Blohm & Voss BV 144
1945 prototype airliner by Blohm & Voss
The Blohm & Voss BV 144 was an advanced twin-engined commercial airliner developed by the German aircraft manufacturer Blohm & Voss. While a pair of prototypes were completed, no production aircraft were ever produced.
Development of the BV 144 commenced at the behest of the German flag carrier Deutsche Luft Hansa during the early years of the Second World War; from the onset, it was intended to be a civil airliner for use during the postwar era as a successor to the Junkers Ju 52. The BV 144 incorporated numerous advanced and uncommon features for the era, including the use of a variable-incidence wing, de-icing apparatus, and tricycle landing gear. Despite these innovations, it had an orthodox general configuration.
In response to an initial order from Deutsche Luft Hansa, a pair of prototypes were built by the French aircraft company Breguet during the German occupation of France; the first prototype performed its maiden flight in August 1944. However, Blohm & Voss's involvement in the project ceased later that same year when German forces were pushed out of France. It has been claimed that, following the conflict's end, one of these prototypes received French Air Force markings and was used as the private aircraft of President Charles de Gaulle.
Development
During 1940, by which point the Second World War was already being waged in Europe, the German flag carrier Deutsche Luft Hansa approached the aircraft manufacturer Blohm & Voss with a request for it to design and produced a new twin-engined airliner. This new airliner was intended to be relatively advanced, capable of seating up to 18 passengers in spacious accommodation, and function as a suitable successor to the ubiquitous Junkers Ju 52 transport aircraft.
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