Le Hardi, state of the art French destroyer

Arghail · August 5, 2023, 6:58pm

[Would you like to see this in-game?]

Yes
Yes, as a premium
No

0 voters

Destroyer Hardi

A modern destroyer for the French navy

About the Hardi class and its interest in War Thunder

The Hardi class isn’t a well known serie of destroyers, mostly because it was barely finished when the war ended in France in 1940, and it saw little action. That said, unlike their super-destroyer counterparts, those were the most advanced “conventional” destroyers in the French navy at the time. Well armed and fast, without being as heavy as the Contre-torpilleurs, I believe they could be a valuable addition to the better destroyers of the French tree.

Hardi class, a state of the art destroyer line.

During the 1930’s the French navy was trying to find a way to rearm its fleet to compete with the rest of the major European powers. Although the Washington treaty had limited the size of its fleet and the scope of its modernisation, The biggest problem was the speed at which rival fleets were developing. Be it the Reggia Marina or the Kriegsmarine, both were modernizing at an alarming rate. The appearance of the Deutschland class convinced the French navy to build two battleships to confront that new threat. Those would eventually be Dunkerque and Strasbourg. However, they didn’t have any modern escort, and so the construction of a new kind of destroyers was decided. It was a 1772tw class of destroyers following the restrictions of the Washington treaty. They needed to be fast over long distances, and have an armament powerful enough to deal with any smaller threats. Thus, the Hardi class was born. 8 of those ships were built between 1937 and 1940, Hardi, Fleuret, Épée, Mameluk, Casque, Lansquenet, Flibustier, Corsaire, with another 4 which were under construction when the Armistice came in summer 1940 : Intrépide, Téméraire, Opiniâtre and Aventurier.

About destroyer Hardi :

After extensive trials, it was the first of its class to be commissioned along with the Fleuret on june 2, 1940. Its first operation was to cover the escape of battleship Jean Bart. After that, it joined Dakar, where it was present during Operation Menace. It fired 60 rounds of 130mm at the British fleet, drawing fire while putting smokescreens up to protect battleship Richelieu. It came out of the battle unscathed, and even picked up a downed British pilot while still being under fire. The ship was upgraded after Operation Menace and got more AA defense. An important note, it was supposed to be equiped with the brand new 37mm mle 1935 AA turret, but wasn’t able to. After that, it made several voyages between France and the French colonies until its ultimate demise in november 1942, as it was scuttled, along with all its sisterships and the rest of the fleet to prevent it from falling into German hands.

General Characteristics :

Crew : 187 men

Armament (Hardi, summer 1940) :

6 x 130mm mle 1932 canons (3 x 2)
2 x 37mm mle 1935 AA canons in one turret (planned only) (1 x 2) OR 2 x 37mm mle 1933 AA canons (temporary installation) (2 x 1)
4 x 13.2 mm Hotchkiss mle 1929 MGs (2 x 2)
7 x 550mm mle 1923 TLT (1 x 3 + 2 x 2)

Armament (Hardi, after refit in winter 1940) :

6 x 130mm mle 1935 canons (3 x 2)

2 x 37mm mle 1933 AA canons (2 x 1)

2 x 25mm Hotchkiss mle 1939/1940 autocanons (2 x 1)

8 x 13.2 mm Hotchkiss mle 1929 MGs (4 x 2)

4 x 8mm Hotchkiss mgs ( 2 x 2 located on the torpedo plateforms)

7 x 550mm mle 1923 TLT (1 x 3 + 2 x 2)

About the 130mm canons :

Spoiler

http://www.pangea-systems.com/wwiiws/ships/le_hardi/130mm_turret_and_shell-LeHardi.jpeg

Designation	130 mm/45 (5.1") Models 1932 and 1935
Ship Class Used On	Model 1932: Dunkerque and Joffre classes
Model 1935: Le Hardi Classes
Date Of Design	1932 / 1935
Date In Service	1937 / 1939
Gun Weight	3.75 tons (3.81 mt)
Gun Length oa	245. 9 in (6.245 m)
Bore Length	232.2 in (5.899 m)
Rifling Length	198.8 in (5.049 m)
Grooves	N/A
Lands	N/A
Twist	Uniform RH 1 in 25.59
Chamber Volume	811.1 in3 (13.292 dm3)
Rate Of Fire	Model 1932: 10 - 12 rounds per minute
Model 1935: 10 - 15 rounds per minute

Ammunition

Type	Fixed
Weight of Complete Round	116.8 lbs. (53.0 kg)
Projectile Types and Weights 1 2	SAP: 70.8 lbs. (32.1 kg)
HE: 65.1 lbs. (29.5 kg)
Starshell: N/A
Bursting Charge	SAP: about 3.5 lbs. (1.6 kg)
HE: about 7 lbs. (3.2 kg)
Projectile Length	SAP: 25.5 in (64.8 cm)
HE: 23 in (58.3 cm)
Complete SAP round: 53.1 in (134.9 cm)
Complete HE round: 50.7 in (128.4 cm)
Propellant Charge	19.3 lbs. (8.76 kg) BM9
Muzzle Velocity	SAP: 2,625 fps (800 mps)
HE: 2,756 fps (840 mps)
Working Pressure	17.1 tons/in2 (2,700 kg/cm2)
Approximate Barrel Life	about 900 rounds
Ammunition stowage per gun	Dunkerque: 400 rounds 3 4
Le Hardi: 170 rounds 5

About the 37mm mle 1935 AA turret :

Spoiler

Complementary informations regarding the 37mm ammunitions :

https://quarryhs.co.uk/37mmFrench.pdf

Ammunition

Type Fixed

Weight of Complete Round N/A
Projectile Types and Weights HE - 1.80 lbs. (0.816 kg)
Bursting Charge 1.76 oz (50 g) HMn
Projectile Length N/A
Propellant Charge 0.46 lbs. (0.21 kg) “special Hotchkiss”
Muzzle Velocity 2,707 fps (825 mps)
Working Pressure 19.0 tons/in2 (3,000 kg/cm2)
Approximate Barrel Life 1a 600 rounds
Ammunition stowage per gun N/A

Gun Characteristics

Designation 37 mm/70 (1.46") AA Gun Model 1935
Ship Class Used On Patrol Sloop Amiens (Prototype)
Planned for Battleships, Cruisers and Destroyers of the late 1930s-1940s
Date Of Design 1933
Date In Service 1936
Gun Weight 3,200 lbs. (1,450 kg)
Gun Length oa N/A
Bore Length N/A
Rifling Length N/A
Grooves N/A
Lands N/A
Twist N/A
Chamber Volume N/A
Rate Of Fire Cyclic: 165 - 172 rounds per minute

About the 25mm hotchkiss AA canons :

Spoiler

Ammunition

Type	Fixed
Weight of Complete Round	All types about 1.5 lbs. (0.68 kg)
Projectile Types and Weights	AP: 0.57 lbs. (0.26 kg)
HE: 0.55 lbs. (0.24 kg)
Bursting Charge	AP: None
HE: 0.02 lbs. (0.01 kg)
Projectile Length	AP: 4.0 in (10.2 cm)
HE: 4.4 in (11.2 cm)
Complete round: 10.4 in (26.5 mm)
Cartridge Case Type, Size and Empty Weight	Brass, 25 x 163 mm, N/A
Propellant Charge	N/A
Muzzle Velocity	AP: 2,870 fps (875 mps)
HE: 2,953 fps (900 mps)
Working Pressure	17.1 tons/in2 (2,700 kg/cm2)
Approximate Barrel Life	12,000 rounds
Ammunition stowage per gun	800 rounds 1a

Gun Characteristics

Designation	25 mm/60 (1") Mle 1939 and Mle 1940
Ship	Destroyers
Date Of Design	1938
Date In Service	1940 (?)
Gun Weight	253.5 lbs. (115 kg) not including magazine
Gun Length oa	90.4 in. (2.296 m) [one source says 96.5 in (2.420 m)]
Barrel Length	59.1 in (1.500 m)
Rifling Length	53.2 in. (1.350 m)
Grooves	(12) 0.0098 in deep x 0.141 in (0.25 mm x 3.58 mm)
Lands	0.117 in (2.96 mm)
Twist	Uniform 1 in 25.2
Chamber Volume	N/A
Rate Of Fire 1	* Cyclic

Mle 1938: 220 - 260 rounds per minute
Mle 1939: 250 - 300 rounds per minute
Mle 1940: 300 - 400 rounds per minute
Effective: 110 - 120 rounds per minutte|

About the 13.2mm Hotchkiss Machineguns :

Spoiler

http://www.pangea-systems.com/wwiiws/ships/le_hardi/r4_001.jpg

13.2MM MLE 1929
SPECS :

depression : -10°, +90°

rotation : 360°

SHELLS :

Max range : 7 200m

Rate of fire : 200-250 rpm

Photos and plans

PLANS :

Spoiler