 minutes
• 7 September 1960 – Roll out of the third prototype 152/II V5
• 7 September 1960 – Serious fuel system malfunctions during ground tests resulting in grounding both the 152/IIs
• December 1960 – End of ground testing of prototype 152/II V4
• March 1961 – End of Pirna 014 jet engine production
• 20 June 1961 – Last flight of Pirna 014 jet engine on test plane IL-28R
• Mid-1961 – Scrapping of all produced 152 planes

• Braas, Nico (Winter 1993). "Talkback". Air Enthusiast. No. 52. p. 80. ISSN 0143-5450.
• Hirschel, Ernst Heinrich., Horst Prem and Gero Madelung. Aeronautical Research in Germany: From Lilienthal until Today. Springer Science & Business Media, 2012. ISBN 3-642-18484-7
• Kirchberg, Peter (2000). Plaste Blech und Planwirtschaft — Die Geschichte des Automobilbaus in der DDR (in German). Berlin: Nicolaische Verlagsbuchhandlung Beuermann GmbH. ISBN 3-87584-027-5.