When was the German 88mm obsolete?

The KWK43 ammunition looks very long the case was 822mm and a complete round looks about 1.2meters long, this was probably just about okay to handle in the relatively huge turret of a Tiger II but swinging that ammo round in a cramped turret is getting difficult for the loader. I trained on Centurions that had the 105mm and the complete round of ammo was only a bit longer than the case of the Kwk43 jst over 3 feet long if memory serves me right. That was right on the limit for space to easily load and even the extra 2 or 3 inches longer HE rounds were noticeably more awkward to handle compared to APDS and HESH.
 
It would have performed just fine, I think. As others have pointed out, its advantages in vision (most Leo 1s had at the very least IR night-vision gear, and later models had thermal imaging) and fire control (full stabilisation and a ballistics computer) would have ensured it a good chance of getting the first hit on anything that came along, and the L7 105mm gun ought to have an an excellent chance of killing whatever it hit right out to its maximum range.

and First hit matters a lot. As The Chieftain put it in a talk: if you fire first, you've probably already got a good sight picture and plenty of time to aim. If you are on the receiving end of even a close miss, you are having a significant emotional event, and will not be as calm.
 
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