15 cm Autokanone M. 15/16

Heavy field gun used by Austria-Hungary in World War I 15 cm Autokanone M. 15/16 15cm Feldkanone M15-16 in Vittorio. (BildID 15672863).jpg 300 A 15 cm Autokanone M. 15/16 at Vittorio Veneto in 1918 Austria-Hungary Heavy field gun yes 1916–1945 Austria-HungaryFirst Austrian RepublicCzechoslovakiaNazi GermanyKingdom of Italy World War IWorld War II Skoda 1913–16 Skoda 1916–18 44 15 cm Autokanone M. 15 11900 kg lb 6.0 m ftin L/39.5 13 separate-loading, cased charge 152.4 mm (6 in) 1 rpm 692 m/s (2,270 ft/s) 16000 m yd (M. 15) 21840 m yd (M. 15/16) box trail -6° to +45° 6° The 15 cm Autokanone M. 15/16 was a heavy field gun used by Austria-Hungary in World War I. Guns turned over to Italy as reparations after World War I were taken into Italian service as the Cannone da 152/37. Austrian and Czech guns were taken into Wehrmacht service after the Anschluss and the occupation of Czechoslovakia as the 15.2 cm K 15/16(t). Italian guns captured after the surrender of Italy in 1943 were known by the Wehrmacht as the 15.2 cm K 410(i). Due to their unique ammunition, the Germans did not use them that much, and generally served on coast-defense duties during World War II. Design The M. 15 was a thoroughly conventional design for its day with a box trail, iron wheels and a curved gunshield. It was notable as being the first Austro-Hungarian gun to be designed for motor transport, towed behind the M 17 'Goliath' artillery tractor, hence the Autokanone designation. For transport the barrel was generally detached from the recoil system and moved on its own trailer. The original M. 15 weapons had a maximum elevation of only 30°, but an elevation of 45° was demanded early in the gun's production run, mainly to engage high-altitude targets in the mountains. 27 M. 15 guns were completed before production switched to the improved M. 15/16 with greater elevation in the first half of 1917. A total of 44 barrels and 43 carriages were completed by the end of the war.15cm M15 - M15/16 AutoKanone https://www.passioncompassion1418.com/Canons/Eng_AfficheCanonGET.php?IdCanonAffiche=794 2024-08-27 www.passioncompassion1418.comOrtner, p. 518-519 It seems likely that surviving M. 15 guns were rebuilt after the war to M. 15/16 standards. During the Twenties, guns in Italian service were relined and given new wheels by Vickers-Terni. In June 1940 Italy had 29 Cannone da 152/37 in service. By the time of the Italian capitulation this number had declined to 17.Heavy Artillery Chamberlain Peter 1975 Arco Gander Terry 0668038985 New York 2143869 Photo Gallery References Bibliography Chamberlain, Peter & Gander, Terry. Heavy Artillery. New York: Arco, 1975 0-668-03898-5 Gander, Terry and Chamberlain, Peter. Weapons of the Third Reich: An Encyclopedic Survey of All Small Arms, Artillery and Special Weapons of the German Land Forces 1939-1945. New York: Doubleday, 1979 0-385-15090-3 Ortner, M. Christian. The Austro-Hungarian Artillery From 1867 to 1918: Technology, Organization, and Tactics. Vienna, Verlag Militaria, 2007 978-3-902526-13-7 External links https://web.archive.org/web/20120222064253/http://www.landships.freeservers.com/new_pages/15cm_autokanone_m15_info.htm February 22, 2012 The Autokanone M 15/16 on Landships Category:World War I guns Category:World War I artillery of Austria-Hungary Category:152 mm artillery