- Yes
- No
History.
It was 1940. The Second World War had just begun, but not for Italy which was aiming for a quick rearmament before entering the conflict. Word had reached the heads of the Italian Army of a tank of Czech origin from Skoda called the T-21 which had promising characteristics since its conception in 1936. In September of the same year there were the first contacts with the company to discuss the vehicle and its possible supply. A Military Mission was sent towards the end of 1940 to Pilsen to meet the company’s top management, and in 1941 in Berlin there was a meeting between two Italian military representatives with their German counterparts to discuss the possible supply of this tank. A licensed construction was proposed but the idea immediately failed, and production directly by Skoda was also proposed. The first example of this tank was sent to Italy on 21 May 1941 and was almost immediately tested in some locations near Rome where Italian tanks under construction were usually tested. Tests were carried out between Skoda’s T-21, Ansaldo’s M13 and M14 tanks and SOMUA’s Somua S35. The Skoda wagon beat its Italian counterparts in almost every area even if some defects had arisen due to cooling for desert use. The tank, after thousands of kilometers traveled for testing, was sent back to Skoda with the addition of various requests to improve the vehicle, which however were never implemented due to German hostility towards this idea. After the end of the world war the tank was left alone until it was scrapped in the early 1950s.
Armaments and propulsion.
The tank was equipped with one cannon and two machine guns. The gun was a 47 mm of Czechoslovakian origin 4.7 cm A9 vz. 38 placed in a rotating turret with a 7.92 mm ZB vz/53 coaxial machine gun also of Czechoslovakian origin. A machine gun of the same type was placed in the hull as an anti-infantry weapon. There were 94 rounds stored for the cannon and up to 3000 rounds for the machine guns.
In terms of motorization, the tank was powered by a Skoda 8V petrol engine with a maximum power of 250 HP at 2200 rpm, which could push the tank up to a maximum speed of 47 km/h with a range of 155 km.
Specifications.
Spoiler
Crew: 4
Maximum weight: 17770 kg
Weight/power ratio: 7.108
Length: 5,200 m
Width: 2,450 m
Height: 2,670 m
Armament: 1x 47 mm cannon (94 rounds) and 2x 7.92 mm machine guns (3000 rounds)
Armor: 30-8 mm
Engine: 8V 250 hp
Gears: 6 of which one backwards
Maximum speed: 47 km/h
Autonomy: 155 km
Maximum gradient: 80%
Step: 0.8 m
Trench: 2.2 m
Ford: 0.9 m
Pictures and drawnings.
Sources.
Spoiler
Tutto storia, storia contemporanea: Il carro armato che tutti volevano ma nessuno ebbe mai
Carro armato celere sahariano - Wikipedia
Il carro celere sahariano
Carro Armato M15/42 - Tank Encyclopedia
GLI AUTOVEICOLI DA COMBATTIMENTO DELL'ESERCITO ITALIANO VOL II TOMO II by Biblioteca Militare - Issuu
R-3 tank - Wikipedia
4,7 cm KPÚV vz. 36 - Wikipedia
ZB-53 - Wikipedia
ZB-53 - Wikipedia
