M42 (Italy)
| This page is about the Italian SPAA M42 (Italy). For other uses, see M42 (Disambiguation). |
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Contents
Description
The Semovente Contraereo da 20/70 quadruplo was an experimental self-propelled anti-aircraft weapon developed for the Italian Royal Army during World War II. The Royal Italian Army ordered the construction of a self-propelled anti-aircraft weapon in 1942 to be deployed in the North African theatre of operations and to protect mechanized columns, which were often targeted by the Royal Air Force (RAF) in the absence of genuine air defence. The hull of the M15/42 was utilized as the foundation for the design to save time and materials. The tank turret was replaced with a polygonal welded open turret that housed a quadruple 20 mm Scotti Isotta Fraschini 20/70 Model 41 autocannon. The first prototype was completed in early 1943 and tested at the Centro Studi Motorizzazione dell'esercito. It entered service in March 1943 and was assigned to the VIII Reggimento Autieri stationed at Cecchignola in Rome, where it was captured by German forces. By April 1945, it was on active duty with the V SS-Freiwilligen-Gebirgskorps, which fought the final struggle against the Red Army in Germany in the Teupitz area.
Introduced in Update 1.85 "Supersonic", the Semovente Contraereo da 20/70 quadruplo is one of the greatest self-propelled anti-air vehicles for the lower ranks of the Italian Army ground forces. The Semovente Contraereo da 20/70 quadruplo, with a design similar to its German equivalent Flakpanzer IV "Wirbelwind", provides adequate air defences for friendly forces during engagements. In truth, this vehicle's cannons use the same ammo as its German equivalents. Even the heaviest planes are frequently brought down with only a few hits. However, the vehicle armour does not fully protect the crew, which might be a severe problem when numerous enemy planes are in the sky. As a result, it is critical to only fire when you are certain that the cannon rounds will hit.
General info
Survivability and armour
Armour type:
- Rolled homogeneous armour (hull, turret, turret frame)
- Gun steel (guns)
| Armour | Front (Slope angle) | Sides | Rear | Roof |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hull | 50 mm (12°) Upper plate 25 + 30 mm (12°) MG bulge 25 mm (80°) Front glacis 30 mm (15°) Lower plate |
25 mm (8°) Top 25 mm Bottom 30 mm (9-12°) MG bulge |
25 mm Upper part 25 mm (15°) Lower part |
25 mm (10°) Front glacis 25 mm Crew compartment 8 mm (15°) Rear section - Engine 5-25 mm (8°) Rear section - Radiator vents |
| Turret | 15 mm Turret front 25 + 15 mm Turret ring |
15 mm (14°) 25 + 15 mm Turret ring |
15 mm (17°) 25 + 15 mm Turret ring |
Notes:
- Suspension wheels are 15 mm thick while tracks are 20 mm thick and bogies 10 mm thick.
- The belly is 14 mm thick and mudguards are 4 mm thick.
- The turret is reinforced with a 10 mm thick framing supporting the quadruple gun mount.
- The hull-mounted MG has been removed and the port has been obturated.
The M42 (Italy) is based off the M15/42 hull, with an opened top turret surrounding the crew members. The gunner does have an exposed spot in the front, and if shown to the enemy, can be machine-gunned easily without them to have to fire their main cannon. The turret may protect you from small rifle-calibre bullets, but .50 calibre and up, especially on the M4 Sherman will be able to penetrate your turret from anywhere, as it is generally weak against them. The hull armour is decent, still keeping the armour from the M15/42 hull, but don't expect to tank a lot of shots, as most of your enemies will have better calibre weapons, mostly encountering 75 mm and Russian 76.2 mm cannons. You may be able to bounce some smaller calibre shells like the 37 mm cannons but don't rely on your hull armour as your turret will most likely be targeted by the enemy. You have a small crew count of 3 members, and with two in the turret, and having okay armour, you'll usually die in one hit.
Mobility
| 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 | 15.5 | 263 | 353 | 16.97 | 22.77 |
| Realistic | 39 | 4 | 164 | 185 | 10.58 | 11.94 | |
Modifications and economy
| Mobility | Protection | Firepower | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Armaments
Main armament
| 20 mm Scotti-IF 20/70 mod.41 (x4) | Turret rotation speed (°/s) | Reloading rate (seconds) | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mode | Capacity (Belt) | Fire rate | Vertical | Horizontal | Stabilizer | Stock | Upgraded | Full | Expert | Aced | Stock | Full | Expert | Aced |
| Arcade | 640 (160) | 600 | -5°/+90° | ±180° | N/A | 52.8 | 73.1 | 88.8 | 98.2 | 104.5 | 5.20 | 4.60 | 4.24 | 4.00 |
| Realistic | 35.7 | 42.0 | 51.0 | 56.4 | 60.0 | |||||||||
Ammunition
- Default: API-T · HEFI-T* · HEFI-T* · HEFI-T* - The standard belt fits the anti-aircraft role.
- Granata mod.35: HEFI-T* · HEFI-T* · HEFI-T* · API-T - This belt is perfect for shooting at aircraft.
- Perforante mod.35: API-T · API-T · API-T · HEFI-T* - This belt is adapted to destroy lightly armoured targets.
- PzGr 40: HVAP-T · API-T - This is the most powerful belt that can help you even take on armoured targets, although you lose almost all your penetrating power above 500 m so use it in CQC.
| Penetration statistics | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm) | ||||||
| 10 m | 100 m | 500 m | 1,000 m | 1,500 m | 2,000 m | ||
| HEFI-T* | 5 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | |
| API-T | 38 | 36 | 27 | 19 | 14 | 10 | |
| HVAP-T | 48 | 45 | 31 | 20 | 13 | 8 | |
| Shell details | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Velocity (m/s) |
Projectile mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (m) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g) |
Ricochet | ||||||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | ||||||||||
| HEFI-T* | 830 | 0.14 | 0.04 | 0.1 | 3 | 79° | 80° | 81° | ||||
| API-T | 832 | 0.14 | 1.2 | 9 | 1.7 | 47° | 60° | 65° | ||||
| HVAP-T | 1,050 | 0.1 | - | - | - | 66° | 70° | 72° | ||||
Ammo racks
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| Full ammo |
1st rack empty |
Visual discrepancy |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | 0 (+4) | No |
Notes:
- Ammo is modeled as 4 magazines of 160 rounds each.
- It is not possible to select how many rounds to bring into battle.
- It is possible to take only one type of ammo into battle.
Usage in battles
In Realistic battles, the Quadruplo is best used in the support role when tank hunting, sticking with teammates, assisting them and potentially distracting the enemy. Your best bet of killing any tank, usually a Sherman, Cromwell or T-34, is from the side as the HVAP will pierce through their side armour, killing the tank. Light tanks such as M24s, Stuarts and Crusaders are able to be penetrated from the front, but usually this is only in close range engagements. T-50 and other slightly armoured light tanks will be tougher to kill, but you're still able to flank them. You can kill basically any SPAA you see, as you'll usually encounter trucks or armoured cars. Ambush and surprise tactics are good options to kill tanks effectively, as the enemy will stroll past you, usually showing their side armour. Aggressive playstyles are suggested to get the most out of the Quadruplo, similar to playing a Wirbelwind when tank hunting. Try not to expose yourself too much and move from cover to cover, as one hit from a tank shell, usually APHE, will knock you out in one shot, or the machine guns pierce your turret armour and kill both your gunner and commander. When it comes to shooting down planes in the Quadruplo, it is best to get their attention so they try to strafe you, or surprise them as they come closer to you, when you have a good shot as they won't have enough reaction time to evade your shots if they connect. Be mindful that you are open-topped, and you're less likely to survive a strafe run. It should also be noted that shooting continuously will sway the hull back and forth, which will make your aim go up and down.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- PzGr 40 shells are great at penetrating tanks from the sides and knocking out modules
- High mobility when spaded
- Great armour for a SPAA
- Guns have a very high rate of fire
- Ammo is stored in one belt, meaning you can continuously fire unlike the Wirbelwind
- Guns are placed very close together
Cons:
- Low reverse speed
- HVAP-T PzGr 40 belt is a tier IV modification
- Performance is inadequate when stock
- Gap in the gunner's position of the turret armour
- Turret can be penetrated by .50 cal machine guns
- 2 of 3 crew members crammed inside the turret
- Hull rocks back and forth when firing causing some rounds to miss
- Low ammunition count compared to its high rate of fire
- The ammo being stored as a single belt means that you have to completely empty it to reload
History
The history of the M42 Contraereo began during the late stages of the Second World War. In the years following 1942, the Royal Italian army would set out a request for a mobile platform which could mount a special anti-air mount to bolster and provide protection to Italian mechanised columns. At the time they would be subject to very frequent air raids by the British RAF. Although they had some anti-air coverage, it was not enough for their needs. Ground units only really widely access to single 20 mm mounts, usually installed on armoured trucks.
To save time and to reduce maintenance costs, the Italian army opted to go with the M15/42 tank to be used as the basis for the SPAA platform. The original turret would be removed and completely replaced with a new polygonal welded open turret, containing quadruple 20 mm Scotti Isotta Fraschini anti-air cannons. The turret could accommodate belt-fed munitions or clip-fed munitions. At the time this was actually one of the better anti-air vehicles made, not many countries had something remotely comparable, but it would not be long until the Germans had gained a particular interest in the vehicle which would play later on. The first prototype of the M42 Contraereo would be completed by January or February 1943, it would then also be presented for trials at the "Centro Studi Motorizzazione dell'esercito" (in English: "Center for motorization of the army").
In terms of mobility, the M42 kept pretty much all the previous stats of the M15/42 tank, meaning it could reach speeds of up to 40 km/h. When it came to survivability, it also kept the same protection values as the previous M15/42 tank it was based of, however it is good to note that the removal of the 2 x Breda 38 machine guns that previously would be installed in the hull, would instead be covered by a 42 mm armour plate. The new anti-air turret was for the most part exposed to incoming enemy fire, and did not offer adequate protection levels.
As development of this anti-air platform continued, it's likely that a handful of prototypes were made. What ceased the further development of the vehicle however was the 8th of September Armistice of Cassibile. During the confusion of leadership in Italy, the Germans would use that as an advantage to invade the north of Italy and set up a puppet state lead by Mussolini. Due to this, the Germans took over any production factories, any vehicle development and would integrate it into the German army. In this case, at least one unit of the M42 Contraereo was captured by the German army and was likely thoroughly examined by German engineers.
Media
- Skins
- Videos
See also
- Vehicles equipped with the same chassis
- Other vehicles of similar configuration and role
External links
| 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 |
| Italy anti-aircraft vehicles | |
|---|---|
| R3 Capraia | R3 T20 FA-HS |
| SIDAM 25 | SIDAM 25 · SIDAM 25 (Mistral) |
| Wheeled | AS 42 · CM52 |
| Tracked | M42 Contraereo · Leopard 40/70 · OTOMATIC |
| Hungary | ◔ZSU-57-2 · ◔ZSU-23-4 |
