Cannone da 70/15

Last updated
Cannone da 70/15
Zwei eroberte italienische Kanonen auf dem Monte Maggio. Aufgenommen am 22. Mai 1916. (BildID 15534189) (cropped).jpg
Two guns captured by the Austrians during 1916.
Type Mountain gun
Place of origin Kingdom of Italy
Service history
In service1903–1943
Used byItaly
Wars Italo-Turkish War
World War I
Second Italo-Ethiopian War
World War II
Production history
DesignerCaptain Regazzi
Designed1902
Manufacturer Vickers-Terni
Produced1902–1914
Specifications
Mass387 kg (853 lb)
Barrel  length1.15 m (3 ft 9 in) L/16.4
Shell 70 x 86 mm R [1]
Shell weight4.84 kg (10 lb 11 oz)
Caliber 70 mm (2.8 in)
Breech Interrupted screw
Recoil None
Carriage Box trail
Elevation -12° to 21°
Traverse 0°
Rate of fire 8 rpm
Muzzle velocity 353 m/s (1,158 ft/s)
Maximum firing range6.6 km (4.1 mi) [2]

The Cannone da 70/15 was a mountain gun was used by Italy during World War I. By World War II it had been relegated to the infantry gun role in units assigned to Italian East Africa. [2]

Contents

Background

The 70/15 was designed in 1902 by Italian artillery Captain Regazzi to replace the Canonne da 7 BR Ret. Mont. that was first introduced in 1881. The 70/15 was technically obsolescent when it went into service in 1904 but it took the Italians almost a decade to field its replacement the Cannone da 65/17 modello 08/13.

Design

The 70/15 was a breech-loaded mountain gun with an interrupted screw breech, a box trail carriage, two wooden-spoked steel-rimmed wheels, and two seats on the axles for the gunners. There was no recoil mechanism, no gun shield, no traversing mechanism, and elevation was controlled by a jackscrew beneath the breech. It could be broken down into four mule loads for transport or hooked to a limber for towing.

History

The 70/15 was first used during the Italo-Turkish War by the 3rd Mountain Artillery Regiment. The 70/15 was still in service during World War One due to insufficient numbers of more modern replacements. Due to its light, simple, inexpensive, and rugged construction Vickers-Terni built 710 70/15s from 1914-1919, and it remained in colonial service throughout World War II. It was gradually phased out of the mountain role and given a new role as an infantry support gun. [3]

After World War One most were transferred to the Italian Border Guard. At the outbreak of World War Two, 92 guns were still in service with the I Group/1° GaF Artillery, the VII Group/2° GaF Artillery, and IIbis Group/3° GaF Artillery in Albania. [4] In Italian East Africa, the 70/15 was used by the XCI Colonial Artillery Group/XCI Colonial Brigade, the XCII Colonial Artillery Group/XCII Colonial Brigade, and the CI Colonial Artillery Group. [5]

References

  1. ↑ "48-57 MM CALIBRE CARTRIDGES". www.quarryhs.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2017-10-11. Retrieved 2017-10-02.
  2. 1 2 Chamberlain, Peter (1975). Infantry, mountain, and airborne guns. Terry Gander. New York: Arco. ISBN   0-668-03819-5. OCLC   2067391.
  3. ↑ Cappellano, Filippo (2005). La produzione italiana nella prima guerra mondiale. Italy: Tecnologia&Difesa. p. 91.
  4. ↑ "Le artiglierie italiane nella 2ª Guerra Mondiale". xoomer.virgilio.it. Retrieved 2021-04-10.
  5. ↑ "La Guardia alla Frontiera al 10 Giugno 1940". xoomer.virgilio.it. Retrieved 2021-04-10.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.