1859-1935

German aviation engineer who built some of the first all-metal airplanes and was responsible for innovations in heating systems and engine designs. In 1890 Junkers founded a research institute devoted to the study of engine and airflow technology. He opened an aircraft factory at Dessau in 1910, patented his flying-wing design, and, in 1915, launched the first successful all-metal airplane, the JU-1 Blechesel ("Sheet Metal Donkey") monoplane. During the 1920s and 1930s he developed commercial passenger aircraft and dive bombers used by the German Luftwaffe during World War II. Despite his great success, in 1933 the Nazis banned Junkers from his work and took over his plant.