Cannone da 47/32 Mod. 39 Elefantino – Italian Anti-Tank Gun


Cannone da 47/32 Mod. 39 – Italian Anti-Tank Gun – photo 2012

This Italian anti-tank gun was originally made in Austria by the Böhler firm, under license it was produced in Italy by the Breda firm in Italy and in it was produced the Netherlands. The 47/32 came in three variants. The 47/32 Model 35, the 47/32 Model 39 and the 47/32 Model 38. The Italians gave it the name “Elefantino” meaning baby elephant.

Cannone da 47/32 Mod. 39 – Italian Anti-Tank Gun – photo 2012

Variants of the Cannone 47/32

The Cannone 47/32 model 35 had metal wheels and lacked suspension, therefore it could not be towed behind a truck or artillery tractor but had to be loaded onto a truck instead.
Cannone 47/32 Model 39 was an improvement, the road wheels were adjusted, suspension was added, and worn barrel replacement was simplified.
The last version was the cannone 47/32 Model 38, this was a longer barrel gun with a higher muzzle velocity to improve the armor penetrating capabilities. This gun was also used in the Italian Carro Armato M15/42 medium tanks.

Cannone da 47/32 Mod. 39 – Italian Anti-Tank Gun – photo 2012
Cannone da 47/32 Mod. 39 – Italian Anti-Tank Gun – photo 2012

 

Cannone da 47/32 Mod. 39

The anti-tank gun was made over 3000 times and used by the Italian Alpine Divisions. With its 47mm caliber it was good vs light and medium tanks but lacked a protective shield. A trained crew could fire 28 rounds of HE explosives a minute. It had a maximum range of 7 kilometers. With armor penetrating round it could pierce 58 mm armor at 100 meters, 43 mm at 500 meters and 38 mm at 1000 meters, declining further to 20 mm at 2000 meters. The 47/32 mod. 39 was also used as main armament in the Carro Armato M13/40 and the Carro Armato M14/41 tanks.

After 1948 it was obsolete and withdrawn from service.

Cannone da 47/32 Mod. 39 – Italian Anti-Tank Gun – photo 2012
Cannone da 47/32 Mod. 39 – Italian Anti-Tank Gun – photo 2012


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