M15/42 tank

Carro Armato M15/42
Carro Armato M15/42 on display at the Musée des Blindés in Saumur
TypeMedium Tank
Place of originKingdom of Italy
Service history
In service1943–45
Used byKingdom of Italy
Italian Social Republic
Nazi Germany
WarsWorld War II
Production history
DesignerAnsaldo
Designed1942
ManufacturerAnsaldo
Produced1 January 1943 - post September 1943
No. builtDisputed. 333 produced before and after the armistice according to Cappellano (including 85 command units) [1] see production paragraph
VariantsCommand tank, Semovente 75/34, Semovente 75/46, Semovente 105/25
Specifications
Mass15.5 tonnes
Length4.92 m (16 ft 2 in)
Width2.20 m (7 ft 3 in)
Height2.40 m (7 ft 10 in)
Crew4 (commander, radio operator, driver, gunner/loader)

Armour50 mm frontal armour[2]
25 mm side armour[2]
Main
armament
47 mm / L40 gun
111 rounds
Secondary
armament
3 × 8 mm Breda 38 machine guns
EngineSPA 15TB M42 petrol 11,980 cc V8 water cooled
192 hp/2,400 rpm
SuspensionTwo 4 wheel bogies, semi-elliptic leaf spring
Operational
range
200 kilometres (120 miles)
Maximum speed 38 km/h (24 mph)

The Carro Armato M15/42 was the last Italian medium tank produced during World War II. It was based on the earlier M13/40 and M14/41 medium tanks, and was built with the lessons from the North African Campaign in mind.[3][4] The tank was meant to be a stopgap until the heavier P26/40 tank could be produced in numbers.[4]: 14  It did not serve in North Africa, the theatre in which it was intended to operate, but served in Italy and in Yugoslavia with the German Wehrmacht.[5][6]

  1. ^ Cappellano, Filippo; Battistelli, Pier Paolo. Italian Medium Tanks (New Vanguard) (p. 67). Bloomsbury Publishing.
  2. ^ a b Pignato 2002, p. 246.
  3. ^ Comando supremo: Italy at war: Carro M.15/42 History of M15/42
  4. ^ a b Cappellano, Filippo; Battistelli, Pier Paolo (2 December 2012). Italian Medium Tanks: 1939-45. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 9781849087759.
  5. ^ "M15/42 In German Service". Archived from the original on 25 November 2020. Retrieved 7 February 2015.
  6. ^ Flames of War Web site: Italian Armoured Vehicles in German Service, Italy 1944-45