Autoblindo Fiat-Ansaldo
Autoblindo 40, Autoblindo 41 and 43 | |
---|---|
Type | Armoured car |
Place of origin | Kingdom of Italy |
Service history | |
In service | 1941–1945 |
Used by | Kingdom of Italy Nazi Germany Italian Social Republic Italy |
Wars | World War II |
Production history | |
Designed | 1940 |
Manufacturer | Fiat-Ansaldo |
Produced | 1941–1944? |
No. built | 600-700
(AB40: 24 units later partly modernized / AB41: about 600 units / AB43: about 70 units) Cannone da 47/32 M35 anti-tank gun 63 rounds |
Secondary armament | 2 × 8 mm Breda mod. 38 machine guns (one in rear hull, one coaxial with main gun) 1,992 rounds |
Engine | |
Ground clearance | 40 cm (16 in)[3] |
Operational range | 400 km (250 mi) |
Maximum speed | 78 km/h (48 mph) on road[2] |
The Autoblindo 40, 41 and 43 (abbreviated AB 40, 41 and 43) were Italian
Development
During 1937 the Italian Ministry of War issued specifications for a new armoured car (autoblindomitragliatrice), to fulfil the requirements of both colonial police long range patrols and army reconnaissance units for the new armoured formations.
After trials by the Army, in May 1940 the armoured car was standardised, adopted with the official designation Autoblindo 40, and a first batch of 176 vehicles ordered.[4] At the request of the Army the prototype had undergone numerous changes before it was adopted: redesigned front hull, recessed headlamps under armoured covers, improved ventilation, new cast spoked wheels, and flat, shortened mudguards.[5] The first AB 40s were delivered in March 1941.[6]
Description
Autoblindo 40
The Autoblindo 40 was built in small numbers in 1940. Armament consisted of two 8 mm machine guns in a turret. During production a need for heavier armament was envisioned and so the AB 40 was redesigned as the AB 41 which was the same vehicle except for a new turret with a 20 mm autocannon. Most of the 24 AB 40s that had been built were then converted to AB 41s.
Autoblindo 41
The Autoblindo 41 (named after its first year of production, 1941) was a further development of the machine gun armed AB 40. Made with an all-riveted construction, the AB 41 had
It had six forward gears and four reverse gears, with a driving position at the front and one in the rear, so two crew members were drivers. Overall the AB 40/41 family was well thought out, with a top speed of over 70 km/h (45 mph), good armour (15 mm on the front plates) and good road and cross-country performance, but there were some examples of poor detail design like difficult access to the powerplant, an unprotected fuel tank, one-man turret, exposed traverse gear and lack of an interior bulkhead separating the engine and crew compartments. Nevertheless, the AB 41 was considered a good vehicle and one of the best armoured cars of its era.
Combat history
During
The AB 41 could be quickly adapted for operation on any terrain. Sand tires could be fitted for desert work and it could run on railway tracks with special
Users
The Autoblinde were used by the following countries and organisations:[10][11]
- Australia
- Croatia
- Free France
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Kingdom of Italy
- Regio Esercito
- Polizia dell'Africa Italiana
- Italian Co-Belligerent Army
- Italian Social Republic
- Esercito Nazionale Repubblicano
- Italian partisans
- Italy
- Poland
- Romania (see Romanian armored cars during World War II)
- United Kingdom (evaluation only)
- Yugoslavian partisans
- Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
See also
- AB md. 41, a similar Romanian vehicle
References
- Notes
- ^ Cappellano, Filippo; Battistelli, Pier Paolo. Italian Medium Tanks (New Vanguard) (p. 67). Bloomsbury Publishing.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-84681-110-4.
- ^ Cappellano & Battistelli 2012, p. 46.
- ^ a b c Pignato and d'Inzéo, p. 1.
- ^ a b Pignato 2004, p. 56.
- ^ Pignato 2004, p. 55.
- ^ An artist's view of an AB 41 Ferroviaria
- ^ a b Pignato 2004.
- ISBN 1-84509-012-8. p. 232.
- ^ Pignato and d'Inzéo, p. 4–5.
- ^ Giusti, Arturo (12 March 2022). "Autoblinda AB41 in Regio Esercito Service". tanks-encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
- Bibliography
- Cappellano, F.; Battistelli, P. P. (2012). Italian light tanks, 1919–45. Oxford: ISBN 9781849087773.
- Pignato, Nicola (2004). Italian Armored Vehicles of World War Two. Squadron/Signal publications. ISBN 0-89747-475-9.
- Pignato, Nicola; d'Inzéo, Fabio. "Le autoblinde AB 40, 41 e 43" (PDF). Gli appunti di… Modellisimo Più. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
External links
- Autoblindo AB 40, AB 41, AB 43 armored cars at wwiivehicles.com