| 8,8cm K-Flak L/45 Cartridge Casing | ||
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| A close-up of the head stamping on the base. Marked: PATRONENFABRIK (cartridge factory) KARLSRUHE manufactured " AUG 1917" with the standard twin flaming bombs for this manufacturer. "34" is the lot number of that batch of cases which were made during 1917, Sp255 is the control/inspection mark of the manufacturer Patronenfabrik Karlsruhe. Note that unfortunately the primer has been removed and the threads have been drilled to make the casing inert to meet some idiotic bureaucratic regulation. Like I am going to reload this cartridge casing and tow my 8,8cm K-Flak downtown and hold up a liquor store? | ||
| 8,8cm K-Flak L/45 | ||
 Photo courtesy Landships | ||
| In 1913 Krupp introduced the 8,8cm SK L/45 to be mounted on all Kaiserliche-Marine (German Navy) capital ships as an anti-torpedo boat weapon. It also turned out to be a superb anti-aircraft weapon. In 1916 the firms of Krupp and Ehrhardt (Rheinmetall) were given contracts to develop mobile heavy anti-aircraft cannons for use by the army. Both firms fielded prototypes in the spring of 1917 based upon the highly successful Marine 8,8cm SK L/45. Both Krupp and Rheinmetall produced 8,8cm Flak; 100 of the 8,8cm guns were built by Krupp and approximately 60 by Rheinmetall. Both cannons were pedestal mounted on a 4-wheeled trailer and were to be towed by heavy trucks and therefore designated K-Flak (K: Kraftwagen = vehicle). The Flak turned out to be a superb anti-aircraft weapon and became most famous in WWII as the dreaded "Eighty-Eight" which accounted for countless Allied aircraft and armoured vehicles. | ||
 Photo courtesy Brett Butterworth Photo Archives | ||
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