The Bücker Bü 131 Jungmann (freshman, young man)[note 1][1] is a German 1930s basic training aircraft which was used by the Luftwaffe during World War II.
After serving in the Kaiserliche Marine in World War I, Carl Bücker moved to Sweden where he became managing director of Svenska Aero AB (Not to be confused with Svenska Aeroplan AB, SAAB). He later returned to Germany with Anders J Andersson, a young designer from SAAB. Bücker Flugzeugbau GmbH was founded in Berlin-Johannisthal,[2] in 1932, with the first aircraft to see production being the Bü 131 Jungmann.
While it was Bücker Flugzeugbau's first production type,[2] the Bü 131A was the last biplane built in Germany.[2] It had two open cockpits in tandem and fixed landing gear.[2] The fuselage was steel tube, covered in fabric and metal,[2] the wings wood and fabric.[2] It first flew on the 80hp (60kW)Hirth HM60R.[2]
In 1936, it was followed by the Bü 131B, with a 105hp (78kW) Hirth 504A-2.[2]
Most wartime production for the Luftwaffe was by Aero in Prague.[2]
Operational history
A Japanese Kokusai Ki-86A in 1945.
Sturdy and agile, the Bü 131A was first delivered to the Deutscher Luftsportverband (DLV).[2] The Bü 131B was selected as the primary basic trainer for the German Luftwaffe,[2] and it served with nearly all of the Luftwaffe's primary flying schools during the war, as well as with night harassment units such as Nachtschlacht Gruppen (NSGr) 2, 11, and 12.[2] Yugoslavia was the main prewar export customer; "as many as 400 may have found their way" there.[2] She was joined by Bulgaria with 15 and Romania with 40.[2]
Production licenses were granted to Switzerland, which operated 94, of which 88 were built under licence by Dornier.[2] About 530 were built in Spain[2] with production continuing at CASA until the early 1960s, and they remained in service as the Spanish Air Force's primary basic trainer until 1968. Hungary operated 315,[2] while ten were built in Czechoslovakia by Tatra as the T 131, before World War II.[2]
In Japan, 1,037 were built for the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service with Hatsukaze engines as the Kokusai Ki-86 and 339 for the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service as the Kyushu K9W.[2]
In the 1960s and early 70s the Spanish, Swiss and Czech governments sold their Jungmanns to private owners and many were exported to the United States. About 200 Jungmanns survive to this day, many having been fitted with 150hp (110kW) Lycoming O-320 or 180hp (130kW) O-360 four-cylinder horizontally-opposed engines with inverted fuel and oil systems for aerobatic flight.
The Jungmann is prized for its outstanding handling characteristics when compared to other antique bi-planes and even some modern aerobatic types. Upkeep and maintenance for the Jungmann is comparable to other antique aircraft and is superior when fitted with the Lycoming engines. Airframe parts are available from sources both in the United States and Europe.
In 1994, the Bü 131 was restored to production briefly using CASA jigs by Bücker Prado in Spain, with 21 aircraft constructed as the BP 131,[2] while in Poland SSH Janusz Karasiewicz also started production of a version of the Jungmann based on Czech plans in 1994.[3] 20 were manufactured in Poland between 1994 and 2000.[4]
Variants
Spanish built CASA 1.131 still being flownLycoming-powered Bü 131s in the US
Bü 131A
Two-seat primary trainer biplane. Initial production version.
Bü 131B
Improved version, powered by the more powerful Hirth HM 504A-2 piston engine.
Bü 131C
Experimental version, fitted with 90hp (67kW)Cirrus Minor piston engine. One built.
Nippon Kokusai Ki-86A Army Type 4 Primary Trainer
Japanese production version for the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service. Powered by a Hitachi Ha47
Nippon Kokusai Ki-86B Army Type 4 Primary Trainer
Wooden airframe version to relieve scarce supplies of strategic materials.
Kyushu K9W1 Momiji Navy Type 2 Trainer Model 11
Japanese production version for the Imperial Japanese Navy. Powered by the Hitachi GK4A Hatsukaze 11
Mass-produced in Aero factory in occupied Czechoslovakia during wartime under original Bücker Bü 131B designation, used postwar with original Hirth engine.
Aero C-104
Czechoslovakia, postwar development with a Walter Minor 4-III engine, 260 built.
CASA 1.131
Spanish license-built versions with Hirth HM 504 or 125hp (93kW)ENMA Tigre G-IVA.[5]
BP 131
modern license-built version
SSH T-131P
Pre-production modern Polish version, powered by 78kW (105hp)Walter Minor 4-III engine. Four built from 1994.[3]
SSH T-131PA
Main Polish production version, with 103kW (138hp) LOM M332AK engine. First flew 1995.[3]
Operators
Tatra T.131 photo from Le Pontentiel Aérien Mondial 1936A Swiss Air Force Bü 131 B.Jungmann G-RETA of the Shuttleworth Trust enters a loop
Bulgaria
Bulgarian Air Force
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovak Air Force
Czechoslovakian National Security Guard
Independent State of Croatia
Zrakoplovstvo Nezavisne Države Hrvatske
Germany
Luftwaffe
Greece
Hellenic Air Force
Hungary
Royal Hungarian Air Force
Japan
Imperial Japanese Army Air Service
Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service
Lithuania
Aeroclub of Lithuania
Netherlands
Royal Netherlands Air Force
Poland
Polish Air Force (1 bought for tests before 1939)[4]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bücker Bü 131.
Notes
Commonly translated as young man, but often used to refer to a freshman, or a member of an organization in their first year, per Sarjeant, 1971, p.253.
Citations
"German-English translation for "Jungmann"". en.langenscheidt.com. Stuttgart: PONS. 1 January 2020. Retrieved 2 March 2020. Jungmann m (Jungmann(e)s, Jungmänner): youngster, young man, recruit in his first year of service
Ketle and Rolfe 1996, p. 12.
Jackson 2003, pp. 344–345.
Morgała, Andrzej Morgała (2003). Samoloty wojskowe w Polsce 1924–1939. Warsaw: Bellona, p. 316. ISBN83-11-09319-9 (in Polish)
Bridgeman, Leonard. "The Bücker Bü 131B 'Jungmann'." Jane's Fighting Aircraft of World War II. London: Studio, 1946. ISBN1-85170-493-0.
Gerdessen, Frederik. "Estonian Air Power 1918 – 1945". Air Enthusiast, No. 18, April – July 1982. pp. 61–76. ISSN0143-5450.
Jackson, Paul. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 2003–2004. Coulsdon, UK: Jane's Information Group, 2003. ISBN0-7106-2537-5.
Ketley, Barry, and Mark Rolfe. Luftwaffe Fledglings 1935–1945: Luftwaffe Training Units and their Aircraft. Aldershot, GB: Hikoki Publications, 1996. ISBN0-9519899-2-8.
König, Erwin. Die Bücker-Flugzeuge (The Bücker Aircraft) (bilingual German/English). Martinsried, Germany: Nara Verlag, 1987. ISBN3-925671-00-5.
König, Erwin. Die Bückers, Die Geschichte der ehemaligen Bücker-Flugzeugbau-GmbH und ihrer Flugzeuge (in German). (1979)
Kulikov, Victor (March 2000). "Des occasions en or pour Staline, ou les avions allemands en URSS" [Golden Opportunities for Stalin, or German Aircraft in the USSR]. Avions: Toute l'Aéronautique et son histoire (in French) (84): 16–23. ISSN1243-8650.
Kulikov, Victor (April 2000). "Des occasions en or pour Staline, ou les avions allemands en URSS". Avions: Toute l'Aéronautique et son histoire (in French) (85): 44–49. ISSN1243-8650.
Mondey, David. The Hamlyn Concise Guide to Axis Aircraft of World War II. London: Chancellor Press Ltd, 2006. ISBN1-85152-966-7.
Sarjeant, L. F. Bücker Bü 131 Jungmann (Aircraft in Profile 222). Windsor, Berkshire, UK: Profile Publications, 1971.
Smith, J. Richard and Antony L. Kay. German Aircraft of the Second World War. London: Putnam and Company, 3rd impression 1978, pp. 91–92. ISBN0-370-00024-2.
Wietstruk, Siegfried. Bücker-Flugzeugbau, Die Geschichte eines Flugzeugwerkes (in German). D-82041 Oberhaching, Germany: Aviatik Verlag, 1999. ISBN3-925505-28-8.
Wood, Tony and Bill Gunston. Hitler's Luftwaffe: A Pictorial History and Technical Encyclopedia of Hitler's Air Power in World War II. London: Salamander Books Ltd., 1977, p.139. ISBN0-86101-005-1.
Articles and topics related to the Bücker Bü 131 Jungmann
Published translations disagree, and many are simplified, especially for plants, where the Japanese referred to a specific variety and the common translations only to the broader type.
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