The German army entered the Second World War with the belief that the 3.7 cm caliber antitank guns would be sufficient to deal with enemy tanks. They quickly realized that this gun was barely adequate, and in many cases, almost useless when dealing with stronger enemy armor. Early tank guns also found themselves in a similar situation. Having to address the situation, and somewhat in desperation, the Germans turned to what they had at hand. Luckily for them, they had a large number of available 8.8 cm (3.46 in) antiaircraft guns that had excellent ballistic properties and proved to be very good at taking out the most wellprotected tanks. Too often, the German ground forces would turn to the 8.8 cm guns to turn the day in their favor in the early stages of the war. After 1942, their role as antitank weapons was somewhat diminished, but they remained in use up to the end of the war.


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An article by Marko P
Narrated by Ashley Shannon
Edited by Krish Wawa
Sound edited by Ashley Shannon