AAC-1937

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

The AAC-1937, which means Autoametralladora-cañón Chevrolet modelo 1937, also known as Chevrolet 1937, was an

BA-6 as a basis for the new vehicle, and built a very similar vehicle, the AAC-1937 in the Hispano-Suiza factory in Barcelona, using a chassis from General Motors Peninsular.[1]

With a total run of between 60 and 90 units, the AAC-1937 fought in the

Catalonia offensive
.

After the

WW2 these vehicles saw use in the Battle of France and the Germans captured some of them. Later they used them in the Eastern Front, where they were destroyed by the Soviets during the first months of the conflict.[2]

Antecedents

After the

Renault FT-17 and 6 Schneider CA1 from France. In 1921, those tanks were sent to Morocco, where they participated in their first battle on 17 March 1922, however, the results were not deemed satisfactory. As they advanced ahead of the infantry they were surrounded and isolated and after some of their machine guns were blocked, they suffered heavy losses. After the first battle, they gave support in the Rif War, with success during the Alhucemas landing, a decisive victory that led to their return to Spain.[3]

The Moroccan campaign demonstrated the importance of these new weapons and encouraged the acquisition of more tanks, like the Fiat 3000 from the Kingdom of Italy in 1924, and the production of a national tank in 1925, the Trubia A4. The Sanjuanada of 1926 meant that tanks, usually associated with the artillery officers that participated in the coup d'état, lost the favour of the administration and the projects for national production of armoured vehicles were cancelled.[4]

The tanks that were still operative before the start of the

Saragossa.[4]

Beginnings

In Catalonia, after the July 1936 military uprising in Barcelona, the workers decided to assist in the war effort by producing weapons, including tanks.

After the initial chaos and starting from scratch, the War Industry Commission in Catalonia was in charge of managing the production of the new armoured vehicle. During that period they built several experimental vehicles with a wide variety of uses and performances.

After the

Iberian peninsula and because of that, the Soviet Union
wasn't able to send resources via sea. These reasons pushed the Second Spanish Republic into building a national tank or armoured vehicle.

The Spanish sub-secretary of weapons, with the help of Soviet engineers, started the development of a new heavy armoured vehicle in April 1937, taking the

BA-6 as a reference. The most famous vehicle was the AAC-1937, which was based on the chassis of the Chevrolet SD 1937 truck from General Motors Peninsular, produced in Barcelona
.

The problem was that the Chevy SD 1937 only had 2 axles, and the extra weight added by the armour made it too unstable. To fix it, they added axles from Soviet GAZ trucks that were copies of American designs. The outcome was that the AAC-1937 was very similar to the BA-6, but was more agile thanks to a more powerful engine.[1]

Design

The

mudguard
.

The AAC-1937 usually had a crew of four operators: driver, commander, gunner and driver helper, who used the hull machine gun. There were several variations in weaponry and turret configuration:

The weapons were diverse mainly because of limited availability. The vehicles started being delivered from the factory in April 1937. The production rate was four tanks a month until March 1938, when the nationalist forces split the Republican territory in two, isolating Catalonia from their vital steel supply for the production of tanks. In total, there were between 60 and 90 AAC-1937 built.[1]

In combat

The AAC-1937 was used in the Spanish Civil War and in the Second World War. They were also used in the Spanish Army in the Francoist Spain period until the decade of 1950 in cavalry units.

Spanish Civil War

The first battle of the AAC-1937 was in the May Days, alongside UNL-35 armoured cars. It was later used by the 1st Armoured Division (in Catalonia) and the 2nd Armoured Division (in the South Centre). During the war, at least 30 of these vehicles were captured by the nationalist forces, changing their weapons to MG 13 machine guns.

After the Battle of the Ebro, where the Franco forces destroyed 17 AAC-1937 and captured 18,[7] all the remaining AAC-1937 that were still in Catalonia were pulled back to the French border, where they were given to the French border forces.[1]

Second World War

The French used the AAC-1937, and during the Battle of France they were used with low casualties, though 20 were captured by troops from Nazi Germany as Beutepanzer. Those vehicles were modified with the installation of new German weapons, changing the Puteaux SA 18 37 mm cannon for a MG 34 or MG 42, changing its role to use them as troops transport, or as a Self-propelled anti-aircraft weapon using 2 MG 34 or MG 42 with an AA mount.[8]

Once in German hands, the AAC-1937 were used in Operation Barbarossa. The photographic references show that they were even used in the Battle of Moscow, and several were destroyed by the Red Army.[9]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Willkerrs, ed. (24 May 2016). "AAC-1937". Tanks Encyclopedia. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  2. ^ Manrique & Molina 2006, p. 303.
  3. ^ Zaloga 2010, p. 10.
  4. ^ a b Zaloga 2010, p. 11.
  5. El Punt Avui
    . Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  6. ^ Zaloga 2010, p. 38.
  7. ^ Zaloga 2010, p. 39.
  8. ^ "Spanish BA page 1". Archived from the original on 2 January 2018. Retrieved 1 August 2017.
  9. ^ "The Online Tank Museum: AAC-1937". 24 May 2016.

Bibliography

External links
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