47 mm APX anti-tank gun
| canon de 47 mm SA mle 1937 | |
|---|---|
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| Type | Anti-tank gun |
| Place of origin | France |
| Service history | |
| Used by |
France Nazi Germany |
| Wars | World War II |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 1,070 kg (2,359 lbs) |
| Barrel length | 50 |
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| Shell | 47x380 mm. R APCBC |
| Caliber | 47 millimetres (1.9 in) |
| Rate of fire | 15 to 20 rounds/min |
| Muzzle velocity | 855 m/s (2,805 ft/s) |
| Effective firing range | 2,000 m (2,187 yds) |
The 47 mm APX anti-tank gun was a French anti-tank gun that saw service in the first years of the Second World War.
Development
In the 1930s the French artillery sought a replacement for the derivatives of the 75 mm mle 1897 field gun it used in the anti-tank role. Despite having a decent anti-armour capability, the venerable soixante-quinze was heavy and was much harder to conceal than the smaller high-velocity, small calibre anti-tank weapons of modern design. The chosen weapon was a design of the state-owned arsenal Atelier de Puteaux ("Puteaux workshop", abbreviated to APX), and was designated as canon de 47 mm semi-automatique mle 1937. It was a very efficient weapon, especially given the thin armour of the German tanks of the time. Unfortunately for France, the 47mm SA 37 was still a rare weapon at the time of the Battle of France.
Foreign use
Examples captured by the German forces were operationally used under the designation 4.7 cm Pak 181(f).
Variants
- 47mm SA 39 TAZ - a variant on a tripod, capable of 360° traverse, which did not enter production.
- 47mm SA 35 - an earlier variant, mounted on tanks such as the Somua S35 and the Char B1
See also
- 25 mm Hotchkiss anti-tank gun
- 47 mm Model 1931 anti-tank gun - a comparable Belgian gun of the same period
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to 47 mm APX anti-tank gun. |
- Ferrard, Stéphane. France 1940 l'armement terrestre, ETAI, 1998, ISBN 2-7268-8380-X