The "152", the first German jetliner, was designed and constructed in the 1950s in Dresden in the then East Germany.
After the German Democratic Republic had decided to create an aircraft industry of their own, work on the first prototype of the four-engined airplane was started under the supervision of Prof. Brunolf Baade in the "Volkseigener Betrieb Flugzeuwerk Dresden" (=Publicly Owned Aircraft Plant Dresden) which was founded on May 1, 1958. Unofficially, the aircraft was named after the project leader Baade.
"152", which was designed for mid-range distances and in which it could transport up to 72 passengers, represented the state-of-the-art knowledge in modern aerodynamics and was regarded as being a promising German trhust into the jet age.
The roll-out of the first prototype 152-V1 was celebrated on April 30, 1958. Eight months later, on December 1958, its 35 minutes maiden flight took place. The second test flight turned into a catastrophe: On March 4, 1959, the aircraft crashed 5,7 kilometers from its airfield during its landing approach. The whole crew was killed. Why this tragedy happened is obscure up to this date. The results of the scrutinizing work by an investitgation committee were declared top secret. A possible reason for the crash was a malfunctioning fuel system which caused engine failure. Also, the acceleration during the landing approach, which was unfamiliar to the pilots, may have caused the catastrophe. The second prototype 152 V-4 was tested during two flights lasting 20 minutes each in August and September 1960. As many as 80 of there aircraft were to be manufactured and sold around the world. Until 1962, a fracture cell as well as parts for a dozen airplanes were produced. However, no 152 was ever delivered. In March 1961, the Central Committee of the German Communist Party (SED) decided to end civil aircraft production. The costs for the whole project were close to 2 billion East German Marks. The project failed lastly, due to the lack of customers: The "Deutsche Lufthansa" of East Germany, the later Interflug, was only willing to order fifteen. Neither the Soviet Union, nor other East-block countries nor customers in the West were not willing to purchase any of the East German jetliners.
All "Baade" aircraft were scrapped. The last remaining fuselage was discovered by chance a few years ago. For decades, it was used as a storage room. It is now being restored at Elbe Flugzeugwerke GmbH, an affiliate of DaimlerChrysler Aerospace Airbus GmbH.
152
| Power Plant | 4 Mikulin RD-9B with 25.5 kN each |
| First flight | 1955 |
Performance
| Cruising speed | 800 km/h |
| Range | 2500 km |
Weight
| Take-off weight | 44,500 kg |
Dimensions
| Length | 31.40 m |
| Height | 9.40 m |
| Wing span | 27 m |
| Passengers | 48-72 |
