8.8 Cm KwK 43

8.8 Cm KwK 43

The KwK 43 L/71 (Kampfwagenkanone—fighting vehicle cannon) was an 8.8 cm calibre tank gun designed by Krupp and used by the German Wehrmacht, during the Second World War. It was the primary armament of the Panzerkampfwagen VI Ausf. B Tiger II, and was the most powerful anti-tank gun to be put on a tank with a rotatable turret to reach service during World War II.

The anti-tank gun version of this weapon was known as the PaK 43. This name was also applied to versions of this weapon mounted in various armored vehicles such as the tank destroyers Jagdpanther, Hornisse/Nashorn and Ferdinand/Elefant. The Nashorn was the first vehicle to carry the KwK/PaK 43 series of guns. The series included: PaK 43 (cruciform mount), PaK 43/41 (two-wheel split-trail carriage), PaK 43/1 (Nashorn), PaK 43/2 (Ferdinand/Elefant), PaK 43/3 and 43/4 (Jagdpanther) and KwK 43 (Tiger II).