As Allied aircraft increasingly dominated the skies over Europe as WWII progressed, there was a need for more effective self-propelled antiaircraft guns. One such solution was the Flakpanzer IV, a vehicle nicknamed Wirbelwing, or “Whirlwind” by the Germans. Development commenced in 1944 as a brainchild of Karl Wilhelm Krause, an officer of the “Hitler Jugend” Division, and the vehicle featured a quadruple 2cm Flakvierling 38 weapon system mounted inside a nine-sided turret. The turret was open-topped to allow fumes generated from the four cannons to dissipate. As can be imagined, the Wirbelwind was a quick-firing weapon, and it could also be employed against ground targets. A crew of five operated it. Approximately 100 of these 22-tonne weapons were produced on rebuilt or repaired Panzer IV tank chassis.
Dragon has produced a fantastic 1/35 scale plastic kit of the Flakpanzer IV Wirbelwind. The kit depicts an Early Production version of the antiaircraft platform based on a Panzer IV Ausf.G chassis. All associated detail of the open-topped turret, hull and running gear is accurately represented in true-to-scale miniature. The kit utilizes Dragon’s highly acclaimed kit of the 2cm Flakvierling 38 weapon system, a finely detailed replica of the original four-barreled gun. Inside the box, modelers will find many slide-molded plastic components, as well as the convenience of Magic Tracks, plus some photo-etched parts such as the cage for spent shell cases. This latest kit from Dragon allows modelers to easily create any specific vehicle from the Flakpanzer IV Wirbelwind family.