Semovente 90/53

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Semovente M 41 DA 90/53
Semovente 90 53.Aberdeen.0008habs.jpeg

Template: Infobox AFV / maintenance / picture without description

General properties
crew 4 men
length 5.28 m
width 2.27 m
height 2.26 m
Dimensions 16.8 tons
Armor and armament
Armor 6-30 mm
Main armament 90 mm Flak Cannone da 90/53
Secondary armament no
agility
drive SPA 15TM 41 V8 diesel engine
145 HP (106 kW)
suspension Leaf springs
Top speed 35 km / h (road)
Power / weight 8.6 hp / t
Range 200 km

The Semovente 90/53 was an Italian self-propelled gun and tank destroyer from the Second World War .

description

This assault gun was created from the experiences of the Italian soldiers on the Eastern Front . When the T-34 and KW-1 entered the battlefield, the Italian army did not have an adequate anti-tank weapon. Only the excellent anti-aircraft gun Cannone da 90/53 in caliber 90 mm could be used effectively against the Soviet tanks. So it was decided to make the gun movable on a tank chassis. A tower was completely dispensed with. None of the previously existing armored turrets could accommodate the massive gun. So the cannon was simply placed backwards on the chassis of the M14 / 41 tank. A large protective shield should protect the crew from fragmentation and gunfire. It turned out to be disadvantageous that the gun could only carry six rounds of ready-to-use ammunition and that the crew had to leave the vehicle during fire fighting and were therefore unprotected. Only 48 vehicles were built. On the one hand, this was due to the fact that the capacities of the Italian production facilities were exhausted, and on the other hand, because the heavy flak was increasingly having to play its role as an anti-aircraft gun. After the Italian surrender, the German Wehrmacht captured a few specimens, but used them as long-range artillery and not as tank destroyers.

literature