Version |
Power Plant |
vmax |
Range at vRmax |
Service Ceiling |
Weight (empty) |
Gross Weight |
Ju 388 J-1 | 9-8801 J-0 with BMW 801 G |
at H = 11,6 km day: 621 km/h night: |
at H = 11 km day: 2200 km night: |
day: 12850 m night: |
day: 10135 kg night: |
day: 13275 kg night: |
Ju 388 J-2 | 9-8222 A/B with Jumo 222 A/B/3 |
at H = 7,2 km day: 650 km/h night: |
at H = 8 km day: 2000 km night: |
day: 11900 m night: |
day: 11120 kg night: |
day: 14177 kg night: |
Ju 388 J-2 | with Jumo 222 E/F |
at H = 11,5 km day: 710 km/h night: |
at H = 11 km day: 1680 km night: |
day: 13600 m night: |
day: 11540 kg night: |
day: 14510 kg night: |
Ju 388 J-3 | 9-8213 D with Jumo 213 E |
at H = 10,2 km day: 617 km/h night: |
at H = 9,2 km day: 2230 km night: |
day: 12500 m night: |
day: 10050 kg night: |
day: 13110 kg night: |
Differences:
Day: 2 MK 103 or 2 MG 151 in addition to FHL
131 Z
Night: 2 MK 108 and 2 MG 151 plus 2 vertical MK 108 in
addition to FHL 131 Z
Ju 388 J-1 (N) Configuration
III, with
tail turret November
16, 1944 |
Kobü-Entwurf-Leistungsdaten Nr.: 388/846/2a |
|
Engines: |
801 TJ-0 with Fimag intercooler |
|
Take-off
power PS Combat
power in H = 0 km PS Combat
power in H = 12,3 km PS |
1615 + 11 kg 1472 + 8 kg 1430 + 62 kg |
|
Usage: |
Night
fighter with vertical
armament, flame
damper and radar |
|
Weight
(empty)
kg Crew
kg Fuel
kg Oil
kg Ammunition
kg |
10485 400 2490 260 340 |
|
Take-off
weight
kg Flächenbelastung
kg/m² mittl.
Fluggewicht kg |
13965 250 12730 |
|
vmax
in H = 0 km
km/h vmax
in H = 12 km
km/h |
402 583 |
|
Flugzeit
in H km [1] Std. bei
vReise max in H = 11 km km/h
|
3,02 (11) 538 |
3,03 (8) 520 |
Flugzeit
in H km [1] Std. bei
vReise gedr. in H = 11
km km/h |
3,69
(11) 480 |
3,45
(8) 405 |
wst 2-mot. in H = 0 b. GA m/s Steigzeit
(bis km) min HD
2-mot. bei GA
m HD
2-mot. nach Steigflug m HD
2-mot. bei Gm m HD
1-mot. bei Gm m wst 1-mot in H = 0 km
[2] m/s |
6,3 34,5 (11) 21 (8) 12500 12750 13000 6100 1,2 |
|
Roll-/Startstrecke m |
800/1200 |
|
[1] einschl. 1 Std. Flug mit Kampfleistung [2] bei 1000 Ltr. Kraftstoffvorrat u.
gesamter Heckstandmunition |
Version |
Power Plant |
vmax |
Range at vRmax |
Service Ceiling |
Weight (empty) |
Gross Weight |
Ju 388 K-1 | 9-8801 J-0 with BMW 801 G |
at H = 11,6 km 610 km/h |
at H = 11 km 1770 km |
12850 m | 10250 kg | 14275 kg |
Ju 388 K-2 | 9-8222 A/B with Jumo 222 A/B |
at H = 12 km 635 km/h |
at H = 8 km 2080 km |
11700 m | 11215 kg | 16000 kg |
Ju 388 K-2 | with Jumo 222 E/F |
at H = 11,5 km 695 km/h |
at H = 11 km 1800 km |
13500 m | 11545 kg | 15930 kg |
Ju 388 K-3 | 9-8213 D with Jumo 213 E |
at H = 10,2 km 593 km/h |
at H = 9,2 km 2160 km |
12450 m | 10085 kg | 14400 kg |
Version |
Power Plant |
vmax |
Range at vRmax |
Service Ceiling |
Weight (empty) |
Gross Weight |
Ju 388 L-1 | 9-8801 J-0 with BMW 801 G |
at H = 11,6 km 620 km/h |
at H = 11 km 3100 km |
12800 m | 10150 kg | 13890 kg |
Ju 388 L-2 | 9-8222 A/B with Jumo 222 A/B/3 |
at H = 7,2 km 650 km/h |
at H = 8 km 2860 km |
11800 m | 11225 kg | 14840 kg |
Ju 388 L-2 | with Jumo 222 E/F |
at H = 11,5 km 712 km/h |
at H = 11 km 2450 km |
13500 m | 11565 kg | 15180 kg |
Ju 388 L-3 | 9-8213 D with Jumo 213 E |
at H = 10,2 km 608 km/h |
at H = 9,2 km 3150 km |
12400 m | 10060 kg | 13675 kg |
This overview is based on the genuine manufacturer's file F-388.00-02 dated June 14, 1944 (Ju 388 J/K) and August 2, 1944 (Ju 388 L), if not explicitly specified otherwise.
The data contained should not be trusted too much, as they are obviously only an overview of planned versions. It seems all of the series aircraft were Ju 388 L-1. I will have to certify in the future whether there were prototypes of other versions. These data were calculated and not measured. This is why the data for range and maximum speed of the L-1 differ slightly from those on the main page.
Regarding the range data, two things should be considered: First, there was a day and a night reconnaissance option for the L-1 series. Both options differed considerably in fuel capacity. Second, flight test reports by the Germans indicate that the BMW 801 engines consumed more fuel than specified by the manufacturer. I found evidence of this in the JFM message FlA. 601/44 dated September 18th, 1944. It was found by indirect measurements that the engines installed in the Ju 388 L-0 V 7 at the time, c/n 385220 (right) and c/n 385256 (left) were
consuming fuel at a rate of ca. 570 l per hour and engine up to altitudes of 8.0 km. BMW gives a value of 430 l/h.
On the same topic, the JFM message FlA. 742/44 dated 12/15/1944 states that
a 10% decrease in range has to be expected..
This was evident from data released the day before with FlA. 741/44. In the
experiments described, the fuel consumption of the Ju 388 V 7 was
determined in-flight while climbing up at different numbers of revolution. The
engines installed were the same, but it should be mentioned that the left engine
had a BMW radiator, while the right engine was equipped with a Fimag radiator
(air intake outside).
The results were alarming, and thus, four engines with air intakes outside were
tested for fuel consumption on the ground. The results of these measurements were included in
FlA. 742/44 as table and
are found below:
Sparleistung | Höchste Sparleistung | ||||||||
engine c/n | 385/ 275 |
385/ 274 |
387/ 776 |
387/ 837 |
385/ 275 |
385/ 274 |
387/ 776 |
387/ 837 |
|
consumption | l/h | 196 | 224 | 200 | 180 | 260 | 287 | 278 | 256 |
number of revolutions | revs/min | 1785 | 1838 | 1780 | 1775 | 2058 | 2110 | 2080 | 1930 |
charger pressure | ata | 1,00 | 1,00 | 0,98 | 0,98 | 1,14 | 1,14 | 1,12 | 1,12 |
charger air temperature | °C | 42 | 46 | 35 | 36 | 44 | 47 | 36 | 37 |
exhaust pressure | ata | 1,07 | 1,07 | 1,08 | 1,09 | 1,10 | 1,10 | 1,12 | 1,13 |
injected fuel | mm3/ stroke |
268 | 290 | 267 | 241 | 302 | 324 | 318 | 307 |
expected | " | 240 - 255 | 295 - 305 |
Höchste Dauerleistung | Kampfleistung | ||||||||
engine c/n | 385/ 275 |
385/ 274 |
387/ 776 |
387/ 837 |
385/ 275 |
385/ 274 |
387/ 776 |
387/ 837 |
|
consumption | l/h | 464 | 480 | 468 | 466 | 598 | 634 | 649 | 600 |
number of revolutions | revs/min | 2310 | 2325 | 2320 | 2320 | 2460 | 2470 | 2430 | 2430 |
charger pressure | ata | 1,28 | 1,28 | 1,26 | 1,265 | 1,45 | 1,45 | 1,43 | 1,43 |
charger air temperature | °C | 46 | 48 | 38 | 38 | 50 | 52 | 43 | 42 |
exhaust pressure | ata | 1,16 | 1,15 | 1,18 | 1,19 | 1,22 | 1,22 | 1,25 | 1,27 |
injected fuel | mm3/ stroke |
478 | 491 | 482 | 478 | 580 | 611 | 636 | 588 |
expected | " | 438 - 470 | 540 - 580 |
The engines with the serial numbers 385 275 (flown 8 h 30 min) and 385 274 (7 h 30 min) were attached to the Junkers Ju 388 K0-156 (WNr. 230 156 ?), while the brand new engines with the serial numbers 387 776 and 387 837 had just been installed in the Ju 388 V4, a K-subtype. This correlation of aircraft and engines was made possible by a short BMW report by BMW's EZA/2 dated December 9, 1944. The same report also says that the conversion of the Ju 388 K0 - 156 (c/n 230 156) has been finished and that the aircraft is ready for service.
The US-Report on the Ju 388 states that "although various subtype were found in
Germany after the capitulation, the JU-388 L-l version was found to be the most
representative model, and this model was selected for examination and analysis. "
I will try to verify whether there have been series or protoype aircraft of other
versions. The data in the table above are calculated data, not measured data. This is why
there are slightly different values for top speed and range for the L-1 on the main
page. Regarding the range, two things have to be taken into consideration: a) there
were day and night versions of the L-1 with considerably different fuel capacities
and b) Junkes complained to BMW that the actual fuel consumption of the TJ-0 engines was
higher than planned. The top speed obtained during flight tests in the USA was 383 mph at
40,300 feet, which corresponds to 616 km/h at an altitude of 12.283 m.
Several aircraft were converted to
Jumo 213 for evaluation purposes. The most famous of these is without doubt the
Ju 388 V32, Werknummer 300 295, T9+DL. Serving with the 3./Versuchsverband O.K.L.,
it was a L-0 aircraft converted to Jumo 213 E (Triebwerk 9-8213 D) by the
Luftwaffe. A first test run was conducted 9/12/44, and the first of 23 test
flights took place 9/16/44. During these flights, the plane was airborne for 9 h
40 min and obtained a maximum speed of 565 kph (351 mph) and a ceiling of 10,200
m (33,440 ft). The test program abruptly ended when the V32 crashed 1/5/45 for
unknown reasons, killing the crew of three. All this information can be found in
a report of the 3./Versuchsverband O.K.L. (Br.B.Nr. 28/45 geh.) dated 2/27/45.
The Jumo 213 E was intended to become the standard engine of the Ju 388 J-3 :
Ju
388 J-3 (N) mit FlaV 24.11.1944 |
Kobü-Entwurf-Leistungsdaten Nr.:
388/851 |
|
Engines: |
9-213
E |
|
Take-off
power
PS Combat
power in H
= 0 km
PS Combat
power in H
= 10,2 km
PS |
1750
+ 103 kg 1580
+ 85 kg 1270
+ 140 kg |
|
Deployment |
w/o
ext. tank +
MW 50 |
w. 1 ext. tank +
MW 50 |
Weight
(empty)
kg Crew
kg Fuel
kg Drop
Tank + fitting
kg MW
50
kg Oil
kg Ammunition
kg |
10410 400 2410 –
280 260 340 |
10410 400 2950 60 280 260 340 |
Take-off
weight
kg Flächenbelastung
kg/m² mittl.
Fluggewicht
kg |
14100 252 12750 |
14700 262 13055 |
vmax
in H = 0 km
km/h vmax
in H = 10,2 km
km/h vNot + MW 50 m. FlaV in H=8,2
km/h |
439 576 626 |
438 573 624 |
vNot +MW 50 o. FlaV in H=9,1
km/h |
647 |
645 |
Flugzeit
in H = 9,2 km
h bei
vReise max
km/h |
3,74 516 |
3,65 509 |
Flugzeit
in H = 9,2 km
h bei
vReise gedr.
km/h |
4,65 438 |
4,30 446 |
wst
2-mot. in H = 0 bei GA m/s Steigzeit
bis H = 9,2 km min HD
2-mot. bei GA
m HD
2-mot. bei Gm
m HD
1-mot. bei Gm
m wst 1-mot in H = 0 km
m/s |
7,85 27,7 11100 11800 2300 *,** |
7,00 34,0 10550 11650 2000 *,** |
Roll-/Startstrecke
m |
670/920 |
750/1010 |
On Novemer 13, 1944, Junkers issued an order to build six Ju 388 test aircraft equipped with Triebwerk 9-8222 A/B (Jumo 222 engines), after the number of such test aircraft had been cut from eight to three in the meantime. The 4-blade VS 19 airscrew with a diameter of 4 m should be installed. The test aircraft should be converted from K-0 series aircraft. The main differences in comparison with the L-0 series should, apart from the obviously necessary changes for the installation of the Jumo 222, include an enhanced landing gear (wheels 1400 x 410), a Kärcher fuel powered heater per wing for de-icing, additional lubricant oil tanks (Rüstsatz B 13) and a drop tank with a capacity of 900 l. The armament consisted of a MG 131 machine gun at the back of the cockpit. As the installation of camera equipment was not intended, hence the bomb bay could be closed permanently.
There are hints that the Ju 388 should also be powered by the DB 603 engine. A JFM memorandum dated August 25, 1944 which refers to a meeting at VDM on August 8, 1944, deals with possible airscrews for the Ju 388 with DB 603 U (Unit 9-8603 F). Two alternatives were discussed:
However, the cg shift would have required 200 kg of ballast, making the version with six blades 460 kg heavier than the four-blade-version. In addition to this, increased efforts in manufacturing and assembling suggested not using the six-blade airscrew. Consequently, the decision was made to use the four-blade wooden airscrew. The same memorandum also lays down the use of the four-blade aluminum airscrew 9-12188 A already used on the BMW 801 TJ with the DB 603 L and DB 603 E/F. This airscrew had a diameter of 3,726 m.
In late September 1943, Genst.6.Abt. requested the installation of jet engines in the following aircraft types used for the Reich's defence, in the following order:
a) Me 410
b) Ju 188 R und Ju 88 G
c) Ju 388 J
Due to their importance, these measures should be conducted with utmost urgency. Obviously, 1,000 jet engines a month were to be installed as additional power plants in the aircraft [1].
And indeed, BMW's department "EZS" made performance calculations
for different propulsion concepts in 1943. As early as February 1943, EZS-Report
No. 11 theoretically analyzed the effective thrust of piston, turboprop and jet
engines in a Ju 88 aircraft. It was found that turboprops and jet engines were
clearly superior. EZS-Report No. 25 concluded that the installation of two
additional jet engines would increase the maximum speed of the Ju 88 by 120 kph
at the design ceiling. Above, the increase in speed was even larger, while the
decrease in range became smaller.
EZS-Report No. 33 published in November 1943 is of particular interest, as it
deals with the question whether the tactical tasks of a fast long-range
reconnaissance plane could be fulfilled with normal piston engines and
additional jet engines instead of turbo-supercharged piston engines. Therefore,
the performance of a Ju 388 L-1 with BMW 801 TJ and a Ju 88 H-1 with BMW 801 TG
and two additional BMW 003 A-1 jet engines was made. At low and medium
altitudes, this combination featured significant speed advantages in comparison
to the BMW 801 TJ, but smaller ranges. Above 12,500 m, turbo-supercharged
engines were found to be superior both in terms of speed and range to to the
mixed propulsion in spite of additional GM1 use with the BMW 801 TG.
Consequently, turbo-supercharged engines were recommended for fast high altitude
reconnaissance planes, while the jet/piston engine combination was preferred for
special missions. In the EZS-Report No. 36 (December 1943), conventional piston
engines were compared to the turboprop engine BMW 028 for aircraft in the Ju
388's weight range (12.61 - 13.62 t). The BMW 028 yielded superior velocities at
all altitudes, but lead to a decrease in range [2].
The actual use of additional jet engines in Ju 388 aircraft has not been proven yet. The E'Stelle Werneuchen, however, suggested around November 1944 to equip a Ju 88 G-6 with two additional jet engines for hunting the DH 98 "Mosquito". In Rechlin, this suggestion was examined at least theoretically under Test Number 1888. Without drop tanks, but with SN2-antennae and flame suppression gear, the aircraft would have had a maximum speed of 615 kph at 6,100 m. With an additional 900 l drop tank and a takeoff weight of 14.4 t, fuel would have been sufficient for one hour of flying with maximum thrust and additional jet engines and another hour at maximum continuous thrust without jet engines [3].
As late as January 1945, two Ju 88 test aircraft (V67 and V72) were
flight-tested with additional Jumo 004 B engines [4]. However, these were more
likely flying "engine test stands", as the test flights were made to
test individual components of the Jumo 004 B. Moreover, Ju 88 V72 still had Jumo
211 engines.
As "pure" jet aircraft like Me 262 and Ar 234 were flight-tested and
built in parallel to the Ju 388, it seems reasonable that jet-engine related
activities focussed on these aircraft, while the intermediate solution of
equipping conventional aircraft like the Ju 388 with additional jet engines was
abandoned.
In August 1944, a Japanese delegation led by military attaché Brigadier General Otani visited the Junkers facilities at Dessau. On this occasion, Otani expressed his interest in a license production of the Ju 388 and the Ju 390. After several delays and numerous difficulties, e.g. the availability of drawing paper, complete drawing sets for the Ju 388 and the Ju 390 were eventually handed over to the Japanese. They also obtained the rights for a license production of the Jumo 222 and the FA 15. Most likely, the planned delivery of all these documents to Japan via submarine failed.