Flakpanzer

Based on first-hand accounts, original documentation and unpublished images, this is a highly illustrated history of the Flakpanzer in World War II.
As the war progressed, Allied and Soviet forces began to deploy ground-attack aircraft armed with cannons, bombs or rockets to halt German armoured columns. Consequently, field commanders began to demand for their units to be issued with effective armoured anti-aircraft weapons.
Renowned armour expert Thomas Anderson explains how the weapons were first mounted on light trucks and then, more effectively, on the chassis of light, medium or heavy half-tracks before orders were issued for a dedicated armoured Flakpanzer - the 2cm Flakpanzer 38(t) based on the chassis of a Czech-built PzKpfw 38(t). The effectiveness of this type saw the development of four further vehicles on the PzKpfw IV chassis: FlakPz IV Wirbelwind (whirlwind), the 3.7cm FlaK 43 L/50 Ostwind (east wind), the 3.7cm FlaK 43 L/60 Möbelwagen (furniture van) and the 2cm Vierlingsflak 38 L/55. The final stages of the war also saw German field engineers mounting Flak weapons on all types of heavy truck or half-track chassis available.
Drawing on after-action reports, original wartime documents and rare and previously unseen photographs, this is a comprehensive and fully illustrated study of the German development of Flakpanzers throughout World War II.

Thomas Anderson is a specialist on German armoured fighting vehicles of World War II. He regularly contributes to popular modelling and historical magazines, including Military Modelcraft International (UK), Steel Art (Italy), Historia Militar (Spain) and Batailles & Blindes (France). He lives in Germany.