WW2 Weapon the Actually US Feared the Most

Ғылым және технология

Thundering through World War 2's war-torn skies, the German Flak 18, an 88-millimeter anti-aircraft cannon, marked its dominance against Allied Spitfires and Mustangs. As it evolved into the Flak 36 and then the formidable Flak 88, its 17-pound shells, propelled at over 900 meters per second, painted the skies with black plumes of smoke. Every explosion hurling shrapnel over 200 yards.
This evolution extended its reach down from the skies and onto ground targets, devastating tanks like the Sherman and T-34 and crushing fortifications from a staggering 1.5 miles away.
On battlefields from North Africa's deserts to Russia's icy fronts, the Flak 88, with its long imposing barrel, was adapted for use aboard armored vehicles such as the Elefant, Jagdpanthe, and even the menacing King Tiger tank. Starting as an Anti-Aircraft weapon, it repelled the Allies' relentless aerial and ground assaults as one of the Third Reich’s most effective weapons.

Пікірлер: 166

  • @henryblanton6992
    @henryblanton69923 ай бұрын

    My father Served with the 66th Black Panther Infantry Division in France during World War Two. We were watching the Movie Patton one evening. Shortly after the beginning of the movie during the Scene where General Bradley is bringing General Patton up to speed about the US Army’s Defeat at Kasserine Pass he mentioned the 88mm Duel Purpose Gun. I asked my Father about the 88mm; he said that the Typical German 88mm Gunners were so good; if you gave them 3 rounds they could put the 2d round in your Hip Pocket. When I asked him How good were the Germans he paused for a moment, then replied “They were the Best.“

  • @manager7186

    @manager7186

    2 ай бұрын

    who won?

  • @Daniel-du7pv

    @Daniel-du7pv

    2 ай бұрын

    @@manager7186 who faced 3 empires virtually alone?

  • @siegfriedbartel7122

    @siegfriedbartel7122

    Ай бұрын

    ​@@manager7186 you missed the point....the Allies obviously won because of absolute superiority of all material, men and finances....outmatched and outnumbered in all departments...that does not answer the question about the quality of the actual troops, personnel or soldiers...

  • @andrewmeitner4818
    @andrewmeitner48183 ай бұрын

    My dad was a U.S. soldier in a tank destroyer battalion and he talked about the 88 with much respect

  • @lewisbenzie845
    @lewisbenzie8453 ай бұрын

    "The One WW2 Weapon the Actually US Feared the Most" - Yoda

  • @jak_w515

    @jak_w515

    3 ай бұрын

    What you did there I saw

  • @Proteus6684

    @Proteus6684

    3 ай бұрын

    Poor grammar it is

  • @rogergoodman8665

    @rogergoodman8665

    3 ай бұрын

    A beautiful day it will be when young Mr. Dark discovers editing of mediocre videos. 😂

  • @jackieeastom8758

    @jackieeastom8758

    3 ай бұрын

    Yet,here y’all are!

  • @jnb894

    @jnb894

    3 ай бұрын

    Narrating way too fast he is. Shit is he about to take in is pants?

  • @Lusor_Yolo
    @Lusor_Yolo3 ай бұрын

    Also called the "Anti - Everything" gun

  • @jefftodd621
    @jefftodd6213 ай бұрын

    I met a British Army tanker while visiting Monte Cassino; he said that the 88s were more like rifles - the germans would pull the rigeer and something blew up. no warning at all

  • @olddog103

    @olddog103

    3 ай бұрын

    MY DAD ,10th MOUNTAIN DIV. SAID AFTER THEY WERE SHELLED BY THE 88s FOR DAYS, THEY HAD TO HOLD ON THE PACK SADDLES OF THE MULES, BECAUSE A LOT OF THEM COULDNT WALK

  • @andthenhedead6076

    @andthenhedead6076

    2 ай бұрын

    that’s how all guns work?

  • @opoxious1592
    @opoxious15923 ай бұрын

    Notice the rings on the barrel of the 88 at the start of the video. Every ring represents a kill. When you watch closely, you can even see that the rings are designated with the U.S airforce star, and the British symbol.

  • @MrRoscojones1
    @MrRoscojones13 ай бұрын

    My Grandfather was at Omaha Beach and he fought in the Bulge. The one thing that he would always say about the war was Those German 88’s. He didn’t really talk about the war that much.

  • @davidlee7722
    @davidlee77223 ай бұрын

    My uncle was in operation Torch during WW2. Before he died he confirmed exactly the headline on this video.

  • @Thorsten369
    @Thorsten3693 ай бұрын

    This is what i call: German Engineering at it best.

  • @evilfingers4302
    @evilfingers43023 ай бұрын

    There was also a naval version of the 88, and was used a Deck Gun on larger U-Boats such as the Type VII U-Boat.

  • @partygrove5321

    @partygrove5321

    3 ай бұрын

    I thought they mounted 105mm guns on subs.

  • @partygrove5321

    @partygrove5321

    3 ай бұрын

    OK @@evilfingers4302

  • @dawyrm1

    @dawyrm1

    3 ай бұрын

    The 88mm SK C/35 gun used on type VII U-boats was a completely different gun with no relation to the 88mm flak-guns.

  • @dawyrm1

    @dawyrm1

    3 ай бұрын

    ​@@partygrove5321The larger Type-IX used the 105mm. The Type-VII used 88mm

  • @evilfingers4302

    @evilfingers4302

    3 ай бұрын

    @@dawyrm1 what part of "Naval Version of the 88" do you not understand?

  • @dirty_doxer6868
    @dirty_doxer68683 ай бұрын

    way ahead of its time

  • @Wooargh

    @Wooargh

    3 ай бұрын

    americans were always more advanced

  • @theowlfromduolingo7982

    @theowlfromduolingo7982

    3 ай бұрын

    @@WooarghHow? Look at the German tanks especially in the beginning of the 1940s, look at the stg44, MG34 and MG42, look at the ME262, look at the V1 and V2

  • @dariusjacobi4573

    @dariusjacobi4573

    3 ай бұрын

    @@Wooargh I m not defending German technical superiority, I m stating the f**ing obvious.

  • @craighaldane-gy3mk

    @craighaldane-gy3mk

    3 ай бұрын

    @@dariusjacobi4573 meh I wouldn't agree there.. What is so obvious I'm missing it.

  • @viki5563

    @viki5563

    3 ай бұрын

    @@theowlfromduolingo7982 how were the german tanks amazing in 1940? (since thats what i believe you are implying here) do you believe that the tiger 1 tanks is the best of the whole war?

  • @minuteman2547
    @minuteman25473 ай бұрын

    Krup, bringing good coffee to a gas station near you.

  • @thenevadadesertrat2713

    @thenevadadesertrat2713

    3 ай бұрын

    Itis a different Krup altogether. I am Las Vegas. Vera Krup lived on a ranch in Red rock canyon just outside of town. That Krup she had married and divorced was a coffee seller/importer etc. Filthy rich. Vera was a retired actress and beauty queen. I have ben to thatb ranch many times. It now is a state park.

  • @paulmorissette5863
    @paulmorissette58633 ай бұрын

    The USAF museum in Dayton, OH actually has one, a German 88, on display.

  • @donramonramirez5141
    @donramonramirez51413 ай бұрын

    En ese calibre ( 88 mm ) creo que fue el mejor cañon de la 2GM : el Flak 88. 👌😎🇦🇷

  • @carlnapp4412
    @carlnapp44123 ай бұрын

    The 88mm gun on the King Tiger, the Elephant or the Pak 43 was an even more powerful version of the Flak 36.

  • @anthonyburke5656
    @anthonyburke56562 ай бұрын

    Ah, the Flak 88, the eater of hands. It ate hands of crew loading it with ease.

  • @Gallagherfreak100
    @Gallagherfreak1003 ай бұрын

    My father fought with the US 84th infantry division in Luxembourg, Belgium, and Germany. He told me they would be taking cover in fox holes in a pine forest, during the battle of the bulge. The Germans would fire their 88's with time delay fuses, so, the shells would explode at tree top level. This showered the men in the foxholes with shrapnel, and splinters of wood during the bombardment. This proved to be very bad for morale, as there was no cover for this sort of attack.

  • @djharto4917
    @djharto49173 ай бұрын

    The anti everything gun as one USA veteran summed it up.

  • @chuckliebenauer3656
    @chuckliebenauer36563 ай бұрын

    The 88 was the anti tank gun the Russians feared on the east front. But due to the heavy bombing of the fatherland they were withdrawn to be used in Germany and their troops on the suffered accordingly.

  • @frasermitchell9183
    @frasermitchell91833 ай бұрын

    The British 3.7" anti-aircraft gun in WW2 was actually superior to the German 88mm in the anti-aircraft role, firing a larger shell to a higher ceiling, but unlike the 88mm was not suitable for anti-tank use, so the 88mm was a more versatile gun. It may be of interest to know that women were taken on to man antiaircraft batteries in an auxiliary role such as spotting, range finding, and predicting. I had a boss once, who had been in anti-aricraft in WW2. He told us that all the ammunition had to be chamber-tested before being stored in the ready-use magazines, to make sure no jams occurred in action.

  • @phann860

    @phann860

    3 ай бұрын

    Only because no effort was made to adapt it to surface use by the British.

  • @simonrooney7942

    @simonrooney7942

    3 ай бұрын

    @@phann860became they had no ideas

  • @kalenderquantentunnel9411

    @kalenderquantentunnel9411

    3 ай бұрын

    Talking abou the anti-aircraft role the german flak also increased the caliber of their stationary guns during the war and ended up with 12,8 cm twin-guns.

  • @ccmogs5757
    @ccmogs57572 ай бұрын

    My Grandfather served in the RA 72 LAA (Bofors) & never said much about his combat time but he also did mention the 88 😵

  • @davidrudd9846
    @davidrudd98463 ай бұрын

    From what I've read the Germans had shortages of the 88 and even mobile 88s which they never really able to solve

  • @bjornsmith9431

    @bjornsmith9431

    3 ай бұрын

    Allied soldiers always refer to every German artillery has flak 88mm, even PAK 40 75mm anti tank gun is an flak 88 mm gun, the same with German Tanks every tank is a Tiger tank when German produce 1950 Tiger Tanks of all types.

  • @WHJeffB

    @WHJeffB

    3 ай бұрын

    @@bjornsmith9431 Exactly...

  • @alcapone9550

    @alcapone9550

    3 ай бұрын

    Germans had shortages of almost everything during the war and too many different prototypes/projects, such as the ridiculous Maus tank.

  • @bjornsmith9431

    @bjornsmith9431

    3 ай бұрын

    @alcapone9550 that why they used capture Russian, Italian, Dutch, Norwesian, French, Polish and Belgium equipment.

  • @alcapone9550

    @alcapone9550

    3 ай бұрын

    @@bjornsmith9431 of course, just like any other army did it. As the Chinese Sun Tzu once said: One enemy truckload is equivalent to four of your own😅

  • @personperson3101
    @personperson31012 ай бұрын

    Wonderful title.

  • @auro1986
    @auro19863 ай бұрын

    if it had proximity fuse shells

  • @phann860

    @phann860

    3 ай бұрын

    Thankfully not.

  • @Howie262

    @Howie262

    3 ай бұрын

    Agreed but In a direct fire role proxy fuzes are overrated and aren't cost effective. It’s much cheaper to range a target and air burst based on time/rotation delay which is done arguably just as fast. That’s why time delay is still used today on recoilless rifles or grenade launchers. For AA or indirect fire artillery it makes sense but for some reason luftwaffle high command thought ambush style flak was just as good or better to proxy.

  • @phann860

    @phann860

    3 ай бұрын

    @@Howie262 Basically a cost benefit analysis. Agreed, proximity fuses against aircraft are useful but pointless against ground targets such as Infantry.

  • @iiwidowla99lambo65
    @iiwidowla99lambo653 ай бұрын

    The 88 was feared by almost every Allied soldier in the Second World War especially a tanker , the 88mm could punch through anything , even worse the pak 43 on the tiger 2 and Jagdpanther

  • @andthenhedead6076

    @andthenhedead6076

    2 ай бұрын

    the tiger 2 had a 88mm main gun but the casing was larger then the normal 88

  • @iiwidowla99lambo65

    @iiwidowla99lambo65

    2 ай бұрын

    @@andthenhedead6076 Yeah the pak 43 was the 88 but with a more powerful punch and penetration I forgot to add that.

  • @WHJeffB
    @WHJeffB3 ай бұрын

    To quote a comment on another Flak88 video... "Ah... The dreaded German "anti-everything" gun.".

  • @davey7452
    @davey74523 ай бұрын

    After the war Spain and Yugoslavia continued to use it till about 1990 when both countries phased it out.

  • @ArKay-nj2nh
    @ArKay-nj2nh3 ай бұрын

    Great English you have there in your Title.

  • @cheriefsadeksadek2108

    @cheriefsadeksadek2108

    3 ай бұрын

    Mistakes were made

  • @Damianmarleyfan
    @Damianmarleyfan2 ай бұрын

    My grandpa was a t4 telecommunications specialist in the 136th AAA division so im sure he would have had an opinion on these. Not sure how the Ma deuce compares

  • @r.ladaria135
    @r.ladaria1353 ай бұрын

    The 88 became an improvised AT gun in the Ebro Battle in late 1938 .

  • @partygrove5321
    @partygrove53213 ай бұрын

    I don't think the fighters were as scared of 88s as much as the bigger and slower bombers.

  • @ascaye
    @ascaye2 ай бұрын

    What the heck kind of title is that? and where do I get a secret decoder ring to figure this out?

  • @dgerdi
    @dgerdi3 ай бұрын

    Imagine a gun, you can use as light field howitzer, an AA gun and an Anti-Tank gun. I feel sorry for the receiving end. I can’t even imagine the suffering the soviet had with these Berlin Flag Towers. 88 in all directions and protected by lots of concrete.

  • @ianray8823
    @ianray88233 ай бұрын

    Flak guy: *hits blunt* it could be anti infantry Other flak guy: wait what Flak guy: yeah same booming just like on the ground

  • @THB1945
    @THB19453 ай бұрын

    The thumbnail equipment is called Flak88 in war thunder

  • @Niever

    @Niever

    3 ай бұрын

    The thumbnail is just a German loading a shell that's circled and has an arrow. Main reason I don't watch this crap.

  • @THB1945

    @THB1945

    3 ай бұрын

    @@Niever Bro you are here late. The original thumbnail is the Flak88 in war thunder

  • @seventhson27
    @seventhson273 ай бұрын

    The Allies feared the 88, but not nearly as much as the Germans feared the "Long Tom."

  • @bluemouse5039
    @bluemouse50392 ай бұрын

    The British and U.S had anti aircraft guns that were ballistically similar or even better than the German 88mm in their arsenals and could have used them in a dual role against Tanks and aircraft just like the Germans but chose not to do it because of their doctrine of how to deploy or use their anti aircraft gun, they looked at AA guns as the most use protecting rear areas or bases against air attack

  • @nickschaefer3306
    @nickschaefer33063 ай бұрын

    thumbnail typo?

  • @Niever

    @Niever

    3 ай бұрын

    Read wrong you may have.

  • @Explosionsarecooler69
    @Explosionsarecooler693 ай бұрын

    I had a stroke reading the title

  • @scottbrady6240
    @scottbrady624021 күн бұрын

    SURPRISE EVERYONE ITS YOUR MOM AFTER TACO TUESDAY

  • @Andrew-df1dr
    @Andrew-df1dr3 ай бұрын

    How many planes did they shoot down? Would it have been wiser to send all the 88s to the various fronts instead of using them in the AA role?

  • @pcka12
    @pcka123 ай бұрын

    The 11 Hussars are recorded as losing 11 tanks at Hellfire Pass & these were likely the lightweight Cruiser tanks & not the well armoured Matilda 2 infantry tank!

  • @samuelgordino

    @samuelgordino

    3 ай бұрын

    You are probably right but the armour in the Matilda II won't make any difference against 88.

  • @pcka12

    @pcka12

    3 ай бұрын

    @@samuelgordino the front of Matilda 2 was reasonably well armoured, but no tank at that time was proof against an anti aircraft gun & the British AA guns (QF 3.7 inch) of the period packed an even bigger punch than the 88!

  • @daystatesniper01
    @daystatesniper013 ай бұрын

    What let the Germans down was all branches of their forces that used the 88 cal shell had different shells ,they could not be used across the board ie AA shells no good on u boats etc'

  • @chonkimus4178
    @chonkimus41783 ай бұрын

    Grammar died for the title

  • @timgarland5949
    @timgarland59493 ай бұрын

    You might want to edit the title.

  • @GL-iy7mj
    @GL-iy7mj3 ай бұрын

    the title of this video is one of the english of all time

  • @AndrewCampbell-ut6jk
    @AndrewCampbell-ut6jk3 ай бұрын

    You should send the person that writes your captions back to school to learn how a sentence is constructed so as to make sense.

  • @ronaldwhite1730
    @ronaldwhite17303 ай бұрын

    thank you . ( 2024 / Feb / 12 )

  • @Everything_I_Like.
    @Everything_I_Like.3 ай бұрын

    why is everybody on youtube just dyslexic now

  • @abandonallhope7646
    @abandonallhope76463 ай бұрын

    *looks at arrow* Yes, that is a face

  • @jarthuroriginal
    @jarthuroriginal3 ай бұрын

    So, how come Germany lost WW2?

  • @jimparsons6803
    @jimparsons68033 ай бұрын

    Amazing engineering and science. How many shells and guns did the Nazis make? How about rifle shells? Each with their own guns, own factories and so on. I think that the Allies had 5 rifle shells and guns? Some rifles should shoot interchangeable shells.

  • @danpetrescu4915
    @danpetrescu49153 ай бұрын

    good guy sweeden . why then consider they was neutral ?

  • @CriminalOverPoweringSocietyCOP
    @CriminalOverPoweringSocietyCOP3 ай бұрын

    !!!! I have a question. !!!!!!America allegedly doesn’t need strategic nuclear weapons due to the pin point accuracy of guided weapons, disregarding the deterrent, guided bombs, a German WW2 invention therefore what would had been the result had Nazi Germany scaled the production of guided bombs, and long range bombers. If the nuclear bomb is not needed outside MAD? Then had Germans scaled their guided missiles to mass production then a nuke wouldn’t even be needed and technically rather this will support, or dispel the need for a nuke,

  • @dieterhrabak4947

    @dieterhrabak4947

    3 ай бұрын

    Nuke stays as the last trump card an ace in the sleeves kinda. prevents the other parties pulling any Johnny Rambo esque of rampage.. As well as a good threatening tool against an opponent that is still not able to get their hands on one..

  • @andthenhedead6076

    @andthenhedead6076

    2 ай бұрын

    no america was also working on guided weapons Germany could never afford to mass produce guided weapons even if they did guided weapons are not better then nukes I mean even in the 50s and 60s to the modern day everyone has guided weapons and nukes are still on top

  • @bawlzswack
    @bawlzswack3 ай бұрын

    What is with your video title my dude.

  • @BillyTheBigKid82
    @BillyTheBigKid823 ай бұрын

    The actually US? What the fuck? xD

  • @railgap
    @railgap3 ай бұрын

    the actually US feared wut

  • @jmbaka007
    @jmbaka0072 ай бұрын

    Every time I see Nazi's weapons I don't understand how they lost the war.

  • @klaubihd6393
    @klaubihd63933 ай бұрын

    Good ol´ anti everything gun

  • @HDSME
    @HDSME3 ай бұрын

    I think they made like 20 00

  • @JOECURR1488
    @JOECURR14883 ай бұрын

    THE TRUTH. 😎🇮🇱😯🕶🇺🇸 IS THE GREATEST WEAPON.

  • @TheTemplarnight
    @TheTemplarnight3 ай бұрын

    did the person writing the title have a stroke, wtf is that. "Weapon the actually US Feared the most" Bruh proof read your stuff lol.

  • @robinmcewan8473
    @robinmcewan84733 ай бұрын

    US actually ….

  • @martint8986
    @martint89863 ай бұрын

    Your title is wrong 🫠

  • @robhill4352

    @robhill4352

    3 ай бұрын

    What part?

  • @rogergoodman8665

    @rogergoodman8665

    3 ай бұрын

    He was hoping the giant red circle would distract people from noticing!😂

  • @karylhogan5758
    @karylhogan57583 ай бұрын

    It’s accuracy was something mad like 99% hit at a mile.. It’s shell often passed right thru a tank..

  • @gnomechild3248

    @gnomechild3248

    3 ай бұрын

    Ehh, that all depends. Accuracy based off what? Good luck penning through the front armor and engine all in one shot.

  • @karylhogan5758

    @karylhogan5758

    3 ай бұрын

    @@gnomechild3248 I just quote what veterans from the war said..💁

  • @opoxious1592

    @opoxious1592

    3 ай бұрын

    There are even records about a 88 shell indeed passed right thru a tank, but just could keep on driving because it did not damage the crew or any critical parts of the tank. So in this case the 88 gave the Sherman tank a free "ventilation hole". But i believe that this was in the very beginning, when the shells did not have anti-tank capabilties. Normally the shell exploded when a desiginated height was set. If i'm not mistaken they were started to make shells that were also have a slower trajectory, and a different fuse to make sure that the shell explodes in the tank. Not when the shell has already "left the building" and explodeds afterwards.

  • @gnomechild3248

    @gnomechild3248

    3 ай бұрын

    @@karylhogan5758 Yeah, it's not wrong. the cannons very accurate, and it can potentially go right through the sides of Sherman's like a hot knife through butter. But so will the German 75's, and even allied 75's, 76's, etc will go right through both of a panzer IVs sides. Although like previous commenter mentioned there are APHE shells that are designed to detonate inside the tank. I'm pretty sure Germany only used APHE meaning it would blow up before penning through the other side. But if they used APCR it would go right through. APCR was commonly used by the allies, which lacked explosive, and was just a penetrator. The cannons are all accurate as hell too, if the range is proper.

  • @pierce7992

    @pierce7992

    3 ай бұрын

    ​@@gnomechild3248the accuracy came from the germans that used it they used math to get hits it had a 99% hit chance

  • @TheMcC07
    @TheMcC07Ай бұрын

    Nice word salad for a title...

  • @Mrgunsngear
    @Mrgunsngear3 ай бұрын

    🇺🇸

  • @Volker109
    @Volker1093 ай бұрын

    does anyone know if the 88 is ukraine? lol

  • @jodo7814
    @jodo78143 ай бұрын

    Grammar. All about the volume for money eh?

  • @anderwmarcell9503
    @anderwmarcell95033 ай бұрын

    All.this special weapons, yet the Germans lost.

  • @AdmRose

    @AdmRose

    3 ай бұрын

    In the end, quantity beats quality everytime.

  • @opoxious1592

    @opoxious1592

    3 ай бұрын

    @@AdmRose It had also a lot to do with making the wrong decisions on the top level of the Nazi leadership

  • @andthenhedead6076

    @andthenhedead6076

    2 ай бұрын

    @@AdmRosebut the Germany didn’t have quality or quantity most of the well performing german tanks where inferior to there counter parts

  • @hackedbyBLAGH
    @hackedbyBLAGH3 ай бұрын

    Botched title

  • @HayMaker-tv2dm
    @HayMaker-tv2dm3 ай бұрын

    Europe is worst than it was in WW 2 in the military industrial complex capacity, we have the 105mm light howitzer and the big jump to the 155mm. Why not a similar stratagy used by the Germany, Europe needs a light powerful howitzer that have multi roles like AA flak, tank destruction and troop support for pounding enemy positions, the russians understand well because they saw their effectiveness, they have a 60mm, 90mm, 122mm, 130mm, 152.4mm, 203mm and what NATO, Europe have nothing we need a intermidiate cannon in the 127mm range a light weight fast cannon like the Oto Melara 76mm but in a carriage mode for rapid fire or a 88mm long calibres and lighter then old guns and a brand new 140mm naval cannon for engaging a wide range of targets and pack a real punch i dont now why European countries are waiting, Europe should be at full steam like full wartime prodution and changing the military industrial complex in Europe some key industries nationalized so Europe can get the hardware they needed for a honest and cheaper price than those private hiper inflated prices, specialy from America, Europe really cares about defence the politicians are the ones who dont want to do their part, poland is a example. Europe could be a major military power like the USA with half of the budget

  • @superwout
    @superwout3 ай бұрын

    Failure again you yet grammar have

  • @martyincanuckistan3635

    @martyincanuckistan3635

    3 ай бұрын

    Luckily we are here for a video not a title…..

  • @kennethabbott3856
    @kennethabbott38562 ай бұрын

    Stupid title.

  • @Hoplasa
    @Hoplasa2 ай бұрын

    what the fuck is that title?!

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