Autocannone da 47/32 su Fiat-SPA AS37 (or Cannone da 47/32 su A.S.37 modificato).

ImportantSimone5 · June 9, 2024, 8:15pm

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Autocannone da 47/32 su Fiat-SPA AS37 (or Cannone da 47/32 su A.S.37 modificato).

History.

The Fiat-SPA AS37 is a truck produced by the former Società Piemontese Automobili (SPA) for the Italian Royal Army specifically for use in a desert environment, hence the acronym AS, Saharan Truck. This truck was based on the previous TL37 Light Tractor of the same company to obtain a troop transport vehicle. The first examples equipped Balbo’s Libyan Saharan car-aircraft companies in 1938 and were used on the North African front until the end of hostilities in 1943. In the middle of this period, i.e. in 1941, the need was seen to increase the uses of this vehicle and therefore the technicians of the Libyan workshops decided to adapt the vehicle to an armed reconnaissance vehicle, renaming the vehicle (unofficially) Camionetta Desertica AS37. The vehicle turned out to be particularly tall so it was decided to remove the cab and a small/medium caliber weapon on a 360° swivel support was added to the body. Some examples were equipped with the ubiquitous 47/32 Mod. 1935 cannon and were inevitably used on the North African front. Not much is known about the vehicle’s effectiveness at the front, but good behavior can be assumed given its low profile and good rate of fire.

Armaments and propulsion.

The vehicle was armed with the 47/32 Mod. 1935 cannon with a 360° swingable support and variable elevation from 100°°° normally up to 12° in correspondence with the steering wheel of the vehicle.
In terms of engine, the vehicle was powered by a 4053 cc 4-cylinder SPA 18TL petrol engine delivering 52 hp of power, which could push the vehicle up to a maximum speed of 50 km/h.

Specifications.

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Length: 4.7m
Width: 2.02 m
Height: 2 m
Weight: 4,000 kg
Engine: SPA 18TL petrol, 4-cylinder 4053 cc, 52 hp
Maximum speed: 50 km/h
Armament: 1x 47/32 Model 1935 and 1x Breda Model 1937 (optional)
Crew: 4

Pictures and drawnings.

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