There is perhaps no other sound, no other shape, and no other aircraft in all of history that has left such an impression as the Ju87 Stooka. Being a doubted and uncommon design type, it was nearly scrapped before it was ever started. But against all odds, this infamous dive bomber would wreak havoc across multiple fronts, raining down terror from above and leading the German advance in multiple invasions during World War II.
Today, we will dive into how this aircraft came about, what allowed it to succeed, and follow its inevitable downfall. This is the rise and fall of the Ju87 Stooka. The year is 1933 and currently at an air show in the United States, the star of the show is a small biplane known as the Ghock produced by the Curtis Company. In this dazzling show of acrobatics and jaw-dropping stunts, one of the most captivating feats is a near vertical dive.
In this maneuver, the barntormers plummet towards the ground straight down at hundreds of miles an hour. Flying like this had up until this point been inconceivable, as many thought the stresses on the airframe and pilot were far too much to handle. But here, with new structural improvements and the first generation of highly skilled pilots, the Curtis BF2C could now fly in a way that no one else ever had before, leading the United States Navy to begin research and development on one of the most groundbreaking discoveries in the history of military aviation, dive bombing.
But they were not alone. In the audience of this simple air show in Cleveland, Ohio, was one other unexpected onlooker. One who would change the history of aviation. One who would help create one of the most iconic aircraft ever flown. And one who would bring the concept of dive bombing back to his home country of Nazi Germany. This onlooker was a 35-year-old German by the name of Ernst Udet, the second highest scoring ace of World War I, only behind the Red Baron and currently one of the most respected stunt pilots in the world.
While on break from his own barnstorming shows, he watched the Curtis aircraft execute the near vertical dive and was in awe. The German stunt pilot had never before seen such feats and now wanted one of these planes for his own show in Europe. Unfortunately, being but one man with a humble air show, he could not afford such cuttingedge aircraft for his personal use. But luckily, he soon found someone who could. The newly appointed chief of aviation for the newly seated Nazi party, Herman Guring.
When Goring, who was already secretly beginning to build up the Luftwaffa, got wind of Udet’s desire for Curtis Hawks, he reached out and told him to purchase them and that the Nazi party would front the bill. Guring’s only condition was that the two aircraft were to be thoroughly tested by the Luftwafa first and then Udet could have them for his air shows. He quickly agreed and the deal was done. Shortly thereafter, Ernst Udet became an official member of the Nazi party and two brand new Curtis Goshocks were packed up and on their way to Europe.
For a while, Udet, who was already one of the most skilled pilots in the world, practiced his dive bombing techniques, not only for his own air show, but now almost certainly with the thought of military use in mind. He pushed the aircraft to their limits, learning how to utilize the plane to drop the most accurate ordinance possible. So much so that one day he even pushed the GO shock beyond its limits, causing the plane to break apart in the air and forcing Erns Dudet to leap to the safety of his parachute.
But despite this, his infatuation with the tactic remained. Fortunately, the German Ministry of Aviation had also begun to accept the practice as a viable military asset and had also started looking into the method. Before the purchase was ever made of the gosh shocks, Herman Pullman, one of the top German aviation engineers from the Yunker’s company, had already begun work on the first of the German dive bombers, a prototype under the name of the Ju K47. Pullman preferred a simple design and opted for strength and simplicity in dive bombers.
But after 4 years of development in 1932, the design was still far from usable. When the Nazi party took control in 1933, they encouraged more work on such designs. No doubt through the vocal support of now prominent Nazi aviation figure Erns Dudet. After testing in January of 1936 killed Junkn’s top test pilot, changes would quickly be made to the first version that would include the scrapping of a twin tail section, which was originally implemented for better gunner visibility, as well as adding inverted gull wings and dive brakes for better stability in the air.
Soon, the shape of the aircraft became a little more recognizable. Later in the spring, after being outfitted with a Jumo 210 engine, the first test flights of the new model, the JU87 went fairly well. But nonetheless, outside of Udet, the new design from Yunkers had very few fans in the German air ministry with many considering it underpowered. And thus the competition for the Luvafa’s top dive bomber was cancelled in favor of the Hankl H118. On June 9th of 1936, an order was sent to Yunkers to cease development of the JU87 design to focus on other projects.
It seemed like all was lost and the end of the road had arrived for the JU87 before it ever really started. That is until one day later when Ernst Dudet was promoted to the chief of development and research for the entire Luftwafa and his first order was the cancellation of the order to cease development of the Ju87 reviving the hopes for the uniquely designed aircraft. In another compelling turn of events, one month later, Udet himself was testing out the Hankl H118 in the dive bomber capacity when the propeller blew apart during a steep dive, causing the aircraft to break apart and leaving the Luwaffa’s chief of research and development once again parachuting to safety.
Ernst Hankl, the designer, was furious as he told Ernst Dudet that the aircraft was not designed for such maneuvers. But it mattered very little to the undeterred test pilot who could not escape his affection for the JU87, which could easily handle such a dive. Thus, Udet shortly thereafter announced the JU87 as the winner of the Ministries dive bomber competition. Just like that, the JU87 was ordered to make final modifications and head to production. This first design, the A model, brought many problems to the forefront.
The most prevalent was a lack of speed. At its cruising in level flight, the JU87 could not exceed 170 mph. Some in the aviation ministry argued that pilots would actually be safer in biplanes as they could at least escape the combat zone quickly. Furthermore, however, a difficult to read instrument panel did not help the situation. But thankfully, there was one feature that no one could dispute. The Ju87’s stability and handling in the air. The 87 was one of the easiest aircraft to fly and responded well to controls, allowing even novice pilots to fly it with relative ease.
This was no doubt one of the aspects that had kept it in the dive bomber competition for so long. Fortunately, by the time the B model was sent to production in 1937, the JU87 boasted many improvements and features that would become iconic in the aircraft. It carried fixed landing gear, a two-person crew, inverted goal wings, and a single tail section. But now on every model were dive brakes extending from the wings that kept speeds controllable in a vertical dive.
This however was often not enough on its own to protect pilots. In order to execute accurate and high-speed dives, it became clear that an upwards of seven or eight GS were often required. Thus, an auto pullout system was added to the JU87. Now, once a bomb was dropped, a control system would easily and automatically pull the 87 out of its dive and retract the dive flaps in case a pilot were to black out during the execution of the dive bombing attack.
In addition, at the request of Udet himself, noise devices were added to the wings of the JU87. These small propellers would spin during a dive, creating a siren-like sound. And although it added a noticeable drag to the aircraft, the propaganda effect was worth it. As the whailing scream of a diving stuca would eventually become synonymous with the Lwafa. As far as armament went on the JU87, the dive bomber was protected by a rear-facing gunner who possessed one or two 30 caliber machine guns as well as two more forwardfiring machine guns located in the wings.
Her payload could vary quite a bit based on model, but the most common bomb load consisted of four 110lb bombs underneath her wings and one 550lb bomb underneath the fuselage, which was swung out by a hook to prevent it from making contact with the bomber or propeller after release. By this time, the aircraft had been dubbed the Stoz Complig, meaning diving fighting plane. But with that being a mouthful, the name was soon shortened to Stooka, and a legend was born.
With the B model now quietly seeing production in the late 1930s, the first combat ready models were sent to the first battlefield that they would see, that of the Spanish Civil War. This would only be a small handful of aircraft as the Luftwaffa still wanted to keep the plane a secret. However, even with the small numbers, this brief service provided Luftwafa pilots and leadership with invaluable experience for the upcoming worldwide debut of the JU87. This unveiling and baptism by fire would take place in September of 1939 with the German invasion of Poland.
As Hitler ordered the attack that would send the world into war, the brand new Ju87 would lead the way, dropping the first bombs of the war onto pinpoint Polish military targets along the Vestulla River. Not only did they achieve this goal and open the war with incredibly accurate and frightening bombings on buildings and civilians, but they also were able to target specific demolition cables laid out in the area. Something that was up until now thought to be nearly impossible.
For the remainder of the brief Polish campaign, the Stuka would operate in close cooperation with German ground forces, providing a level of support and accuracy never before seen in air support, proving that Ernst Udet had been right in many of his theories about the value of dive bombing in a modern military campaign. The Ju87s operating over Poland had led the charge from the air and had taken very few losses in the process. In fact, here we can see one of the first ever published photos of the new aircraft just a few days after the attack in Poland in the New York Times.
Clearly showing that the Ju87 was drawing attention all across the world. But clearly a lot of disinformation still existed as can be seen by the use of the word fast to describe the JU87. The inaccurate information would continue for years as actual intel on the bomber was hard to find with one article I located even later claiming that Ju87 Stookas had been seen participating in the attack on Pearl Harbor showing just how on edge the world was regarding this new and frightening aircraft.
But even with all of this attention and acclaim, the most important question was, would the success last? During the next trial that the JU87 faced, it appeared as if it certainly would. But before we get there, you probably have noticed the incredible looks of the JU87 Stookas used in this video. Every feature is perfect, right down to the cockpit. And that’s because every one of these beautiful visuals is made using the sponsor of this video, War Thunder.
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In the mountainous and wooded terrain of Northern Europe, it was clear to the German commanders that the Stooka would be of minimal aid in close ground support as the landscape made dive bombing difficult and the terrain could easily conceal enemy targets. But another use for the Ju87 was found, that of naval attack. One of the primary defensive forces in the Battle of Norway would be the Royal Navy, attempting to support and supply defending Allied troops on the ground, as well as striking German ships operating off the coast of Norway.
The Ju87 groups would put a halt to this. However, many times during the Norwegian campaign, ships of the Royal Navy that came close to the coast of Norway found themselves the victim of Stuka attack. And the results were devastating. On April 9th, Norwegian destroyer hit by Ju7s off the coast, run ground and scuttled. April 17th, Royal Navy cruiser destroyed by Stookas, forced to limp back to Scotland with 33 dead on board. April 30th, HMS Bern sunk by an attack from dive bombers.
And May 3rd, a British and French destroyer both sunk by stookas during the evacuation from Namsus. Unlike high or medium level bombers that had little hope to hit zigzagging naval targets, the Luftwaffa dive bombers could strike with deadly accuracy. And perhaps equally as impressive, seemed fairly impervious to naval-based anti-aircraft fire. But why was this? To illustrate this answer, let’s walk through the standard method of attack for a dive bomber pilot. First, pilots would begin their attack with an approach of about 13,000 ft.
Then, using the window in the floor of the cockpit, the pilot would line up the target almost completely underneath the aircraft. From here, the accurate methodology might have varied. in pop culture and even two in some propaganda and archive footage, the stook is seen as rolling straight over on its back to begin the dive run and then pulling into the dive. However, there is no doubt that this would have been the more complicated method of accurately hitting a target.
Thus, this popularized method of attack, while no doubt used in some circumstances, was not the default method used by most dive bomber pilots. Alternatively, according to the recollections of many Stooka pilots, as well as a great deal of literature, the more common method was likely simply nosing over the aircraft and entering a dive headon. This allowed for a much simpler diving process and often more accurate results, especially for less experienced or newer pilots. But again, many units still opted to do things in different ways, as can be seen here from this footage where the pilot
chooses to wing over, a happy medium between the two options, rolling over halfway into a dive, positioning the target on his side before screaming downward and delivering his payload on a railard at what feels like a frighteningly low altitude. At the end of the day, the best method was the one that worked for an individual unit. But what is certain is the next thing that would be done is to trigger the dive brakes and sirens as the aircraft roared downwards.
Here, the nose would be pointed down to a 70 to 80° dive, averaging around 360 mph. Here, one of the most important jobs of the pilot became accurate speed and angle gauging, not only by instrument, but also by the chart on the side of the cockpit. In addition, the sound of the siren was also commonly used as an indicator of speed, as it was an audible feedback of the speed of the dive. All the while, the job of the gunner in the back seat was to hold on for dear life.
Following this, all that was left to do was to line up the target in the gun side of the aircraft and then at about 1,500 ft release the bombs, which swung out to clear the propeller or dropped away from the wings, falling onto a terrified enemy below. Once the bombs were released, the automatic recovery system kicked in as the pilot at a minimum was experiencing 6Gs of force during the exit of the dive. If the gunner was still conscious at this time, this would be an opportunity for him to get a great look at the
target to see if the pair had landed a hit, and one of the most exhilarating and frightening attacks imaginable would be concluded. Not only did this method of bombing allow for pinpoint precision, but it also actually left attackers protected from most ground fire as they approached the target from a high altitude and then scream downwards at a high rate of speed, showing only a small target to gunners and then striking the target and roaring away, leaving very little opportunity for defenders to get a hit.
This of course operated under the assumption that the primary anti-aircraft imp placements were in the area of the target. Thus in the cases like that of the battle of Norway the Royal Navy took blow after blow from the dive bomber that was labeled too slow and underpowered by many in the German aviation ministry. Ernst Dudet had proven that he was right. There was indeed a use for such a plane and the Stooka was shining in the role.
For the next few weeks, the Stooka groups were pulled back so that they could breathe, preparing for their next assignment and implementing valuable lessons learned in these first combat experiences. Pinpoint bombing was improved and so were the cohesiveness of units in combat. Soon after the brief period of rest, the Stooka groups were moved up to prepare for Hitler’s next target, France. In May of 1940, they assisted in almost every step of the way as the Vermach advanced through the French countryside, starting with the breakthrough at Sedan.
Here and at many other targets, the Stookas proved again their usefulness as well as improvements in accuracy, neutralizing enemy buildings and defensive positions as the ground forces advanced at lightning speed during the Battle of Belgium. As well, the Ju87s once again sunk ships faster and with far more efficiency than any other weapon that the Germans had in their arsenal. Throughout these campaigns, the JU87 became a symbol of Blitz Creek warfare, leading the charge just ahead of the German army and paving the way for their swift and seemingly unstoppable advance.
In the evacuation of Dunkirk, this reputation was solidified as many unprotected and vulnerable soldiers and ships fell victims to the screams of the stuca. There is perhaps no moment more terrorizing in the JU87 story than attacks of exhausted and evacuating British soldiers on slowmoving civilian ships, desperately trying to limp home across the channel. With the conclusion of the Battle of France and Dunkirk, it was now undeniable. The Ju87 was not only an effective military weapon, but also a propaganda icon of the Nazi war machine.
But with so much talk of victory and success for the German army and air force, a subtle note went under the radar of many. That was the fact that here in France, the Ju87 had begun to see evidence of a in the armor. Although the Stooka was indeed successful during these campaigns over France and the English Channel, there were occasions now that the dive bomber groups had seen heavy losses, particularly on the rare occasion that the French or Royal Air Force was able to put up organized fighter squadrons in an area where the Stookas were unescorted.
For example, on May 12th, a flight of just six Curtis P36 fighters far from an advanced frontline aircraft located an unprotected flight of 12 Ju7 Stookas near Sedon, shooting down a number of the bombers. During the period of May 28th to June 4th, during attacks on British shipping, the Royal Air Force was able to on occasion locate Ju87 flights over the channel. And despite heavy damage being done to their targets, the Ju87 flights lost 11 aircraft across these attacks despite being only intercepted twice by RAF fighters.
Thus far in Poland, in Norway and in most of France, the Luftwava had owned the skies. Meshmed 109s had kept the enemy fighters far from the Ju87 Stookas or the enemies of Germany had lacked modern air forces altogether. This meant that the Ju87s had rarely seen attack from an organized air force. That is until now. Although it was just a passing glimpse at weakness, it was a crucial warning to German commanders regarding the operation of the Stooka, one that would unfortunately go unheeded.
With the conclusion of the Battle of France, it was inevitable that the Battle of Britain was about to begin. This would be an intense air battle over the channel and coast of England to pave the way for Hitler’s planned invasion. And in this battle, the Stooka was clearly expected to play a starring role as Herman Guring had now moved all available JU87 units to the frontline airfields in France to take part in the campaign. To begin, the dive bomber carried on her newly found success as Stooka groups pounded British shipping throughout the channel, sinking four
freighters on the 4th of July, and then executing a devastating attack on the HMS Foilbank in Portland Harbor, killing 176 of her crew before she sank. In fact, even on land targets when the fighter defenses were held at bay, stookas were effective. On Eagle Day, the 13th of August, 109’s kept the RAF fighters busy while 86 JU87s of Stooka Group 1 struck an RAF airfield, killing the station commander, leveling buildings and destroying 20 aircraft on the ground.
However, the Royal Air Force soon enough had their defensive system organized and with nearly every attack, fighters were vetored to intercept. On multiple strikes to Britain, Stooka groups were located by patrolling hurricane and Spitfire flights, which dealt devastating losses to the German bombers. RAF pilots soon discovered that they were fairly easy targets on the way to and from their targets. But even if they were caught in their bombing run, their automatic pullout system was predictable and left the Stookas slow and climbing right after releasing their bombs.
An easy target for almost any pilot. As losses quickly began to climb, Guring soon ordered fighters to closely guard the Stookas. But this caused only more problems as now the fighters too were vulnerable and slow. July 20th, two Stookas downed by RAF fighters in a shipping attack, crash landing in France. August 8th, no less than five Stookas down by RAF interceptions over the channel with one coming to rest in a tree here. August 16th, Stooka Group 4 alone loses four 87s while bombing Tangmir, including this one, which miraculously landed with both crew knocked out.
And then on August 19th, the hardest day, 16 Stookas were shot down with a great number of additional damaged. In only the past week, 20% of the entire Stooka force had been wiped out. It became clear that the success of the Stooka depended on air superiority, the very thing that was being contested during the Battle of Britain. Even the overly optimistic Herman Guring could not deny the results any longer. The Royal Air Force had proven too much for the Ju87 and all Stooka groups were ordered to be withdrawn.
But interestingly, the story of the screaming dive bomber was still just beginning with plenty more crucial action to come. When the Ju87 troops were pulled back in the western theater, they were sent to southern Europe to assist in the battles of Italy, Greece, Yugoslav, and North Africa. In all of these areas, their enemies once again lacked air power and organization. So the Luftvafa dominated the skies and once again the screams of the Stooka sirens would ring out in triumph primarily against shipping and stationary ground targets.
All of this was very welltimed for the Luwafa as the Stooka groups were in need of a morale boost and some milk runs for unbeknown to them they were about to be sent to a totally new front. one where they would once again lead the charge. In the summer of 1941, Hitler decided to commence Operation Barbar Roa, the invasion of the Soviet Union. In preparation for this, four entire dive bomber wings were moved to the east. Here, the battlefield was unlike any other previously seen.
The terrain of the Soviet Union in many parts was level and open with unhindered visibility for miles. This was ideal for the Stooka as targets could be seen easily. Even tanks and small vehicles were difficult to hide in the open battlefield of the east. Furthermore, on the very first day of Operation Barbar Roa, the Luwaffa’s primary assignment was to take out the Soviet Air Force. And to say that they accomplished this would be an extreme understatement. On the first day of the invasion, German fighters and bombers reported that they had destroyed 1,489 Soviet aircraft primarily on the ground.
When Herman Guring heard this, even he refused to believe it. He ordered the figures checked and upon examination of the wreckage at airfields, his staff came back and said the original number was too conservative. In reality, the Luftwaffa had destroyed more than 2,000 aircraft in the first 24 hours alone. With such commanding control of the skies to complement the perfect terrain for dive bombing, the JU87 was in exactly the position it needed. And it did not disappoint.
As the Vermach battled intensely across the Soviet countryside, the Stooka was always above, raining down terror. Utilizing close communication as they had in Poland and France, the German ground forces relied heavily on the JU87 to hit precise enemy strong points and in particular Soviet armor. While the Luftwaffa dominated the battlefield above, the Stooka once again proved its worth. With little enemy air opposition in sight, its reign here was supreme. The number of trains and vehicles that the Stookas destroyed during this time period was astounding.
The Red Army took high casualties across the board, and the Ju87s dealt many of the heaviest blows. From the summer of 1941 until the fall of 1942, German dive bombers were a dominant factor in operation Barbar Roa as well as the battles of Kuban and Stalingrad. But this right here was likely the high point for the Ju87 Stooka. Despite a great deal of success in the air, the German army had failed to keep up with the Luwaffa’s victories.
German commanders had apparently underestimated the difficulty of logistics and supply movement in the Soviet battlefield, slowing the push on the ground. And while this took place, the Luvafa simply could not hold back the Soviet air force forever. By the beginning of 1943, the Soviets had rebuilt a substantial force of fighters and were now contesting German air superiority. As was witnessed in the Battle of Britain, this is where the Ju87 went from serious threat to easy prey. Losses began to rise for the dive bomber units at an alarming pace.
But this time, the Luwaffa commanders opted to try a new strategy. Despite the success early on in the Eastern Front, it was obvious by now that the 87 was an obsolete design. Thus, all dive bomber groups were essentially removed from the Luftwafa. But that doesn’t mean that they didn’t continue fighting, nor did it spell the end of the combat tenure for the Stooka. The former dive bomber groups were instead of being removed simply changed to ground attack units and the JU87D models that were now in widespread use were replaced by a new version, the G model, appropriately named for ground attack operations.
One of the most esteemed German pilots at this time was a man by the name of Hans Rud, who would go on to become the most successful Stooka pilot in history, flying 2,530 ground attack missions, all on the Eastern Front. During his time striking the Soviets, he led much of the feedback that went into the design of the G model of the Stooka and molded it to be a lethal tank killer. This model saw an upgraded engine to the Yunker’s Jumo 211, but more importantly, two 37 mm cannons were added underneath the wings.
These could only carry 24 rounds of ammunition, but the heavy armor-piercing shots only required one or two hits to eliminate a piece of Soviet armor. Since they were no longer to be used as dive bombers, the hook was removed, as were the air brakes, making for a cleaner and faster airframe. These cannon birds flown by pilots like Rud were quickly successful. Flying at low level, they would come in and unload their cannons from the side or rear of enemy armored units, leading some ground attack squadrons to claim hundreds of tanks destroyed before the wars end.
But even here, soon enough, the faster and more versatile Fakov 190 replaced many of the G models within ground attack units. From the start of 1944 forward, the use of the JU87 declined rapidly, but never truly went to zero. Even while Mustangs and Spitfires soared over Berlin, JU87s were still in use for the defense of the capital city. In February of 1945, leftover stookas were used to repel one of the last Soviet offenses as they reorganized their air support.
But this would only last a short while. By the end of the war, there were less than 100 Ju87 Stookas left operational in German hands. The simple fact had remained when the Luwaffa possessed control of the air, the Ju87 was a deadly weapon, providing pinpoint bombing, terrorizing targets, and supporting ground troops closer than had ever been done. But the moment that enemy fighters arrived and supremacy of the skies was lost, the Ju87 was a sitting duck ripe for the slaughter.
Nonetheless, the Stuka was one of the most terrifying and iconic aircraft in history and one of the few aircraft that served from start to finish in the Second World War.