Difference between revisions of "203 mm/53 Ansaldo mod.1927 (203 mm)"
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'''Cons:''' | '''Cons:''' | ||
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== History == | == History == | ||
| − | '' | + | The best cruiser guns available to the ''Regio Marina'' (Royal Italian Navy) during World War II, the 203 mm/53 Ansaldo mod. 1927 was the main armament for the [[Zara (Family)|''Zara''<nowiki />-class]] heavy cruisers. Built under the restrictions of the Washington Naval Treaty, these 8-inch guns in addition to being calibers longer than the preceding [[203 mm/50 Ansaldo mod.1924 (203 mm)|203 mm/50 Ansaldo mod.1924]] guns used on the [[RN Trento|''Trento''<nowiki />-class]], the guns fired more powerful 276-pound shells, could reload at the maximum 45-degree angle of elevation (the mod. 1924 guns could only load at 15 degrees or less) and a removable liner instead of a fixed one. The 276-pound shells had a muzzle velocity of 3,080 feet per second and a range of 34,400 yards. These guns were some of the best 8-inch cannons in the world at the time. The only weapons of the same caliber to beat them out in range were the German [[20.3 cm/60 SK C/34 (203 mm)|20.3 cm/60 SK C/34]] and the bursting shells had some of the best hitting power in the class. However, these guns were not perfect. The high operating pressure meant the liners quickly wore out though this did mean the guns were designed with removable liners and the dispersion problem, while not as bad as on the earlier Ansaldo mod. 1924 guns, were still present due to the same issues of shell tolerance and cradle mounting. As a result, the Ansaldo mod. 1927 guns were similarly downgraded to shells that had a reduced muzzle velocity of 3,000 feet per second, but the performance was still better than the mod. 1924s. A variant of this design is called the Ansaldo mod. 1929 was also built with a thinner faceplate liner to reduce and was mounted on the one-off heavy cruiser ''RN Bolzano'' |
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| + | The service of the ''Zara''<nowiki />-class was fiery but mostly short during World War II. After [[RN Zara|''RN Zara'']], ''RN Gorizia'', and [[RN Pola|''RN Pola'']] supported the Italian invasion of Albania in 1939, they were deployed during the war mostly as convoy raiders. During the Battle of Calabria in July 1940, the four ships of the class managed to drive off a British fleet including the battleship ''HMS Warspite'' and escaped without damage. They similarly escaped without damage when the British Fleet Air Arm attack Italian ships in port during the Battle of Taranto in November of the same year. However, in a stroke of bad luck, three of the four ships were lost during the Battle of Cape Matapan. After ''Pola'' herself was immobilized by an attack from a [[Swordfish Mk I|Swordfish]] torpedo bomber, both ''Zara'' and ''RN Fiume'' remained behind to provide cover, and all three were sunk during a close-range night engagement. Italian losses from these three cruisers total 2,193. The sole surviving ship, ''RN Gorizia'', served in further convoy escort missions along with both Battles of Sirte before it was damaged in an attack by American [[B-24/PB4Y (Family)|B-24 Liberator]] on April 10th, 1943 while docked at La Maddalena though it survived. She was sent to La Spezia for repairs and was seized by the Germans after the Italian Armistice in September. ''RN Gorizia'' was later torpedoed by Italian frogmen to prevent it from being used as a blockship. | ||
== Media == | == Media == | ||
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== See also == | == See also == | ||
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| − | * | + | * [[203 mm/50 Ansaldo mod.1924 (203 mm)]] - Earlier Italian 203 mm gun. |
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== External links == | == External links == | ||
''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:'' | ''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:'' | ||
| + | |||
* ''topic on the official game forum;'' | * ''topic on the official game forum;'' | ||
* ''encyclopedia page on the weapon;'' | * ''encyclopedia page on the weapon;'' | ||
Revision as of 01:05, 18 October 2022
Contents
Description
Write an introduction to the article in 2-3 small paragraphs. Briefly tell us about the history of the development and combat using the weaponry and also about its features. Compile a list of air, ground, or naval vehicles that feature this weapon system in the game.
Vehicles equipped with this weapon
General info
Tell us about the tactical and technical characteristics of the cannon or machine gun.
Available ammunition
Describe the shells that are available for the weapon and their features and purpose. If it concerns autocannons or machine guns, write about different ammo belts and what is inside (which types of shells).
Comparison with analogues
Give a comparative description of cannons/machine guns that have firepower equal to this weapon.
Usage in battles
Describe the cannon/machine gun in the game - its distinctive features, tactics of usage against notable opponents. Please don't write a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but give the reader food for thought.
Pros and cons
Summarise and briefly evaluate the weaponry in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark pros and cons as a list.
Pros:
Cons:
History
The best cruiser guns available to the Regio Marina (Royal Italian Navy) during World War II, the 203 mm/53 Ansaldo mod. 1927 was the main armament for the Zara-class heavy cruisers. Built under the restrictions of the Washington Naval Treaty, these 8-inch guns in addition to being calibers longer than the preceding 203 mm/50 Ansaldo mod.1924 guns used on the Trento-class, the guns fired more powerful 276-pound shells, could reload at the maximum 45-degree angle of elevation (the mod. 1924 guns could only load at 15 degrees or less) and a removable liner instead of a fixed one. The 276-pound shells had a muzzle velocity of 3,080 feet per second and a range of 34,400 yards. These guns were some of the best 8-inch cannons in the world at the time. The only weapons of the same caliber to beat them out in range were the German 20.3 cm/60 SK C/34 and the bursting shells had some of the best hitting power in the class. However, these guns were not perfect. The high operating pressure meant the liners quickly wore out though this did mean the guns were designed with removable liners and the dispersion problem, while not as bad as on the earlier Ansaldo mod. 1924 guns, were still present due to the same issues of shell tolerance and cradle mounting. As a result, the Ansaldo mod. 1927 guns were similarly downgraded to shells that had a reduced muzzle velocity of 3,000 feet per second, but the performance was still better than the mod. 1924s. A variant of this design is called the Ansaldo mod. 1929 was also built with a thinner faceplate liner to reduce and was mounted on the one-off heavy cruiser RN Bolzano
The service of the Zara-class was fiery but mostly short during World War II. After RN Zara, RN Gorizia, and RN Pola supported the Italian invasion of Albania in 1939, they were deployed during the war mostly as convoy raiders. During the Battle of Calabria in July 1940, the four ships of the class managed to drive off a British fleet including the battleship HMS Warspite and escaped without damage. They similarly escaped without damage when the British Fleet Air Arm attack Italian ships in port during the Battle of Taranto in November of the same year. However, in a stroke of bad luck, three of the four ships were lost during the Battle of Cape Matapan. After Pola herself was immobilized by an attack from a Swordfish torpedo bomber, both Zara and RN Fiume remained behind to provide cover, and all three were sunk during a close-range night engagement. Italian losses from these three cruisers total 2,193. The sole surviving ship, RN Gorizia, served in further convoy escort missions along with both Battles of Sirte before it was damaged in an attack by American B-24 Liberator on April 10th, 1943 while docked at La Maddalena though it survived. She was sent to La Spezia for repairs and was seized by the Germans after the Italian Armistice in September. RN Gorizia was later torpedoed by Italian frogmen to prevent it from being used as a blockship.
Media
Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.
See also
- 203 mm/50 Ansaldo mod.1924 (203 mm) - Earlier Italian 203 mm gun.
External links
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- encyclopedia page on the weapon;
- other literature.
