Pak 97/38 AT Gun with crew

The PaK 97/38 was a German anti-tank gun used during World War II. It was developed using the barrel of the famous French 75 mm Mle 1897 gun. Many of these guns were captured after the invasion of France and proved to be a valid, quick, and relatively inexpensive solution to equip German anti-tank troops with a more powerful weapon than the now outdated 37 mm PaK 36, which was no longer capable of penetrating the armor of more modern and robust Soviet tanks such as the KV-1 and the T-34. It could fire a decent variety of ammunition types and was also used by numerous anti-tank units of other Axis countries allied with Germany. Its operational performance was later surpassed by the more modern and up-to-date 75 mm PaK 40.