От Василий Фофанов
К Василий Фофанов
Дата 02.10.2001 18:21:09
Рубрики WWII; Танки; Артиллерия;

И наконец номер 3

a.) The 3e Celere Principe Amedeo Duca d'Aosta included in July of 1941 the
3e Regimento Bersaglieri, Savoia Cavalleria, the Lanciero di Novara, and
the IIIe Gruppo carri veloci San Giorgio. On 9 July 1942 the Italian Corpo
di Spedizione Italiano in Russia, or C.S.I.R., was renamed and became the
Armata Italiana in Russia, or A.R.M.I.R. with 31 light tanks of the L-6/40
type, 19 self-propelled guns of the L-40 type with a 47mm main armament,
and 941 artillery guns. [1]

Italian artillery enjoyed the reputation of being the elite of the Italian
ground forces.

In July of 1942, the Italian Eighth Army contributed to the conquest of the
Krasni-Lutk area. On 23 July the 3e Celere was the first Axis unit to cross
the Donetz. In August, the Eighth Army established defensive positions to
control a frontline of 270km, an impossible task in front of the
counter-attacking
Soviet forces. The Alpini supported the German drive towards the Caucasus.

On 23 August 1942, 600 horsemen of the Savoia Cavelleria charged the Soviet
battalions near Isbucenski. [2]

b.) The 7.5-cm Pak 97/38 L/36 was a stop-gap measure to counter the Soviet
T-34 and KV-1 tanks. 700 converted French Canon mle 1897 barrels were
combined
with Pak 38 or (in small numbers) Pak 40 carriages [2]. This gun entered
service in late 1941 and used captured French and Polish ammunition,
including
hollow-charge shells. [3] According to F.M. von Senger und Etterlin, the
Pak 97/38 used the following ammunition : i.) Polish AP shot (6.71kg, Vo
570 m/s); ii.) French HE shell 233/1(f), as well as 230/1, 231/1, 236/1
(6,08kg,
Vo 577m/s); iii.) French hollow-charge shell 38/97 or 15/38(f) (Vo 450m/s)
[4]

c.) The Canon de 75mm Mle 1897 was the anti-tank gun of the French artillery
between 1918 and 1938. Its AP shot OR modиle 10 M could penetrate 50mm of
armour plate at 1,000 meters. The gun could fire up to 28 shells a minute.
In 1933, the Canon de 75mm Mle 1897/1933 was fitted with a carriage to
enable
580 in traverse. Its practical range was 600 meters. A penetration of 50
mm at an angle of 300 could be achieved at 400 meters. It is interesting
to note that the French used the Arbel platform for static defence, which
enabled 3600 traverse, at the cost of mobility. [5]

d.) The French 75mm Mle 1897 proved effective against Panzer spearheads
during
the campaign of France in 1940. This gun was used in combination with 25mm
or 47mm anti-tank guns positioned on the flanks. Combat reports are rare.
Here is an excerpt from the story of the 5e Batterie of an artillery unit
near Sains-en-Amienois, on 5 June 1940. Four 75mm Mle 1897 were to take on
40 Panzers, destroying at least 15 tanks in several minutes of engagement.
[6]

[...] Our tactical plan is incredibly bad: our battery will be destroyed
easily. 40 Panzers are reportedly advancing on our right flank. Distance
is 1,500 meters. The rolling terrain makes it impossible to target the tanks
at long range. (...) Only one of the 75mm is fitted with an Arbel platform.
(...) The camouflage nets are now being taken away and AP shots stored near
the gun. (...) I can see a cupola rising from the ground. The Panzer is
rising
slowly. The gunner crouched behind his telescopic sight cannot see the
Panzer
yet. At this moment, numerous flashes erupt around us, and I realise that
these are tracers fired by the Panzers. The gunner can now see the cupola
in his sight, and the Marechal des Logis T. calls TEN-SHUN: "One Panzer in
front of us. Fire at Panzer. AP shot. Telescopic sight. 500 meters. Fire
when ready." The shot falls too short. 20 Panzers are now concentrating
their
fire on our gun. Bullets are ricocheting against the armour plate, and the
gun is recoiling from 75mm shells impacting nearby. 20-tons Panzers are now
driving towards us. Four of them in column. A 75mm AP shot flies right
through
the armour plate under my arm. Fortunately, the Germans use AP shots instead
of HE. The crew is hit by fragments. The gunner is wounded, two loaders are
down. The gunner is calmly targeting the Panzers and fires only after
careful
adjustment. The smoke is heavy, and we can barely target the enemy now.
After
two minutes, only two crewmembers are valid out of eight. (...) Every shot
is a hit. The nearest Panzer is at 100 meters. We admire the courage of the
Panzer crews as they continue to advance in spite of staggering losses. The
third gun of the battery is now firing above our heads. Three Panzers are
hit and burn fiercely. The carriage is hit and the gun is now inoperable.
(...) The Panzers are now stopped. We continue to fire in spite of the fact
that we need to manually line up the whole gun for every shot. We fire at
30-40 Panzers now abreast at 100 meters. It is incredible! At this moment,
at 45° to our right, a Panzer is driving at full speed towards us, all guns
blazing. It is a large Panzer with a 75mm gun. We are finished. We crouch
in the trench, and fall back as fast as we can. The 5e Battery is destroyed.
We are only four men alive out of 32. [...]

Frederic W. Erk

_________________________

[1] David Zambon, _le Corps Expiditionnaire Italien en URSS_, in Histoire
de Guerre N011, p.15.
[2] idem, pp.18-20
[3] Terry Gander and Peter Chamberlain, _Weapons of the Third
Reich_Doubleday,
1978.
[4] F.M. von Senger und Etterlin, _Die deutschen Gesch|tze_Bernard und
Graefe
Verlag, 1999.
[5] Stephane Ferrard, _France 40, l'armement terrestre_, ETAI, 1998.
[6] Henri Lespes, _Corps ` Corps avec les Chars_, Plon 1944.


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