BL 5.5 inch Medium Gun

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BL 5.5 inch Medium Gun Mk 3
BL 5.5 inch Mk 3 in Finnish Artillery Museum
Type	field gun
Place of origin	United Kingdom
Service history
In service	1942-1978(?)
Used by	UK & Commonwealth
Wars	WWII
Production history
Produced	1941-
Specifications
Weight	5.8 t
Barrel length	30 calibers (4.2 m)
Crew	9

Shell	HE 45.5 kg
Calibre	5.5 inch (140 mm)
Carriage	split trail
Rate of fire	3 rounds per minute
Muzzle velocity	517 m/s
Maximum range	14 km

The BL 5.5 inch Field Gun was a British artillery gun introduced during the middle of the Second World War.

[edit] History

In January 1939 a specification was issued for a gun to replace the 60 pounder guns and 6 inch howitzers in use. The first units were equipped with the new gun in May 1942, and the first actions were in the Western Desert Campaign. Initially the range was disappointing, but a new shell 20 pounds (9 kg) lighter solved the problem. A companion piece with a 4.5 inch calibre barrel and longer range was also introduced but demonstrated poor lethality due to low grade steel used in its projectiles (a problem shared with its US equivalent) and was retired shortly after WWII.

The 5.5 survived after the war until replaced by the FH-70 155 mm towed howitzer in service as L121.

The gun was known as the G2 in the South African Defence Force and was extensively used in the early stages of the South African Border War, including Operation Savannah.

In use, the 5.5, like the 4.5 before was generally teamed with the AEC Matador artillery tractor. From the 1950s in British service, the 5.5 was typically towed by an AEC Militant Mk 1 6x6 truck.