I find it puzzling/irritating/non-credible that
- nobody forced the aircraft on LH, they acquired it themselves in the early Eighties. Its operation was their own idea, and the operating foundation/trust (DLBS) was only founded afterwards,
- if they claim as a reason that a financially viable operation is not possible, then it took them more than 30 years to realize this;
- the statement in the link to NDR seems to convey the impression that LH is trying to rid themselves of any direct association with the aircraft. Nonetheless, (1) it appears in their fleet listing in their onboard-magazine, (2) much of the junk in their "World Shop", such as watches, suitcases, jackets etc., is "Ju 52" labelled/inspired, (3) it carries their logo, (4) it's flown by LH aircrew, and (5) when I flew it in some 10 years ago from Munich Airport, it was with an LH flight number and a LH boarding pass. They've used it thoroughly as a LH billboard!
According to a post in a German forum, the 2018 season was cut short by a cracked engine bearer, and it is currently in a hangar in Munich.
I suspect that the real reasons are
- corporate concern for bad press after the Ju Air accident, and/or
- lack of trust/interest/sympathy/patience with the operator, DLBS, after the massive cost overruns with the Constellation project (there are also statements on various Internet sources of embezzlement and misuse of funds for that project in the USA).