Almost a year ago to date, we reported (here) the news that the Kent Battle of Britain Museum acquired a C.A.S.A. 352L (Junkers Ju 52/3M) from the RAF Museum to add to their ever-expanding collection of airframes at the Museum. In a recent article, Warbird Lovers announced that this sole representative of the Junkers Ju 52 left in the UK is now on display at the Kent Battle of Britain Museum.
The airplane was built in Spain as a CASA 352L, and previously located at RAF Museum Midlands (Cosford). In just 4 months the “Ju 52” was disassembled, transported, completely paint stripped, repainted, reassembled, and repositioned for display at the Kent Battle of Britain Museum. Over the winter of 2022 /23 Phil Glover of Warbird Lovers visited the museum to follow the progress from arrival to final assembly and display. This article charts the visits, summarizes the work undertaken, and provides an overview of this excellent museum.
The C.A.S.A. 352L had been acquired from the RAF Museum where it has been on display at their RAF Museum Midlands site at Cosford for approximately thirty years. This airframe was put up for transfer by the RAF Museum in 2021 and after a bidding process and due diligence, the museum was pleased and proud to announce that they came up with a successful bid for this aircraft.
When the airplane arrived in November of 2022, it became one of the volunteers’ main winter projects. The team fully stripped and repainted externally into a color scheme of a Junkers Ju 52/3M that would have taken part in Operation Sealion, the planned invasion of Great Britain, had it taken place. The museum’s Chairman, Dave Brocklehurst MBE, said “It has been a personal quest for me for over forty years to acquire a Junkers Ju 52/3M for the museum collection. Now all we must do is locate such aircraft as a Junkers Ju 87B, Junkers Ju 88A, and Dornier Do 17Z to add to the collection”
Read more about this airplane and the restoration behind it on Warbird Lovers.
The Kent Battle of Britain Museum is the largest Battle of Britain collection of memorabilia with artifacts collected from over 700 crashed aircraft on display. For more information, visit www.kbobm.org
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Born in Milan, Italy, Moreno moved to the U.S. in 1999 to pursue a career as a commercial pilot. His aviation passion began early, inspired by his uncle, an F-104 Starfighter Crew Chief, and his father, a military traffic controller. Childhood adventures included camping outside military bases and watching planes at Aeroporto Linate. In 1999, he relocated to Atlanta, Georgia, to obtain his commercial pilot license, a move that became permanent. With 24 years in the U.S., he now flies full-time for a Part 91 business aviation company in Atlanta. He is actively involved with the Commemorative Air Force, the D-Day Squadron, and other aviation organizations. He enjoys life with his supportive wife and three wonderful children.
Bizarre. The only Ju52 in the UK has gone from a secure, indoor site to a location where both vandalism and weather damage are much more likely
Tim l agree, should be a condition of bid acceptance that the aircraft be kept hangered.
The RAF Museum basically does not care they told me it’s not original and as far as they are concerned it has no historic value what so ever. My connection is I saw it when it was first restored. I was about ten and to demonstrate how light the parts were they let me pick up the Rudder. Duxford wasn’t even open to the public. It wasn’t long after the B&b film.