WWII Tech Pubs Briefing

Written by
Duane Godwin

As French forces reel from the German onslaught, a rearguard anti-tank unit waits at a crossroads for the imminent arrival of the German spearheads.

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Overview

From 1918 to 1938, the French Army had employed the 75-mm (2.95-in) modèle 1897 field gun in the artillery anti-tank role, but while this gun was an effective anti-tank weapon, it was too heavy to be transported quickly.

In 1938, the French Army selected the Atelier Puteaux (APX) 47 mm as its new anti-tank gun.  APX had proposed the 47-mm (1.85-in) gun, developed in the 1920s, as an infantry weapon in 1934.  Like many French anti-tank guns, it was based on a naval gun, the Canon de marine modèle 1902.  Although too heavy for the infantry at 900 kg (1,984 lb), the gun was accepted by the artillery.

The French Army ordered the gun, called the Canon de 47 antichar (anti-tank 47 cannon) SA modèle 1937 Atelier Puteaux L/53 (often shortened to SA 37 APX), but insisted on so many changes that it was not produced immediately.  The production of tungsten-composition ammunition took longer than planned, but by May 1940, the army fielded 1,200 guns.  The SA 37 L/53 was the most powerful anti-tank gun in the world until the advent of the PaK 40.  It could penetrate any German armor at long range, and the Germans learned to respect it.  The SA 37 L/53 usually operated in batteries of six, and most were towed into action behind Somua half-tracks.

The SA 37 L/53 also armed anti-tank vehicles such as the Laffly W15 TCC tank hunter (based on a 6x6 Laffly truck).  By mid June 1940, 70 Laffly W15 TCCs had been produced, and their high mobility and firepower had allowed them to rack up a huge kill ratio.

The Germans captured many SA 37 L/53s, and used them widely as the PaK 181(f) and PaK 183(f). They were used against the Allies after the D-Day landings in June 1944.

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Specifications