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| 2 cm Flak 30 | |
|---|---|
| Name | 2 cm Flak 30 |
| Origin | Weimar Republic |
| Type | "Light anti-aircraft gun" |
| Service | "1935–1945" |
| Used by | Nazi Germany |
| Wars | Spanish Civil War, Second World War |
| Designer | Rheinmetall-Borsig |
| Design date | 1928–1930 |
| Manufacturer | Rheinmetall, Mauser, Erma-Werke |
| Production date | 1932–1945 |
| Number | "≈20,000" |
| Weight | "≈420 kg (gun), ≈450–1,000 kg (mounts)" |
| Length | "4.08 m" |
| Cartridge | "20×138mmB" |
| Caliber | "20 mm" |
| Action | "Recoil-operated, automatic" |
| Rate | "120 rpm (practical)" |
| Velocity | "900–1,050 m/s" |
| Feed | "20-round box magazine" |
2 cm Flak 30 The 2 cm Flak 30 was a German light anti-aircraft autocannon developed in the interwar period and used extensively by Wehrmacht and Luftwaffe forces during the Second World War. Designed by Rheinmetall-Borsig to provide short-range air defense for ground units, coastal installations, and naval vessels, it saw deployment on land, sea, and armored platforms across theaters including the Western Front, Eastern Front, and North African Campaign. The weapon influenced later designs and spawned multiple variants adopted by Axis and occupied states such as Hungary, Italy, and Bulgaria.
Development began in the late 1920s under the auspices of Reichswehr rearmament programs linked to the Treaty of Versailles revision debates and the rise of the Nazi Party. Rheinmetall adapted concepts from interwar experiments influenced by designers at Mauser and requirements set by the Heer and Luftwaffe technical branches, leading to the 2 cm Flak 30 prototype that entered service trials alongside contemporaries like the Oerlikon 20 mm and the Breda 20/65 Modello 1935. The design emphasized a recoil-operated, air-cooled barrel, simple two-wheeled carriage or pedestal mounts compatible with Panzerkampfwagen chassis and Kriegsmarine mounts for destroyer and torpedo boat classes such as Type 34 destroyer. Engineers balanced portability for units like Fallschirmjäger regiments with integration needs for naval flotillas coordinated by the Kriegsmarine.
The weapon fired the 20×138mmB cartridge developed at Rheinmetall workshops and used a 20-round detachable box magazine related to feed systems found on MG 15 machine guns for handling. Barrel length and muzzle velocity (approximately 900–1,050 m/s depending on ammunition type) placed the Flak 30 between heavier 8.8 cm Flak 18 batteries and light machine guns like the MG 34 in terms of engagement envelope, with an effective ceiling under 2,000 m for aerial targets. The practical rate of fire was limited to about 120 rounds per minute by magazine changes and overheating, despite a theoretical cyclic rate higher than many contemporary guns such as the Vickers S gun and Bofors 40 mm gun. Mounting options included single pedestal mounts for Kriegsmarine boats, the Sd.Ah. carriage for Wehrmacht infantry, and remote ring mounts on armored vehicles like the Sd.Kfz.251 half-track.
Introduced before the Spanish Civil War and deployed during early campaigns like the Invasion of Poland and the Battle of France, the Flak 30 provided mobile short-range air defense against aircraft such as the Supermarine Spitfire, Hawker Hurricane, and Soviet types like the Ilyushin Il-2. On the Eastern Front, units equipped with 2 cm Flak 30 and later improved variants faced attrition from Soviet Air Force operations during battles including Operation Barbarossa and the Battle of Stalingrad. In the Mediterranean and North African Campaign, Flak 30s were mounted on coastal batteries and naval craft engaging aircraft from the Fleet Air Arm and Axis air opponents like the Regia Aeronautica. Performance limitations against high-speed, high-altitude aircraft led to tactical integration with heavier systems such as the 8.8 cm Flak 36 and coordination with air defense control structures like the Fliegerkorps.
Variants included the improved 2 cm Flak 38 featuring a higher cyclic rate developed by Mauser, the 2 cm Flakvierling 38 quadruple mount combining four Flak 38 barrels for anti-tank and anti-aircraft roles used on vehicles like the Wespe and in stationary batteries defending cities like Berlin, and naval adaptations designated for classes including the Type 1936 destroyer and Torpedoboot. Licensed or captured examples were modified by states such as Hungary (where industrial firms like Fegyver- és Gépgyár produced derivatives), Italy which mounted guns on Regia Marina escorts, and Romania which integrated barrels into improvised AA platforms during engagements like the Siege of Odessa. Experimental self-propelled mounts appeared on chassis including the Panzer IV and utility carriers like the Sd.Kfz. 7.
Standard ammunition types comprised high-explosive (HE) rounds, high-explosive incendiary (HEI), armor-piercing (AP), and tracer variants produced in factories such as Polte-Werke and Suhl arsenals. Ballistic performance against fabric-covered and light-armored aircraft used HEI rounds to induce structural failure and incendiary effects similar to munitions employed by the Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Forces in concurrent calibers. Armor-piercing loadings saw limited use against lightly armored vehicles encountered on the Eastern Front, with effective slugs comparable to those used by the Solothurn S 18-1000 in anti-tank trials. Tracer rounds aided visually by crews trained under doctrines from schools like the Flakartillerieschule.
Production was carried out by Rheinmetall, Mauser, and subcontractors including Erma and Borsig, with totals estimated near 20,000 pieces produced through 1945 to supply Wehrmacht, Kriegsmarine, Luftwaffe ground units, and allied forces. Primary users included Nazi Germany, Hungary, Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, and various occupation forces that inherited stocks during campaigns in France and Poland. Captured examples were pressed into service by Soviet Union units and clandestine resistance groups in occupied territories, while postwar evaluations influenced designs by firms such as Oerlikon and later NATO planners in the early Cold War era.
Category:Anti-aircraft guns of Germany Category:20 mm artillery