Polsten (20 mm)
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 Polsten is Polish 20-millimeter anti-aircraft gun derived from the Swiss 20 mm Oerlikon. Development began in 1939 when Polish engineers began working on a simplified version of the Oerlikon anti-aircraft gun that was just as effective. The development hit a snag when Germany invaded in September 1939, which resulted in the designers fleeing to Britain where they continued development with a team including local engineers and Czech designers. The end result used 119 parts and cost between 60 and 90 British pounds compared to the 250 rounds and cost of 150 pounds of an Oerlikon. They also had 30 rounds box magazines alongside the 60-round drum mags used by the Oerlikon. Due to a lack of industrial capacity locally, the Polsten was manufactured by John Inglis & Company in Canada who built the guns in a variety of double, triple, and quad-mounts.
The guns were first adopted by the British 21st Army Group in January 1944 as their standard 20 mm to simplify logistics. It would go on to serve in anti-aircraft platoons of Commonwealth forces. The Polsten notably served as an aircraft anti-aircraft gun during Operation Market Garden and would continue to serve into the 1950s in Polish and Commonwealth service. In Australia, it was produced by General Motors Holden during World War II serving in towed anti-aircraft guns and mounted them coastal boast. A variety of self-propelled anti-aircraft vehicles were built using the Polsten guns. Notably, the Canadian armed a variant of the Grizzly tank called the Skink but only three prototypes were built due to the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) being effectively destroyed by 1944. It was also used on British variants of the LVT amphibious tractor, SPAA variants of the Cromwell, and in a separate mount on early models of the Centurion main battle tank.
Media
Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.
See also
Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:
- reference to the article about the variant of the cannon/machine gun;
- references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.
External links
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- other literature.
| Britain and USA anti-aircraft guns | |
|---|---|
| 7.92 mm | BESA |
| 12.7 mm | M2HB |
| 20 mm | GAI C01 · M168 · Oerlikon Mk.II · Polsten |
| 25 mm | GAU-12U |
| 30 mm | HSS 831L |
| 35 mm | GA-35 |
| 37 mm | M1A2 |
| 40 mm | Bofors L/60 · Dual Automatic Gun M2 · M266 |
| Foreign: | |
| 23 mm | ZU-23 (USSR) |
| 35 mm | Oerlikon KDA (Swiss) |
