World War II Database

Country of Origin	Germany
Type	Anti-Aircraft Gun
Caliber	20.000 mm
Length	4,080.000 mm
Barrel Length	1,300.000 mm
Weight	450.000 kg
Rate of Fire	180 rounds/min
Ceiling	2,200 m
Muzzle Velocity	900 m/s

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

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In Apr 1934, the Germany Navy adopted the 2-centimeter C/30 gun as its standard anti-aircraft weapons. During the Spanish Civil War, these guns were experimentally mounted on a few He 112 aircraft, and they proved to be effective aerial anti-tank weapons. In the late 1930s, the armament manufacturer Rheinmetall-Borsig began to produce a version for German Army use, designating these weapons as 2 cm Flugabwehrkanone 30, or FlaK 30. Shortly after, the variant FlaK 38 began production, which increased the firing rate from 120 rounds per minute to 220; FlaK 38 became the standard German Army anti-aircraft guns in 1939. The German Navy also adopted the new variant design, as C/38.

The armament manufacturer Mauser was contracted to produce a lighter version of FlaK 38 guns for use by mountain troops. The 2 cm Gebirgsflak 38. They were smaller and lighter than the standard FlaK 38 guns, and were designed to be able to be broken down to several pieces for easy transport over difficult terrain. The carriage did not allow these mountain anti-aircraft guns to be towed. A special tripod was designed to allow them to fire from uneven ground. They entered service in 1942.

To address the concern that FlaK 38 anti-aircraft guns had an inferior firing rate against modern aircraft, Rheinmetall-Borsig developed a quadruple mount to address this shortcoming; it was designated 2 cm Flakvierling 38. Production began in Mar 1940 by Mauser. In a seated position, the main gunners fired their Flakvierling 38 mounts, in automatic or semi-automatic modes, with two foot pedals. By increasing the number of barrels, the firing rate was increased accordingly. Many Flakvierling 38 mounts were deployed on various vehicles. Once again, the same weapon was also produced for German Navy use.

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Last Major Revision: Dec 2010

2 cm Flugabwehrkanone/Gebirgsflak/Flakvierling 38 Anti-Aircraft Gun Interactive Map

Photographs

See all 61 photographs of 2 cm Flugabwehrkanone/Gebirgsflak/Flakvierling 38 Anti-Aircraft Gun

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