Reviving The JU-52 Aircraft.

 There is precedence for this, For a bit now, if you wanted, you could upgrade the DC-3 with modern engines and Avionics package.

Here is some information on "DC-3 Turboprop conversions"   The "JU-52" has almost a storied history as the DC-3

Ju-52

Credit: Bernd K

Swiss light aircraft developer Junkers Aircraft is proposing reviving development of the Ju-52 trimotor as a potential low-cost transport aircraft. 

The Ju-52NG would reuse the basic configuration of the wartime transport aircraft, using the corrugated duralumin skin, but introducing new-generation avionics and piston engines. 

Revealing the concept at the Aero Expo general aviation event in Friedrichshafen, Germany, at the end of April, Junkers company officials say they want to make use of the aircraft’s proven lightweight design and structure. 

Junkers claims the Ju-52’s design makes it ideal for operations from unprepared landing strips, noting that the aircraft does not require complex systems for refueling and has docile handling characteristics. 

The company is already looking at using the A03 500 hp diesel engine developed by Germany’s RED Aircraft GmbH. 

Junkers believes the aircraft could be particularly sought after for the aerial tourism mission—a role taken on by several of the remaining wartime-era Ju-52s still flying.  

“The new JU-52NG is the aircraft for exactly these flights all over the world,” the company says. “With three engines, and their reliability and agility, these flights are possible even over densely populated areas.” 

The Ju-52 was the primary transport of the German Luftwaffe during World War II. Nearly 5,000 aircraft were produced, including through license production in France and Spain. 

Widnau, Switzerland-based Junkers Aircraft has already revived several other pre-World War II-era Junkers designs for the general aviation market. They include the A50 tandem-seat sports aircraft, which the original Junkers first flew in 1929. 

New-build A50s feature a Garmin avionics suite, Rotax piston engine and parachute recovery system. The company is also planning to produce a side-by-side seater aircraft called the A60. 

The company has also produced a replica of the F13 monoplane, which was the world’s first all-metal transport aircraft when it flew in 1919.