5 Cm Kw K 39

5 Cm Kw K 39

The 5 cm KwK 39 L/60 (5 cm Kampfwagenkanone 39 L/60) was a German 50 mm caliber gun used during Second World War, primarily as the main armament of later variants of the German Panzerkampfwagen III tank between 1941-1942. It was developed as a variant of the towed gun 5 cm PaK 38. This gun proved successful in North Africa against British cruiser tanks and light American M3 Stuart tanks. However, it was not sufficient against Soviet T-34 and KV-1 tanks. Rottman says, that for this reason it was phased out in favour of shorter 7.5 cm KwK 37 L/24 gun that could fire HEAT rounds. Nevertheless, the first gun considered fully effective against these Soviet tanks was 7.5 cm KwK 40 L/43 mounted on Panzer IV Ausf. F2.

This 50 mm gun was mounted as a defensive armament for reconnaissance vehicles like the Puma.