Gruber Logistics transports Lockheed for Lufthansa

From 2026, the Lockheed L-1649A Super Star will be on display at the Lufthansa Group’s conference and visitor center in Frankfurt am Main. Gruber Logistics, an expert in oversized and heavy transport (GST), took on the prestigious project for the renowned airline in the summer to bring the former flagship back to its home airport.

(Auer/Frankfurt) The aircraft, part of the Lockheed Constellation family, was a marvel of engineering in the 1950s. In two precisely planned transports, the experienced heavy load logistics provider was responsible for the transport of the fuselage, tail unit, and the two wings, first from Hamburg Airport to Münster/Osnabrück Airport in July, and from there to Hesse in August. Using 3D computer models, Gruber Logistics calculated the routes and successfully brought the 35-meter-long museum piece, with a wingspan of 45 meters, to its future exhibition location.

For over a year and a half, the GST experts from Gruber Logistics planned the individual transports of the Lockheed Super Star, which joined the airline’s fleet in 1957 and was recently painstakingly restored by Lufthansa Technik in Hamburg. In addition to 3D object scans and the subsequent simulation of the project on the computer, on-site route inspections were part of these meticulous preparations.

A unique constellation

“This project was a unique constellation for all involved, if you allow me this wordplay on the Super Constellation. The transports were exciting and challenging for the planners, professional drivers, escort personnel, and the involved partners. In a large team, we succeeded in bringing a unique and thus very valuable piece of aviation history back to its home port to make it visible again there,” emphasizes Michael Gruber, Managing Director of Gruber Logistics Germany and responsible for the GST division, highlighting the uniqueness of the transports from Hamburg to the Münsterland, where the special paint job in the classic design was applied, and finally to Frankfurt.

Main attractions of the new conference and visitor center

Wolfgang von Richthofen, project manager for the new conference and visitor center of the Lufthansa Group, adds from the client’s perspective: “The collaboration with Gruber Logistics is an excellent example of how highly motivated, closely, and trustfully the logistics service provider worked with us as a customer, and we were able to coordinate on every detail, so that in the end, the complex and challenging transport was carried out safely and on time, and this almost priceless cargo could reach its destination in Frankfurt. Together with the Junkers Ju 52, the Lockheed Super Star will be one of the main attractions of the new conference and visitor center of the Lufthansa Group here at Frankfurt Airport.”

Transports were usually carried out at night

The transports in mid-July and late August were, as is customary for GST projects, carried out at night to minimize disruptions on the highways and roads used for the general public. Depending on the transported component of the Lockheed L-1649A Super Star, bridge cranes and the so-called telescopic saddle were used on the Gruber Logistics trucks.

Photo: © Gruber Logistics