Rheinmetall

Rheinmetall

Rheinmetall AG is a German automotive and defence company with factories in Düsseldorf, Kassel and Unterlüß. The company has a long tradition of making guns and artillery pieces...

 Zwillingsflak twin-gun anti-aircraft system

Anti-aircraft warfare

NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...

 began development in 1968 to meet the requirements of the low-level air defence units of the German Air Force, i.e. "to engage low and very low approaching enemy aircraft with all appropriate means in time to prevent them from firing their weapons or delivering their ordnance

Aircraft ordnance

Aircraft ordnance or ordnance is weapons used by aircraft. The term is often used when describing the weight of air-to-ground weaponry that can be carried by an aircraft or the weight that has been dropped...

, or at least to prevent them from carrying out an accurate attack on an Air Force installation." The Budget Committee of the Bundestag approved the Zwillingsflak system in December 1969, and serial production began in 1972; the first production systems reached units of the Bundeswehr on October 12 of that year. Rheinmetall delivered the last of these in 1976. It was also used by the Argentine Air Force

Argentine Air Force

The Argentine Air Force is the national aviation branch of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic. , it had 14,606 military and 6,854 civilian staff.-History:...

, including during the Falklands War

Falklands War

The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...

. Since 1981, it was used by the Portuguese Army

Portuguese Army

The Portuguese Army is the ground branch of the Portuguese Armed Forces which, in co-operation with other branches of the Portuguese military, is charged with the defence of Portugal...

 and Portuguese Air Force

Portuguese Air Force

The Portuguese Air Force is the air force of Portugal. Formed on July 1, 1952, with the Aeronáutica Militar and Aviação Naval united in a single independent Air Force, it is one of the three branches of the Portuguese Armed Forces and its origins dates back to 1912, when the military aviation...

.

Operators

- 1015 ordered in 1969. Used between 1972 and 1992, now withdrawn from service.

External links

• Basic MK20 Rh 202 specifications and picture in official website "Rheinmetall Defence - Rheinmetall Waffe Munition GmbH"
• MK20 Rh 202 specifications in "Jane's Armour and Artillery Upgrades, May'08 (extract)"
• Picture of an AA twin-barrelled Rh 202 in Indonesian Army service

See also

• Rheinmetall MK 20 Rh 202
  Rheinmetall MK 20 Rh 202
  The Rh202 is autocannon with a calibre of 20 mm designed and produced by Rheinmetall.The cannon is used on military vehicles of German origin, like the Marder infantry fighting vehicle, the Spähpanzer Luchs and some variants of the Wiesel AWC...
  
  
• ZU-23-2
  ZU-23-2
  The ZU-23-2, also known as ZU-23, is a Soviet towed 23 mm anti-aircraft twin-barreled autocannon. ZU stands for Zenitnaya Ustanovka - anti-aircraft mount.-Development history:...
  
  
• Oerlikon 35 mm twin cannon
  Oerlikon 35 mm twin cannon
  The Oerlikon 35 mm twin cannon is a towed anti-aircraft gun made by Oerlikon Contraves . The system was originally designated as 2 ZLA/353 ML but this was later changed to GDF-001...
  
  
• List of anti-aircraft guns
• List of artillery of Germany