Deutsche Fallschirmjäger drehen eine gefangene Bofors 40 -mm -Waffe gegen seine ehemaligen Benutzer auf Kreta im Mai 1941

[extended footage](https://rumble.com/v6rf2iu-fallschirmjger-turn-a-captured-bofors-40mm-gun-against-its-former-users-on-.html)

The [Battle of Crete](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Crete), codenamed „Unternehmen Merkur“ or Operatrion Mercury by the invading forces, was a major Axis airborne and amphibious operation during World War II to capture the island of Crete. It began on the morning of May 20th 1941 with multiple German airborne landings, while Greek and other Allied forces along with Cretan civilians defended the island.

After only one day of fighting, the Germans had suffered heavy casualties and the Allied troops were confident that they would defeat the invasion. The next day, through communication failures, Allied tactical hesitation, and German offensive operations, Maleme Airfield in western Crete fell, enabling the Germans to land reinforcements and overwhelm the defensive positions on the north of the island. Allied forces withdrew to the south coast. More than half were evacuated by the British Royal Navy and the remainder surrendered or joined the Cretan resistance. The defense of Crete evolved into a costly naval engagement for the British, and by the end of the campaign the Royal Navy’s eastern Mediterranean strength had been reduced to only two battleships and three cruisers.

In this footage captured QF 40mm Mark III gun, a version of the Swedish Bofors 40mm Automatic Gun L/60 built under license by in Britain, is fired German Fallschirmjäger against Commonwealth forces. While nominally an anti-aircraft weapon, its impact fuzed 900 high explosive shells weighing almost a kilogram each would also prove useful against targets on the ground, fired at a muzzle velocity of 900 meters per second. The type was put into official German use as the 4cm Flak 28 with a good number of examples captured from Poland, France and Norway as well as newly manufactured guns made in Hungary.