The following U.S. military report on antiaircraft defenses of WWII German warships was originally published in Tactical and Technical Trends, No. 9, Oct. 8, 1942. [DISCLAIMER: The following text is taken from the U.S. War Department publication Tactical and Technical Trends. As with all wartime intelligence information, data may be incomplete or inaccurate. No attempt has been made to update or correct the text. Any views or opinions expressed do not necessarily represent those of the website.]

ANTIAIRCRAFT DEFENSES OF GERMAN WARSHIPS For information of land-based planes which attack enemy warships, Tactical and Technical Trends No. 8, p. 19 included a summary of the planes and antiaircraft guns normally carried by Japanese warships. The following information is submitted on similar German naval defenses. The material for both articles was furnished by the Office of Naval Intelligence. As in the case of the Japanese warships, the number of light antiaircraft guns listed may not always be accurate, for both the number and position of these smaller weapons are changed frequently. Most of the machine guns are mounted for 360° traverse and elevation up to 90°, while a few auxiliary machine guns are more limited in their field of fire. The symbols used are explained in Tactical and Technical Trends, No. 4, p. 25. In addition to the symbols there listed, "O" before a ship designation indicates an old model.   CHARACTERISTICS OF GERMAN NAVAL AA GUNS        0.79-in (20-mm) MG        1.46 in          3.5 in          4.1 in   Muzzle velocity 2,950 f/s  2,950 f/s  2,750 f/s  2,900 f/s Maximum horizontal range 6,100 yds 12,400 yds 18,000 yds 19,100 yds Maximum effective range at 70° elevation 7,000 ft  16,000 ft  25,000 ft  30,000 ft  Weight of projectile 0.253 lbs  2.105 lbs   19.8 lbs   32.2 lbs Rate of fire (theoretical)   280 rpm    120 rpm     20 rpm     15 rpm     Type   Name    Tonnage     Length  (feet)    Speed  (knots)   Heavy AA   Disposition    Light AA   Aircraft BB Tirpitz 42,000 791       32+ 16 4.1-in* Broadside. No details. 4 BB Scharnhorst 26,000 741 1/2   32+ 14 4.1-in* Broadside, one mount centerlined aft. 16 1.46-in*** 4 BB Gneisenau 26,000 741 1/2   32+ 14 4.1-in Broadside, one mount centerlined aft. 16 1.46-in*** 4 OBB Schlesien 13,040 419       18  4 3.5-in** End of superstructure abaft mainmast. 4 0.79-in (20-mm) -- OBB Schleswig-Holstein 13,040 419       18  4 3.5-in End of superstructure abaft mainmast. 4 0.79-in (20-mm) -- CA Scheer 10,000 609 1/4   26  6 4.1-in Paired in broadside mounts and one centerlined aft. 8 1.46-in and 10 0.79-in MG 2 CA Lützow 10,000 609 1/4   26  6 3.5-in Concentrated on fore and aft of superstructure. 8 1.46-in and 10 0.79-in MG 2 CA Hipper 10,000 639 3/4   32 12 4.1-in In pairs, two mounts on forward part of superstructure, two aft, two broadside; together they fire an azimuth of 360°. 12 1.46-in 4 CA Prinz Eugen 10,000 654 1/2   32 12 4.1-in " 12 1.46-in 4 CA Seydlitz 10,000 654 1/2   32 12 4.1-in " 12 1.46-in 4 CL Köln  6,000 570       32  6 3.5-in In pairs broadside aft; and one mount centerlined aft. (Lighter guns broadside and forward.) 8 1.46-in and 4 0.79-in (20-mm) MG 2 CL Leipzig  6,000 580       32  8 3.5-in In pairs broadside; one mount centerlined aft. (Lighter guns chiefly broadside and forward.) 4 0.79-in (20-mm) MG and 8 1.46-in 2 CL Nürnberg  6,000 603       32  8 3.5-in In broadside pairs amidships. 8 1.46-in and 4 0.79-in (20-mm) MG 2 CL Emden  6,000 508 1/2   29  3 3.5-in Abaft funnels. 4 0.79-in (20-mm) MG   CV Graf Zeppelin 19,250 820 1/4   29 10 4.1-in Not known. 18 1.46-in and 4 0.79-in (20-mm) MG Not known. DD Six destroyers -- -- -- -- -- 4 1.46-in and 4 0.79-in (20-mm) MG   * 4.1-in and modern 3.5-in guns are paired in dual-purpose light-shield mounts. ** Old type 3.5-in are in single-shield mounts. *** 1.46-in machine cannon are in either twin or single open mounts.

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