Doing air-air with classic aircraft from the 1930s is always a pleasure, even more so if it is an immaculately restored Bücker Bü 133 Jungmeister on a nice autumn Sunday morning. The Jungmeister D-EMKP “LG+07” biplane was painted in a scheme inspired by the one adorning Germany’s first-ever Luftwaffe’s aerobatic squadron.

Where? above Saxony, Germany
When? October 2015

Originating from the Bücker Bü 131 Jungmann biplane, used as a training aircraft for the German Luftwaffe in the 1930s, the single-seat Bü 133 Jungmeister was developed. Though featuring a very similar construction to its predecessor, the Jungmeister is a very different aircraft. Its single seat layout and especially the prominent Siemens-Halske Sh 14 seven cylinder radial engine give not only a more powerfull appearance, but the 160HP provide also a lot more power for doing aerobatics.

The current scheme was applied during this Jungmeister’s most recent restauration from 2007 to 2009. Before that the Jungmeister was based in Switzerland, where Bücker biplanes were also licence-build. That particular airframe was build in 1940 at the Dornier factory at Altenrhein as C/N 28 and saw service in the Swiss Air Force wearing the registration U-81 from 1940 until February 1966, when it was damaged by a landing accident amd put out of service. After that this Bücker Jungmeister was sold to private hands and put into the civil register as HB-MKP until the move to Germany.

The Bücker Jungmeister and Jungmann are obviously very popular amongst their pilots. Very rarely they change their owner, who look carefully after their gem. This Jungmeister for example for example had only three private owners in its previous life, and 2015 celebrates the 75th anniversary of this aircraft. As a little detail after all this time the original meters are reliably doing their job in the instrument panel!

And to make things even better two more Jungmeister even joined the flight for a nice Bücker formation above Saxony!

Photo-flying with the Bü 133 Jungmeister biplane as a little piece of history was very cool, listening to the sound of its recently refurbished engine! My thanks go to André, Alex and everyone else supporting the photo and formation flights!