Return Home with a Touch of History: Lufthansa Unveils Iconic Aircraft
In an exciting development, Lufthansa's Lockheed L-1649A Super Star and the legendary Junkers Ju 52 are set to take centre stage at the Lufthansa Group Conference and Visitor Centre in Frankfurt, opening in spring 2026.
The Lockheed Super Star, a symbol of the peak of propeller-driven passenger aircraft and the spirit of aviation at the end of the 1950s, has undergone a meticulous restoration to its original 1950s livery. After over a year of work by Lufthansa Technik and Altitude Paint Services, including the recreation of its distinctive "parabolas" design from archival material, the Super Star has been moved to Frankfurt Airport for display.
Introduced in 1957 as Lufthansa’s post-war flagship, the Super Star was notable for long-haul transatlantic flights, especially to New York, and the introduction of the premium "Senator Class" service. The restored Super Star includes an authentically restored 1950s cabin, unveiling historic interiors not previously accessible to the public.
The Super Star's wings are expected to arrive next week, and the Junkers Ju 52 is scheduled to arrive in Frankfurt in September. The Junkers Ju 52, a legendary aircraft of Lufthansa’s earlier era, registered as D-AQUI, will be exhibited in restored condition and is a major aviation heritage piece featured with the Super Star in the permanent display.
The restoration project involved an initial €150 million investment when restoring it to airworthy condition was first attempted starting in 2008, but that plan was discontinued in 2018, resulting in a focus on museum-quality restoration instead. Precise costs for the latest repaint and restoration phase by Lufthansa Technik and Altitude Paint Services are not detailed beyond the investment mentioned, but substantial effort and resources were devoted to archival research, paint application, and reassembly. The Junkers Ju 52’s restoration cost details were not specified in the latest reports, but it is featured in the same exhibition hall with the Super Star as a fully restored historic aircraft.
Lufthansa explicitly refers to the problematic predecessor Deutsche Luft Hansa Aktiengesellschaft, which was founded in 1926 at the insistence of the German Reich government. The Super Star was often used for non-stop flights, such as the Hamburg-Frankfurt-New York route, taking up to 17 hours.
The centre will address Lufthansa's own, not always glorious history, including its role in National Socialism. A new corporate history is scheduled to appear in March 2026, commissioned to historians Hartmut Berghoff, Manfred Grieger, and Jörg Lesczenski.
Both the Super Star and the Junkers Ju 52 are not approved for air traffic and will be transported by heavy transport to their new location. The exhibit includes indoor display hangars with large glass façades allowing external viewing. The centre opens in spring 2026, coinciding with Lufthansa’s centenary celebration.
Despite most of the funds being supposedly paid by sponsors, the renovation was stopped due to cost reasons. Lufthansa Technik has abandoned plans to offer nostalgia flights for passengers with the Super Star due to cost reasons. The framework for the restoration was provided by a plane from TWA, not Lufthansa.
The visitor and conference centre, scheduled to open in April, will be publicly accessible. The Super Star, once considered the most beautiful plane in the world, has arrived at Frankfurt Airport as part of Lufthansa's anniversary celebration. Deutsche Lufthansa AG was not allowed to take off until April 1955, almost ten years after the end of World War II, due to Allied bans on German air traffic.
The Lufthansa Berlin Foundation attempted to build a flyable Super Star from three old-timers for ten years, but the technical restoration and the necessary technical certification proved too complex, leading to the halt of the full renovation in 2018 due to cost reasons.
[1] The Lockheed L-1649A Super Star: The Last of the Great Propeller Aircraft
[2] Lufthansa's Lockheed L-1649A Super Star returns to the skies
[3] Lufthansa's Lockheed Super Star: The Last Great Propeller Plane
[4] Lufthansa's Lockheed Super Star: The Last Great Propeller Plane
[5] Lufthansa's Lockheed Super Star: The Last Great Propeller Plane
- The Lufthansa Group Conference and Visitor Centre's exhibition will showcase the restored Lockheed L-1649A Super Star and the Junkers Ju 52, two significant aircraft in the aviation industry, marking a milestone in the history of finance and transportation.
- The restoration of the Lockheed L-1649A Super Star, a symbol of aviation's golden age, has been made possible through the combined efforts of Lufthansa Technik, Altitude Paint Services, and substantial investments in finance.
