Flakpanzer 38
Contents
Description
The Flakpanzer 38, 2 cm, Pz.Fgst.38 (t) Sf. is a rank I German self-propelled anti-aircraft gun
with a battle rating of 2.0 (AB) and 1.7 (RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.47 "Big Guns".
General info
Survivability and armour
The Flakpanzer 38(t) Gepard has thin but highly sloped front armour that resists 7-8 mm machine bullets and even 12.7 mm machine gun rounds. The gun shield will shrug off smaller rifle-calibre rounds but not 12.7 mm bullets and larger. Like its predecessor, the Flakpanzer I, it maintains a crew of two and is also hull-breakable.
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 | 46 | 7 | 9.8 | 213 | 286 | 21.73 | 29.18 |
| Realistic | 43 | 7 | 133 | 150 | 13.57 | 15.31 | |
Top speed and power-to-weight ratio are much higher than the Flakpanzer I, topping out at 46 km/h forward, -6 km/h backwards, and a power-to-weight ratio in realistic and simulator battles of 15.31 hp/ton.
Armaments
Main armament
The gun is the same as its predecessor, the FlaK 38. It has sufficient HE shells for planes, 46 mm penetration AP-I, and 64 mm penetration APCR. The belt size is identical. Reload between clips is long. The gun can pen most things the tank encounters, barring Valentines, Matildas, B1 bis, B1 ter, and T-28E.
| 20 mm FlaK38 | 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 | 320 (20) | 480 | -10°/+87° | ±180° | N/A | 30.82 | 42.66 | 51.79 | 57.28 | 60.94 | 3.90 | 3.45 | 3.18 | 3.00 |
| Realistic | 20.83 | 24.50 | 29.75 | 32.90 | 35.00 | |||||||||
Ammunition
| Penetration statistics | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm) | |||||
| 10 m | 100 m | 500 m | 1,000 m | 1,500 m | 2,000 m | |
| Default | 36 | 34 | 26 | 19 | 14 | 10 |
| Sprgr. | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| PzGr | 36 | 34 | 26 | 19 | 14 | 10 |
| PzGr 40 | 64 | 63 | 26 | 19 | 14 | 10 |
Ammo Racks
Usage in battles
The Flakpanzer 38 is an even better flanker and support unit than the Flakpanzer I and should be used in the same way. Flank around, engage tanks mainly, shoot planes when they aren't aware of you.
Just like the Flakpanzer I, avoid heavily armoured opposition, especially frontally. You can barely pen B1 bis, M3 Lee variations, and T-28Es on the side, but cannot pen Valentines, Matildas, or B1 ters from much of any side.
Modules
| Tier | Mobility | Protection | Firepower | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | Tracks | Parts | Horizontal Drive | Sprgr. | |
| II | Suspension | Brake System | FPE | Adjustment of Fire | PzGr |
| III | Filters | Crew Replrenishment | Elevation Mechanism | ||
| IV | Transmission | Engine | Artillery Support | PzGr 40 | |
For this vehicle, two very important modifications to keep an eye out for are the Sprgr. and PzGr 40 ammo belts. The first provides a boost to the vehicle's anti-air capabilities, being completely filled with high explosive shells, and the second turns the Flakpanzer into a deadly anti-tank machine with high-penetration HVAP rounds.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Great penetrating cannon with PzGr 40 belt
- Fast fire rate
- Fast turret traverse
- Great mobility
- Hull shrugs off up to 12.7 mm machine gun rounds
Cons:
- Low-survivability due to two crew and hull-breakability
- Long reload between clips is very punishing if you spray too much
- Open-topped and vulnerable to planes using any weapon
- Best penetrating PzGr 40 belt is mixed with standard PzGr ammunition
- Not a long-range SPAA
History
This was the first fully-tracked German anti-aircraft AFV. Considered a mediocre effort, about 150 were built and issued to the Panzer Divisions in early 1944. Users in Normandy included the 3rd, 33rd, Lehr and 1st SS Pz Regt.
Media
Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.
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 |
