In 1937 the German ambassador to China requested the Reichslufthahrtministerium to assigned a latest Ju-52/3m transport to the Eurasia Fluggesellschaft, as an answer to the upcoming Ford Tri-motor ordered by its competitor, Chinese National Air Corporation. Eurasia was a subsidiary of the Lufthansa, it was founded in 1935 under the agreement with the Chinese government. In September an ex-Lufthansa Ju-52 tri-motor, s/n D-ABAN, was ferried to Shanghai via Guangzhou. Instead of being transferred to the Eurasia, it became the VIP transport for the Generalissimo, bearing the Chinese Air Force insignia. Totally 10 Iron Annies had flown with the struggling Eurasia until 1945.
During 1935-37, the Eurasia received the first 7 Ju-52 Iron Annies, nicknamed Big Junkers by Chinese. Subsequently series numbers 15, 17, 19, 20, and 22 were all destroyed by the advancing Japanese. The 17 first felt victim by Japanese bombs at Nanking in Aug 1937. Though restored by Eurasia, but eventually it was blasted out at Hanzhong in May 1939. In Jan 1938 the 20 was badly bombed in Henan, it took a whole year to be fully repaired. In May s/n 15 narrowly evaded the fire of three Japanese fighters off coast of Hong Kong, it was attacked again over home base Kunming in Apr 1939. In the same month the 19 forced landed en route to Kunming from Vietnam, when 3 enemy bombers turned up to it with machine gun fire. After an urgent repair by the Eurasia ground crews, it perilously took off on a hillside temporary run way. Amid the advancing enemy offensive, s/n 25 was shot down and three more crashed. At the time, one of the German speaking, busy aeromechanic was Mr. Shao (紹高典), a graduate from Tongji, the sole German founded university in China, and a future buddy of my dad in the Taiwan Aluminum Corporation.
In February 1938 Hitler began to unilaterally terminate all the China assistance to please Japan. Though the shortage of both aircraft and supplies had been a series blow to Eurasia, still on April 2, 1940, the 17 ‘Langzhou’ started flying between Chongqing and Hami (Kamul) as well the China-Russia civil line. On 28 April, Göring officially called a halt to German export shipments through to China. Yet again, additional 3 ex-Lufthansa Ju-52s re-enforced the Eurasia in August 1940. But right before they entered service, the 25 was shot down by Jap fighters. In December the 20 was once more an air raid wreckage in Chengdu, soon the 15 was also blasted in Gueiling. With its fleet was about worn out and operations ceased in 1943, the hard-pressed Eurasia claimed bankrupts. Its tiny flight of 1 Junkers W-34 and 1 Ju-52 were incorporated in to CNAC. But the latter, the 19, was scrapped in 1945.
