Wirbelwind
Contents
Description
The Flakpanzer IV Wirbelwind is a rank III German Self-Propelled Anti-Aircraft (SPAA) vehicle with a battle rating of 4.7 (AB) and 3.7 (RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.43.
The Flakpanzer IV Wirbelwind is a anti-aircraft platform on a Panzer IV chassis. Armed with quad 20 mm FlaK38 cannons, this machine will absolutely obliterate any enemy plane that's unfortunate enough to cross paths with it. Due to the high fire rate, this machine effectively spews out a river of high explosives. Any airplane unfortunate enough to even touch that stream will at least burst into flames, if not more severe damage. However, they are incredibly easy to spot because of the tracers. While an individual 20 mm shell does not do much damage, it is very hard when using the Wirbelwind to hit an aircraft with only one shell. The sheer number of shells fired can overwhelm enemy aircraft and act like a laser, cutting off pieces and burning others. This tank, considering its BR, has the potential to be a viable anti-tank thanks to having about 60 mm of penetration. If a Sherman is caught from the flank, you can very much ruin their day.
General info
Survivability and armour
The armour surrounding the turret can provide a small amount of protection against plane machine guns, but the amount of armour on its turret is still low and it has an open top so it's best to destroy the attacking plane quickly or move out of the way.
Armour type:
- Rolled homogeneous armour
| Armour | Front | Sides | Rear | Roof |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hull | 80 mm (11°) Front plate 20 mm (72°) Front glacis 80 mm (11-12°) Lower glacis |
30 mm | 30 mm (4-15°) | 10 mm |
| Turret | 16 mm (19-24°) | 16 mm (21-27°) | 16 mm (17-22°) | N/A |
Notes:
- Suspension wheels are 15 mm thick and tracks are 20 mm thick.
- Some track links are placed on the front glacis, adding 15 mm armour at their area.
- Belly armour is 10 mm thick.
Mobility
| Game Mode | Max Speed (km/h) | Weight (tons) | Engine power (horsepower) | Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | Reverse | Stock | Upgraded | Stock | Upgraded | ||
| Arcade | 43 | 8 | 25 | 426 | 572 | 17.04 | 22.88 |
| Realistic | 39 | 8 | 265 | 300 | 10.6 | 12 | |
Modifications and economy
| Mobility | Protection | Firepower | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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If the Wirbelwind is to be used in an anti-air role, mobility modules are not as important as the Sprgr. modification, which gives the vehicle access to a purely high-explosive ammo belt. The Horizontal Drive and Elevation Mechanism modules are also useful.
The PzGr 40 modification gives this vehicle a decent anti-tank capability, although this upgraded ammo belt will still not be able to penetrate heavily-armoured targets.
Armaments
Main armament
| 20 mm FlaK38 (x4) | Turret rotation speed (°/s) | Reloading rate (seconds) | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mode | Capacity (Belt) | Fire rate | Vertical | Horizontal | Stabilizer | Stock | Upgraded | Full | Expert | Aced | Stock | Full | Expert | Aced |
| Arcade | 3,200 (20) | 1,920 | -10°/+90° | ±180° | N/A | 52.84 | 73.13 | 88.80 | 98.20 | 104.47 | 5.20 | 4.60 | 4.24 | 4.00 |
| Realistic | 35.70 | 42.00 | 51.00 | 56.40 | 60.00 | |||||||||
Ammunition
| Penetration statistics | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Penetration in mm @ 90° | |||||
| 10m | 100m | 500m | 1000m | 1500m | 2000m | ||
| PzGr | API-T | 46 | 45 | 33 | 23 | 15 | 11 |
| PzGr 40 | HVAP-T | 64 | 63 | 33 | 23 | 15 | 11 |
| Sprgr. | HEFI-T | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Shell details | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Velocity in m/s |
Projectile Mass in kg |
Fuse delay
in m: |
Fuse sensitivity
in mm: |
Explosive Mass in g (TNT equivalent): |
Normalization At 30° from horizontal: |
Ricochet: | ||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | ||||||||
| PzGr | API-T | 780 | 0.15 | N/A | N/A | N/A | -1° | 47° | 60° | 65° |
| PzGr 40 | HVAP-T | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | |
| Sprgr. | HEFI-T | 900 | 0.12 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 10.2 | +0° | 62° | 69° | 73° |
Belt types
| Belts | Shell composition | Combat usage |
| Default | API-T, HEFI-T (Armour Piercing Incendiary tracer – High Explosive Fragmentation Incendiary tracer) shell |
50% of this belt are useless against tanks or planes. However against other SPAA this belt can reliably take out crew, armament, ammo and engine. Having one belt in reserve does not hurt. |
| Sprgr. | HEFI-T (High Explosive Fragmentation Incendiary tracer) shell |
Versus planes and open combat compartment vehicles. Aircraft will usually take three to six hits. Heavy armoured attackers and bombers may require more though. |
| PzGr | API-T (Armour Piercing Incendiary tracer) shell |
Intermediate usage until the better PzGr 40 can be used. Decent enough versus light tanks and other vehicles from the rear. Due the lack of HE filler underwhelming damage, yet still better than the PzGr 40. |
| PzGr 40 | HVAP-T, API-T (High Velocity Armour Piercing tracer - Armour Piercing Incendiary tracer) shell |
Best penetrating shell of this vehicle. However, the damage effects are very poor. In close combat snipe for modules and crewmember for increased survival rate. Nothing is more annoying than emptying a clip and then to get destroyed in the reload because the enemy gunner survived. Against angled armoured it is not very effective like any other ACPR shell, this is offset by the very high base penetration though. |
Ammo racks
| Full ammo |
1st rack empty |
2nd rack empty |
3rd rack empty |
4th rack empty |
5th rack empty |
6th rack empty |
7th rack empty |
8th rack empty |
Visual discrepancy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 160 | 36 (+128) | 32 (+128) | 24 (+136) | 20 (+140) | 16 (+144) | 12 (+148) | 8 (+152) | 0 (+160) | Yes |
Clips with 20 rounds each (3,200 rounds max)
*Ammunition clips in turret do not empty
Usage in battles
Being the first anti-aircraft of a modified Panzer IV, it is superior to the previous vehicle, the 3.7-cm Flak 36 auf Selbstfahrlafette Sd.Kfz. 6/2 in many areas and has little to none disadvantages. One notable disadvantage would be the lack of penetration of API-T rounds compared to the prior 3,7 cm cannon. It is recommended to stay away from areas of combat as your quad 20's will do practically nothing against the front plates of heavier armoured enemies at its rank, against which its only defence is to blind enemy vehicles with a barrage of fire and hope allies will neutralize the threat. However, firing a stream of HVAP-T rounds into an enemy's side plates can lead to a very fast elimination.
In terms of advantages with the 20 mm autocannons, the quad-mount gives the Wirbelwind the ability to fire a lethal stream of explosive round at any pilot who wanders into your sights.
Anti-Aircraft:
While in tank guns, dispersion (the MOA cone that is used to determine accuracy) is something that is ideally kept to a minimum, this vehicle benefits from it by having shots spread out in a sort of "shotgun" effect, rather than having four separate beams of projectiles. This means that if you can get your lead point right, your odds of shredding aircraft with even a momentary burst is exceptional compared to other types of AA present at the ranks that you will be operating this vehicle. Unfortunately, this rapid-fire ability is hindered by the 20 round magazine capacity for each cannon (for a total of 80 rounds), meaning that it is best to fire 3-5 round bursts to make effective use of what ammunition you have and your magazine size. This is one of the few areas the Wirbelwind is caught lacking, the others being an open crew compartment roof and the fact that your SPAA houses most of its crew in a thinly armoured turret.
Some of these disadvantages with the Wirbelwind can be mitigated by working with another SPAA. Two Wirbelwinds about 30m apart prove a daunting combination to enemy aircraft as their crossed streams maximize their ability to hit and it is very hard to neutralise both in one go. Besides doubling their spotting ability — when one sees the other firing, he or she will be quick to acquire the same target and proceed to severely worsen the aeroplane's day. For this reason, as a matter of etiquette, do not fire into the air if you do not see anyone, so as not to mislead your teammates.
Attack:
It is highly discouraged to use the Wirbelwind aggressively since it can be hard to always get such a favourable engagement (and also it is not the SPAA's job to do so). However, should a player choose such an attack plan, they should consider either being supported by friendly tanks as an additional gun or cover, or flanking wide and make effective use of cover and concealment against thin-skinned vehicles. Use roads less-traveled to remain hidden. No matter which manoeuvre that is used, stay vigilant for enemy aircraft to avoid them spotting and pouncing on the Wirbelwind. Even if equipped with the PzGr 40 belt for anti-tank purposes, eighty 20 mm shells from the Wirbelwind can still mess up an aircraft's flight time.
Once the question of manoeuvring to an advantageous position is answered, the next concern is seeing if the 20 mm have enough firepower to be of any threat to the enemy downrange. While the PzGr 40 APCR belt can be a threat to enemy light tank, lightly armoured tank destroyers like the M18 Hellcat, and also enemy anti-air vehicle, the shell's penetration decreases drastically at range and it's not enough to deal with more heavily armoured vehicles, with the side armour of some medium tanks even being a questionable option. The Wirbelwind's armour is only enough to reduce the damage done by aeroplanes, which makes engaging any sort of tank very dangerous. As such, pick targets wisely and make sure to either take them out within one belt's worth of shells or hold fire to avoid drawing any attention at all.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- High rate of fire (1,800 rounds per minute combined!) allows it to spray shells in an aircraft's path and quickly take them down
- Impressive ammo capacity of 3,200 rounds (~2 minutes of continuous fire)
- Excellent gun elevation and depression allows it to deal with targets regardless of their location
- Powerful guns with various belts: HE belt will devastate planes at close range, while HVAP can go through side armour and quickly knock out the crew of common enemies like M4, T-34 (1942) and Cromwell
- Excellent turret traverse makes it possible to stay on aircraft
- Excellent hull armour for an AA vehicle, can resist low-penetrating tanks like M24, T-34 (1942) and 75 mm M4
- High driving speed able to move from cover to cover with little to no problem
Cons:
- Weak turret protection: open top design makes vehicle vulnerable to strafing runs by enemy aircraft, especially those with .50 cals like the P-40, and the thin armour can get penetrated by other SPAA like M16, ZSD63 and GAZ trucks
- Less effective at firing at distant aircraft
- Reloading rate sub-par compared to other SPAAs at 5.6 seconds
- With continuous firing, a magazine is emptied very fast so strict trigger control is important
- 20 mm shells have difficulty dealing with bombers due to both durability and the typical altitude of targets
- Weak side armour, where an ammo rack is located
History
Development
Development of self-propelled anti-aircraft guns that could keep up with the Panzer formations were not taken into consideration in the early years of World War II due to the Luftwaffe's superiority over the air, but gradual losses in the Luftwaffe and inability to support their flights gave the Allies the upper hand in the air, granting them air superiority. The growing air power of the Allies forced the Germans to develop methods to protect their tank formations from strafing from Allied aircraft, one early design to protect the front line tanks was the Flakpanzer IV Mobelwagen, an interim design as Flakpanzer designs underwent development. SS-Hauptsturmführer Karl Wilhelm Krause of the 12th SS Panzer Division came up with the concept of the Flakpanzer IV Wirbelwind in the summer of 1944. The commander of the 12th SS Panzer Regiment, SS-Obersturmbannführer Max Wünsche, received this and presented it to Hitler, to which he approved for its development.
The design called for use of the proven Panzer IV design. The Wirbelwind uses the Panzer IV hull, but the original Panzer IV turret was removed and replaced with an open-topped nine-sided turret that mounted the anti-aircraft armament. The anti-aircraft armament chosen for the vehicle was a quadruple mounted 2 cm FlaK 38. Though a closed-top turret design was desired, the number of gasses given out by the gun made this impossible for the crew. The production of the Wirbelwind commenced at the Ostbau Werke at Sagan, Silesia. Between 87 to 105 Wirbelwinds were manufactured from May to November 1944, with the discrepancies due to differences in the Wehrmacht service records and Ostbau Werke's production records.
Combat usage
The troops nicknamed the Wirbelwind the "Keksdose" (Biscuit Tin) due to its unique turret shape. The Wirbelwind was equipped with Panzer formations to protect them against low-flying aircraft. During the Battle of Normandy in 1944, flak units in the 12th SS Panzer Division were credited with shooting down 45 allied planes. However, there weren't enough to go around in the front-lines so many Panzer formations were left vulnerable to enemy aircraft due to lack of availability of the Flakpanzers. Not only did their small numbers made their effect on the front minimal, but the 20 mm cannon was also determined to insufficient against the more armoured aircraft that the Allies are fielding. Thus, the design was changed to not use the quadruple 2 cm Flak 38, but instead the 3.7 cm FlaK 43 in the new designation Flakpanzer IV Ostwind. Aside from that the Wirbelwind also served as a ground support role, which it proved very well at with its rapid firing 20 mm cannons.
It was determined that the Flakpanzer IV in the Wirbelwind and Ostwind configurations were to be replaced by the Kugelblitz by early 1945, in an attempt to yet again increase the firepower of the anti-aircraft guns. But this never happened due to the war ending before the Kugelblitz could be deployed.
In-game description
After losing air superiority, the Wehrmacht needed to improve the AA weapons of its armored tank divisions. The Wirbelwind AA vehicle was built on the chassis of the Pz.IV tank. It was the first specialized, self-sufficient means of defending armored tank divisions against enemy aircraft. The Flakvierling 38 installation was placed in an open turret protected by 16 mm of armor plating. Unlike various other self-propelled AA systems, this AA weapon struck a balance between protection, deployment time, and firepower. Between July, 1944 and March, 1945 105 of these mounts were built. They were used on the Western and Eastern Fronts. The first prototype was built on the basis of a remodeled Pz.IV by Krupp-Druckenmuller GmbH Berlin-Mariendorf in May, 1944.
Media
- Skins
- Images
- Videos
See also
Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:
- reference to the series of the vehicles;
- links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.
External links
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- encyclopedia page on the tank;
- other literature.
| Germany anti-aircraft vehicles | |
|---|---|
| Wheeled | Sd.Kfz.222 |
| Half-track | Sd.Kfz.251/21 · Sd.Kfz. 6/2 |
| Flakpanzer IV | Wirbelwind · Ostwind · Ostwind II · Kugelblitz · Zerstörer 45 |
| Other Flakpanzers | Flakpanzer I · Flakpanzer 38 · Flakpanzer 341 |
| Wiesel AWC | Wiesel 1A4 · Ozelot |
| Radar SPAAG | Gepard · Gepard 1A2 |
| Missile SPAA | FlaRakPz 1 · FlaRakRad |
