Ju 88P-1 “Tank Buster”

In early 1942, the Luftwaffe command became obvious the need to create an anti-tank aircraft that could hit the armor of Soviet medium and heavy tanks. In the summer of 1942, a decision was made to convert a small batch of Ju 88A-4 bombers into anti-tank versions, later they received the designation Ju 88P-1. In the large ventral gondola of these aircraft was a 75-mm PaK 40L anti-tank gun (also known as BK 7.5) with an electro-pneumatic loading system, the gondola in an extreme situation could be dropped using pyrotechnic devices. The aircraft’s engines were protected with armor. Initially, the nose of the aircraft remained glazed, like a regular Ju 88A-4 bomber, but the test results showed that the glass could not withstand the action of gases during the shot. Therefore, the Ju 88P-1 was later modified with a nose section devoid of glass, borrowed from the Ju 88C fighter, and the muzzle brake was also changed. By September 1943, 18 copies of this aircraft were produced, some of them fell on the Eastern Front as part of the Versuchskommando für Panzerbekämpfung. Subsequently, six Ju 88P-1 were transferred to the 1st Hindenburg Bomber Squadron. (Kampfgeschwader 1 “Hindenburg”).