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German 88mm Anti-Aircraft Gun and Argentine 20mm AA gun




Description

The premier, multi-purpose gun of the second world war, the German 88 was respected and feared wherever it was encountered. A high muzzle velocity, good accuracy and penetrating ammunition, as well as plentiful production meant that this AA gun could double as an anti-tank gun, which could destroy almost any allied armour from considerable range. Although as an AA gun it was inferior to the British 3.7in Mk6, it was available in considerably greater quantity and was much more flexible. This particular example is a Flak18 barrel mounted on a Flak36 cruciform mount, dates from 1939 and fired a 9.4kg shell with a ceiling of 9900 metres - the anti-tank variant could fire a 10.4kg AP shell 17,500m.

Also included in the left-most picture, to the left of the 88, is a twin-barreled 20mm Anti-aircraft gun used by the Argentine Air Force during the Falklands War of 1982. It is a Rheinmetall Rh 202 mk20 and is still used by several NATO forces in the light, mobile AA role.

Location

Imperial War Museum, London, England. October 2003.

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