Retired Lufthansa Technik aircraft builders Fritz Meyer (65) and Klaus Albrecht (62) have been preoccupied “full-time” in their free time with the technology of the Junkers Ju 52/3m owned by the Deutsche Lufthansa Berlin-Stiftung (Deutsche Lufthansa Berlin Foundation, DLBS). Since July of this year, reproduction of the front and rear cabin doors of the Foundation’s own Lockheed L-1649A has featured prominently on the work schedule of the two pensioners, in addition to maintenance of “Tante Ju”. So far about 500 hours of labor have gone into building the fully functional replica of the rear passenger door, including the fittings of the front and rear door. The front door, which has a more complex structure due to its curvature, is expected to be completed in the spring of 2010.

When the two doors are finished, they will be installed in the former D-ALOL of Lufthansa, which is a non-flying museum exhibit in the South African Airways Museum in Johannesburg. As well as the original doors, the SAA Museum has given the DLBS a number of other components of the L-1649A which will be installed in the Foundation’s aircraft.

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