The Zeiss Ikon gun camera was fitted to the Luftwaffe's aircraft, including the Messerschmitt Me 109 fighter

Gun cameras were usually fitted beside the machine gun and were activated when the pilot fired them

They were used for improving the effectiveness of pilots, recording their dog fight kills and also training

The camera on sale and uses 16mm film shooting 16 frames per second and is mounted in a metal tube

A rare Nazi gun camera that recorded German kills during WWII dog fights has gone on sale for $7,000 (£5,100).

The green torpedo-shaped device was fitted inside deadly Messerschmitt Me 109 aircraft as they wreaked havoc across Europe.

Gun cameras began to be used during WWII as a means of improving the effectiveness of fighter pilots of both German and Allied air forces.

They were usually positioned beside gun, hence the name, though they could also mounted next to the cockpit, and were triggered by the pilot activating the aircraft’s weapons.

Zeiss Ikon gun camera
The camera is 18.5 inches long and weighs 15lbs
Device used 16mm motion picture film and could capture up to 2,000 still frames before needing to be reloaded.
It has an integrated sight tube with cross-hairs mounted on the body
The ESK 2000 model was used for training pilots as well as during aerial battles for the pilot 'to review his mission' after.


As well as helping to improve tactical effectiveness, gun cameras were also used to confirm kills in the air after returning from a dogfight.

One of the Zeiss Ikon gun cameras - one of the earliest ever examples of warfare cameras - has now gone on sale for $6,999 on eBay after mysteriously appearing in Glendora, California.

The seller, AD Timepieces, said they were 'not sure if the camera is functional or not'' and said it 'needs cleaning'.

The camera is 18.5 inches long and weighs 15lbs. It uses 16mm film shooting 16 frames per second and has an integrated sight tube with cross-hairs mounted on the body.

Black and white archive pictures from the war, which are available online, show how the camera was fitted to the notorious Nazi aircraft.

German historians said the camera, model name ESK 2000, was used for training rookie Nazi pilots as well as during aerial battles for the pilot 'to review his mission' after.

'Another application of the photographic machine gun is that it is adjusted parallel to the built-in on-board weapons and released together with these during the shooting,' according to germanluftwaffe.com.

'The ESK 2000 was thus installed in the nose of the Messerschmitts. After a dog fight, the pilot can prove the hits in the downed machine or the possible crash in case of a possible shooting on the film.

'The MG ESK 2000 is a rigidly mounted, electrically driven narrow-film camera in a streamlined housing.

'For each practice flight or combat mission, the camera is loaded with 15mm narrow film, which correspond to approximately 2000 image shots. In one second this was 16 pictures, or 960 pictures per minute at a shutter speed of 1/150 sec.'