AK019 King & Country catalog image
King & Country product image.

King & Country · AK · North Africa

Afrika Korps figures and vehicles

The AK range brings together German and Italian infantry, armored vehicles, artillery and the people who moved supplies and messages. Use the illustrated catalog to identify a release, compare its original contents and follow the history suggested by the miniature.

The Panzer III
AK019 · The Panzer III

Historical overview

The North African campaign ran from 1940 to 1943. Germany sent forces to support Italy in 1941; the fighting involved British and Commonwealth armies and later American forces, across territories where local populations also endured the war. The Axis defeat at El Alamein and Allied landings in November 1942 preceded the final Axis surrender in Tunisia in May 1943. The National Army Museum’s campaign history provides the wider chronology.

The collection’s AK prefix covers subjects across that theater. It does not make every miniature a member of the same unit or place every vehicle at the same battle. An Italian patrol, a German gun crew and a command halftrack each open a different part of the story.

From the collection

Featured sets

Different subjects, poses and stories from the collection.

AK · AK018

Italian Patrol

Four Italian infantrymen in tropical helmets broaden the desert collection beyond German subjects. Their varied poses provide the beginnings of a patrol or a small group beside transport and supplies.

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AK · AK019

The Panzer III

The desert Panzer III combines an armored centerpiece with crew and visible stowage. Those smaller details give the tank a lived-in appearance and connect it with the men working around it.

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AK · AK027

10.5cm Field Gun

Five crew figures accompany the 10.5cm field gun. The number of men and the size of the weapon make this a substantial artillery position within a desert display.

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AK · AK060

Water Supplies Set

A jerrycan and a cup bring two soldiers together for a water break. Their shorts and relaxed activity make the set a useful everyday scene beside the range’s tanks, patrols and guns.

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Illustrated set index

Afrika Korps Set Catalog

Choose a set for reference photographs, historical context and notes on identification, display and condition.

AK004 Dismounted Dispatch Rider & MotorcycleAK004Dismounted Dispatch Rider & MotorcycleAK006 Four Sitting & Crouching GrenadiersAK006Four Sitting & Crouching GrenadiersAK008 Motorcycle Combination & CrewAK008Motorcycle Combination & CrewAK013 MG42 Ramcke BrigadeAK013MG42 Ramcke BrigadeAK018 Italian PatrolAK018Italian PatrolAK019 The Panzer IIIAK019The Panzer IIIAK020 Demag Halftrack SetAK020Demag Halftrack SetAK022 Mortar TeamAK022Mortar TeamAK024 Sd.Kfz. 222 Armoured CarAK024Sd.Kfz. 222 Armoured CarAK026 Desert TransportAK026Desert TransportAK027 10.5cm Field GunAK02710.5cm Field GunAK029 Rommel’s Greif Command Half-TrackAK029Rommel’s Greif Command Half-TrackAK037 Opel Blitz TruckAK037Opel Blitz TruckAK052 Funkkraftwagen Radio TruckAK052Funkkraftwagen Radio TruckAK054 Afrika Korps Newsreel CrewAK054Afrika Korps Newsreel CrewAK055 New Machine Gun CrewAK055New Machine Gun CrewAK057 Attack GroupAK057Attack GroupAK060 Water Supplies SetAK060Water Supplies SetAK073 Airfield HutAK073Airfield HutAK075 Carro Armato M13/40AK075Carro Armato M13/40AK076 Afrika Korps FeldgendarmeAK076Afrika Korps FeldgendarmeAK077 Captured Morris CS8 TruckAK077Captured Morris CS8 TruckAK082 Observation TeamAK082Observation TeamAK084 Panzerjäger IAK084Panzerjäger IAK085 Captured Daimler DingoAK085Captured Daimler DingoAK095 2 cm Flak 38 Gun SetAK0952 cm Flak 38 Gun SetAK110 Afrika Korps Medical OfficerAK110Afrika Korps Medical OfficerAK112 Wounded German SoldiersAK112Wounded German SoldiersAK118 General RamckeAK118General RamckeAK128 Battlefield CommunicationsAK128Battlefield CommunicationsAK133 AK Radio Operator w/RifleAK133AK Radio Operator w/RifleAK134 Food and DrinkAK134Food and DrinkAK135 MG34 Machine GunnerAK135MG34 Machine GunnerAK138 AK MP40 GunnerAK138AK MP40 GunnerAK139 AK Field PolicemanAK139AK Field PolicemanAK142 AK Ready For ActionAK142AK Ready For ActionAK143 AK RiflemanAK143AK RiflemanAK144 AK Kamel Patrol Soldaten #1AK144AK Kamel Patrol Soldaten #1AK146 AK Kamel Patrol Soldaten #3AK146AK Kamel Patrol Soldaten #3AK150 Water and FuelAK150Water and FuelAK157 Tankriders SetAK157Tankriders SetAK160 Tank Mechanics SetAK160Tank Mechanics Set

Historical images · AK

The North African campaign in photographs

These dated photographs show two vehicles represented in the AK range, from a Panzer III at Tobruk to Rommel’s distinctive command half-track.

Australian officers beside a destroyed German Panzer III at Tobruk
A Panzer III Ausf. G destroyed in the April 1941 fighting at Tobruk; photographed on 14 September 1941 with Australian officers beside it.Australian War Memorial, 020606. Source record. Public domain.

A Panzer III at Tobruk

The photograph shows the tank’s running gear, turret and the low profile of its hull clearly against the rocky ground. It is a useful comparison with AK019’s Panzer III. The men beside the wreck are Australian officers; the archive dates the photograph to September 1941 and the tank’s destruction to the April fighting.

AK019 · The Panzer III →
Rommel in his Greif command half-track in North Africa
Erwin Rommel in the Sd.Kfz. 250/3 command half-track Greif, North Africa, 1942.Bundesarchiv, Bild 101I-784-0249-04A / Koch. Source record. CC BY-SA 3.0 DE. Converted to WebP; composition unchanged.

Rommel’s command half-track

Greif’s name is visible on the side of the half-track, with Rommel standing above the open compartment. AK029 recreates this named command vehicle. The period view helps explain the arrangement of the crew space, the prominent aerial frame and the combination of front wheels and tracks.

AK029 · Rommel’s Greif Command Half-Track →

About the range

Infantry and support sets

A tank dominates a shelf, but support subjects explain what happens around it. AK004 brings a messenger into the scene. AK060 turns a water break into a shared action. AK026 and AK027 connect an artillery tractor with its gun and crew. Comparing these tasks gives a display more substance than repeating the same combat pose across a longer base.

The Italian Patrol, AK018, is particularly useful. Its presence makes the coalition behind the campaign visible, while the low figures of AK006 change the height and rhythm of an infantry group. Choose additions for the different subject they bring as well as for a gap in a numbered list.

Identifying AK sets

Start with the maker, full set code and matching photograph. AK019 is the Panzer III, even where an abbreviated record says only “Panzer.” AK029 may appear with an SL suffix and the Greif name. These variations can explain why a search misses an otherwise recognizable release.

Then compare what is actually supplied. Count and match individual poses, distinguish display scenery from original contents, and ask which accessories are fixed or removable. A retirement date records the end of catalog availability; it does not establish present scarcity, condition or market value.

Historical photographs and references

The National Army Museum’s captured Panzer III photograph gives the tank a period reference. A Bundesarchiv photograph of Greif in 1942 provides a comparison for the command vehicle. Such records help separate a historical subject from a seller’s description, but they cannot establish the contents or condition of an individual miniature.

The articles distinguish documented release facts from observations of the set photographs. Where the archive does not identify a precise variant, unit or production quantity, that gap remains visible rather than being filled with an unsupported claim.

Afrika Korps sets on OTB Companion

OTB Companion’s near-complete King & Country catalog helps identify overlooked figures and compare available offers. Match the photo and code first, then weigh the asking price, shipping, completeness and repairs. Recognizing what a loosely described listing actually contains can help stretch a collecting budget further.

Explore Afrika Korps in OTB Companion →