M43 "G.C.Leoncello"

This page is about the Italian tank destroyer M43 "G.C.Leoncello". For regular version, see 105/25 M43.

M43 "G.C.Leoncello"

M43 "G.C.Leoncello"

Italy

III Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
3.0	3.0	3.0

Class:

PREMIUM

Tank destroyer

Purchase:Bundle or Gift

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Description

The Semovente 105/25 M43 G.C."Leoncello" is a premium gift rank III Italian tank destroyer with a battle rating of 3.0 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced as a premium pack in Update 1.85 "Supersonic", and was discontinued after the 2019 Summer sales. It was made available briefly for purchase with Golden Eagles during the 2022 "Italian National Unity and Armed Forces Day" mini-event.

General info

Survivability and armour

Smoke grenades

Creation of a smoke screen in front of the vehicle

Armourfront / side / back

Hull50 / 40 / 25

Turret75 / 45 / 45

Crew3 people

Visibility61 %

Armour type:

• Rolled homogeneous armour (hull, casemate)
• Cast homogeneous armour (gun mantlet)

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	25 mm (78°) Upper glacis 50 mm (40°) Lower glacis - top 30 mm (50°) Lower glacis - bottom	40 mm 40 + 4 mm Side skirts area	25 mm Upper part 25 mm (15°) Lower part	25 mm (12°) Front glacis 10-15 mm (12°) Rear - Engine hood 5-15 mm (5°) Rear - Radiator vents
Casemate	75 mm (5°) Casemate front plate 90 mm (5°) Driver port 60 + 30 mm (spherical) Gun mantlet	45 mm (7-9°)	45 mm	15 mm (0-4°) Centre 15 mm (18°) Sides

Notes:

• Suspension wheels are 15 mm thick while tracks are 20 mm thick and bogies 10 mm thick.
• The belly is 15 mm thick.
• Mudguards are 4 mm thick.

The M43 "G.C.Leoncello" got rid of the biggest vulnerabilities of the previous Semoventi: the vertical armour front plate is now much thicker, the sides were reinforced and the crew is less cramped thanks to the widened hull. However, the poor roof armour and a crew of only 3 are still weak points. Your front plate is also now wider and easier to target. With the BR increase, foes are also better armoured, which slightly tones down the benefit brought by your armour increase.

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB42 / 4 km/h

RB and SB39 / 4 km/h

Number of gears5 forward

1 back

Weight15.7 t

Engine power

AB353 hp

RB and SB185 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB22.5 hp/t

RB and SB11.8 hp/t

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	42	4	15.7	263	353	16.75	22.48
Realistic	39	4		164	185	10.45	11.78

Modifications and economy

Repair cost

AB736

RB881

SB1 779

Crew training10 000

Experts67 000

Aces330

Research Aces570 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

2 × 70 / 110 / 160 %

2 × 136 / 136 / 136 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tracks Suspension Brake System Filters Transmission Engine	Improved Parts Improved FPE Crew Replenishment	Horizontal Drive Adjustment of Fire 105mm_ep_m43_HEAT_ammo_pack Elevation Mechanism Smoke grenade

Armaments

Main armament

105 mm Cannone Ansaldo da 105/25 cannon

Ammunition48 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

13.0 → 10.0 s

Vertical guidance-10° / 16°

Horizontal guidance-18° / 18°

105 mm Cannone Ansaldo da 105/25					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	48	-10°/+16°	±18°	N/A	12.3	17.1	20.7	22.9	24.4	13.00	11.50	10.60	10.00
Realistic					8.3	9.8	11.9	13.2	14.0

Ammunition

The ammunition choice for the M43 "G.C.Leoncello" is focused on the anti-tank role:

• Granata Perforante da 105: a capped armour-piercing shell with explosive filler that has a good penetration power and whose explosive filler offers a good single-shot knock-out capability.
• Effetto Pronto mod.43: a shaped charge with high penetration power that does not diminish over distance. This type of shell is very effective on open and lightly armoured vehicles. It will also penetrate thicker armour, provided it is not sloped and will in most cases require a second shot to finish the enemy vehicle. The long reload time of the gun will be a clear handicap in such cases as the enemy will have time to return fire. Always pack a few HEAT shells as you lack HE shells and a machine gun to deal with lightly armoured vehicles.

Both shells have slow muzzle velocity and will have a curved trajectory. Use this to hit enemies hiding behind a ridge.

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
Granata Perforante da 105	APC	91	89	81	72	64	57
Effetto Pronto mod.43	HEAT	120	120	120	120	120	120

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
Granata Perforante da 105	APC	500	15.65	1.2	19	275	48°	63°	71°
Effetto Pronto mod.43	HEAT	510	14	0.05	0.1	2,300	62°	69°	73°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the 105/25 M43 (identical)

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	Visual discrepancy
48	25 (+23)	13 (+35)	1 (+47)	No

Notes:

• Shells are modeled individually and disappear after having been shot or loaded.

Usage in battles

Combat tactics

The M43 "G.C.Leoncello" is best when used as a tank destroyer thanks to its good frontal armour and the good penetration of its rounds, provided you stay at a distance guaranteeing your survivability (800-1,000 m). Although the Leoncello lacks any kind of turret, there are benefits and also some disavantages. At a distance, the Semovente's limited traverse is less a handicap and makes it harder for the weak spots of the vehicle to be hit. The vehicle's primary advantages include its low profile and powerful gun which can easily defeat most enemies it will encounter at range while remaining a relatively obscured target With a maximum penetration of 72 mm at 1,000 m for the APC round and 120 mm for the HEAT shell, the vehicle will have no problem penetrating the armour of most enemy vehicles at the BR. However, the low-velocity 105 mm howitzer makes it difficult to target and hit reliably enemies at long range and the long reload time prevents you from coming quickly with another shot. If you play too close to the frontline, most tanks will be capable of disabling you. Your weak sides will be exposed if you are taken in a pincer move and your long reload time will give enemies the opportunity to get to a better shooting spot or to close the gap between their location and yours. So it is overall vital that you do not get flanked and you always have friendly tanks to aid you whenever you are in trouble.

Notable enemies include;

• Tank destroyers with long guns that can penetrate from long range like the Marder III, the Marder III H, the Gun Carrier (3-in), the Archer, the StuG III F, the SU-57B, the YaG-10 (29-K), the Chi-Ha LG or the Na-To,
• Tanks with powerful HEAT shells like the M4A3 (105), the Pz.III N, the StuH 42 G, the M4A3 (105) (France) or the Sav m/43 (1946),
• Tanks with APDS shells like the Swedish 37mm gun tanks,
• Frontline tanks with sloped armour like the M4A1, the T-50, the T-126 or the T-34 (1940) or the M4A1 (France),
• Fast and agile light tanks such as the M24, the Sd.Kfz. 234/2 or the Crusader III that can easily flank the Semovente undetected are dangerous threats. Their speed and small size make them difficult to target for the Semovente's howitzer and they can disable you easily at close range, and the Crusader with Shot Mk.9 can easily penetrate the M43 at longer ranges.

How to defeat a M43 "G.C.Leoncello"

• Avoid any frontal encounter. Flank it and aim for the sides of the casemate.
• Wait for it to have shot and be reloading (it gives you at least 10 seconds to act).
• If you're forced to engage the Semovente frontally, be as close as possible to increase your chances to penetrate.
• If you can't disable it in one shot, immobilizing the M43 "G.C.Leoncello" buys you time to finish it off. Either shoot the transmission, the driver or the engine to do so. Stay out or get out of its line of fire once it is immobilized.
• When flying an aircraft, target the crew compartment to knock the crew out or the engine bay to immobilize it.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Powerful 105 mm gun that can fire HEAT rounds

• Small frontal profile makes the tank easy to conceal and difficult to hit
• High gun depression, can be used to crest over hills while only exposing the more heavily armoured superstructure
• Decent mobility and good hull traverse
• Overpressures most opponents easily with APC

Cons:

• The mantlet armour can be penetrated by the majority of the guns at its rank
• 75 mm of armour has to be angled to to block shots from most American and British tanks.

• No turret
• Confined interior

History

In mid-1942, the Italian Army put out a set of requirements for a new vehicle that could double up as both an infantry support vehicle as well as a tank destroyer, depending on the situation. In response to this, Fiat-Ansaldo and OTO both began developing prototypes around these requirements in parallel.

The two competing designs primarily differed in the chassis choice. OTO picked the newer chassis of the P40 heavy tank whilst Fiat-Ansaldo chose to opt for a newer and larger version of the chassis already in production for their Semovente M42.

This decision allowed Fiat-Ansaldo to complete their prototype much sooner. In February 1943, the Semovente 105/25 M43 was presented to military officials and was soon afterwards ordered into production, following successful trials.

Production began in April 1943, with a planned production run of over 800 vehicles. However, with Italy's industry at this late stage of the war being severely crippled, production was slow and reaching such high production goals was more than unlikely.

Just prior to the signing of the armistice in September, the 30th vehicle rolled off the assembly line. The Semovente 105/25 M43 proved itself in combat during the defence of Rome, where the SPGs successfully engaged German forces trying to retake the city.

After the occupation of northern Italy by German forces, the Fiat-Ansaldo company restarted production of the Semovente 105/25, this time however, for the Germans. Germany only used a limited number of these vehicles under the designation Sturmgeschütz M43 mit 105/25 853(i), of which most were no longer in use by late 1944.

Around 120 Semovente 105/25 M43s were built by 1944, primarily serving with Italian or German forces. By the late stages of the war, only a limited number was still in service and after the end of WW2, the vehicle was retired from service.

- From Devblog

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the M43 "G.C.Leoncello" from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

Premium Vehicles: Semovente 105/25 M43 - War Thunder Wiki

The Shooting Range #127 - Metal Beasts section at 00:32 discusses the M43 "G.C.Leoncello".

The Shooting Range #125 - Pages of History section at 05:10 discusses the M43 "G.C.Leoncello".

See also

Vehicles equipped with the same chassis

• 75/34 M43
• 105/25 M43
• 75/46 M43

Other vehicles of similar configuration and role

• StuH 42 G
• Sav m/43 (1946)

External links

• [Devblog] Semovente 105/25 M43: Low Profile, High Power
• [Wikipedia] Semovente da 105/25

FIAT-Ansaldo
Autoblindo	AB 41 · AB 43
Light Tanks	L6/40 · L6/40 (31 Rgt.)
Medium Tanks	Celere Sahariano
M11/39	M11/39
M13/40	M13/40 (I) · M13/40 (II) · M13/40 (III)
M14/41	M14/41 · M14/41 (47/40)
M15/42	M15/42
P40	P40 · P40 "G.C. Leoncello"
Tank Destroyers
L3/33	L3/33 CC
Semovente L40	47/32 L40
Semovente M41	75/18 M41 · 75/32 M41 · 90/53 M41M
Semovente M42	75/34 M42
Semovente M43	105/25 M43 · M43 "G.C.Leoncello" · 75/34 M43 · 75/46 M43
SPAAs	M42 Contraereo