One of the most well-known guns of World War II was the 8.8 cm Flak 36 anti-aircraft gun, often referred to as the “Eighty-eight” or German “Acht-acht“. It had its origins in World War 1, but the versions that saw action during WW2 were developed in the 1920’s and 30’s. During the Spanish Civil War, it was discovered that the gun was very effective against vehicles, tanks and other ground targets. It was mobile, but required an Sd.Kfz.7 half-track tractor to pull it. It could fire a 9.4 kilo grenade to an altitude of 9900 meters, posing a serious threat to Allied bombers. Used as an anti-tank gun, it could knock out most tanks at a range of up to 2 kilometers. The 8.8 cm gun was also the basis for the main gun of the Tiger tank, one of the most feared tanks of World War II. In the photo, eight of the 11-man crew are visible. Flak batteries were operated by the Luftwaffe, and the stationary batteries defending German cities were often crewed by boys aged 15-16 years old. One of many ironies of the war was that many of the crews serving these powerful guns weren’t old enough to buy a beer.
Source :
Björn Hellqvist photo collection
https://ww2inphotos.wordpress.com/2017/07/31/acht-acht/
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