The name applies to a series of related guns, the first one officially called the 8.8 cm Flak 18, the improved 8.8 cm Flak 36, and later the 8.8 cm Flak 37.[N 1] Flak is a contraction of German Flugzeugabwehrkanone meaning "aircraft-defense cannon", the original purpose of the weapon. In English, "flak" became a generic term for ground anti-aircraft fire. In informal use, the guns were universally known as the Acht-acht ("eight-eight") by Germans and the "eighty-eight" by the Allies.[
8.8 cm Flak 18/36/37/41-V
2 comments:
When I visited the WW2 museum in Avranches (Normandy) in c1996 they had three slightly tatty ‘88s for sale. About £3,500 each as I recall. No wheels though, which I felt might be too much of a challenge for a small Vauxhall Astra...
I'm surprised the Tank Museum in the UK hasn't snatched at least one of them up.
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