BR25059 German 88mm Flak 36, Dual Purpose Gun With 3 Man Crew

The 8.8cm Flak gun was possibly one of the most recognized German weapons of World War Two. The gun was developed between the two world wars, and to avoid the restrictions put in place by the Allies on Germany’s military, the first model was given the designation of Flak 18, the year the war ended. The Flak designation stood for Flugabwehrkanone, meaning aircraft defense weapon. With Adolf Hitler’s ascent to power, the newer models of weapons were given dates based on the year of introduction with models of 1936 and 1937 to follow with improvements on the model 1918.

Although designed as an anti-aircraft gun, the single piece barrel of the new gun was set on a complex mounting that allowed the gun to be used either at aerial or ground targets. The versatile carriage allowed the 88 to be fired in a limited anti-tank mode while still mounted on the wheels and its crew could emplace it in as little as two-and-a-half minutes.

Our new model represents a Flak 36 with the improved two-piece barrel for easier replacement of worn liners and an armored shield to provide some protection for the gunners. This model also introduced the new heavier dual wheeled carriage that allowed it to be fired with limited traverse and elevation while still mounted on the wheels and without its outriggers.

The 88 fired three main types of ammunition:
High-explosive (Sprenggranate, Sprgr.) shells with spring-wound or inertia-operated time fuze (up to 30 seconds) for air targets.
High-explosive shells with percussion fuze (impact or 0.11 second delay) for use against fixed targets or ground troops.
Armor-piercing (Panzergranate, Pzgr.) shells with tracer and small base-fuzed bursting charge for use against tanks.