Canon de 155 mm GPF

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Canon de 155 mm GPF


American Canon de 155mm GPF in France 1918

General Information
Military designation: Canon de 155mm GPF, 15.5cm cannon 418 (f)
Manufacturer designation: Canon de 155 GPF (Grand Puissance Filloux)
Manufacturer country: France
Production time: 1917 to?
Technical specifications
Pipe length: 5.725 m
Caliber :

15.5 cm

Caliber length : L / 38.2
Cadence : 1 shot / min
Elevation range: 0 ° to +35 degrees
Side straightening area: 60 °

The Canon de 155mm GPF ( Grande Puissance Filloux ) was a French- made field cannon that was used in the First and Second World Wars . The Wehrmacht used captured cannons of this type in the western campaign in 1940 under the designation 15.5 cm cannon 418 (f) .

history

The cannon was developed during the First World War by Lieutenant Colonel Louis Jean François Filloux, who had already submitted designs for an improved, long-range 155 mm field cannon before the war. It was introduced to the French army in 1917 and replaced the outdated Canon de 155 mm L modèle in 1877 . Its counterpart on the German side was the 15 cm Kanone 16 from Krupp . The cannon was considered one of the most successful designs in its category and remained in service in France until 1940 .

From 1918 the US Army and the US Marine Corps used licensed buildings with the designations 155 mm Gun M1917 and M1918 . They were not replaced until 1942 with the introduction of the 155 mm Gun M1 ( Long Tom ) and some of them continued to be used as coastal guns until the end of World War II. They also formed the armament of the M12 self-propelled gun .

In 1940 the Wehrmacht captured around 449 guns of this type and used them in some artillery units under the designation 15.5 cm cannon 418 (f) . Later it was used as a coastal gun on the Atlantic Wall . The cannon weighed 11,700 kilograms on the march and could fire 43-kilogram projectiles up to 19,500 meters.

literature

  • Terry Gander, Peter Chamberlain: Encyclopedia of German Weapons 1939-1945 . 2nd Edition. Special edition. Motorbuchverlag, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 3-613-02481-0 .

Web links

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