WesWorld

January 8th 1935- Lt Col Korne was in Goteburg waiting for the ferry that was taking him to Denmark and from there a train ride to the Netherlands. Korne hated flying and he preferred the longer travel that taking a flight to the Netherlands, especially in this winter weather.

His report of his evaluation of the equipment of Nordmark was already in the hands of the embassy in Stockholm, his findings so far making his trip a very informative one. He wanted to visit the Netherlands and Great Britain before the end of the month so he knew he was going to be busy the next couple of weeks.

Excerpts from Lt Col Korne report:

"visiting Nordmark during the Holidays was a mistake... they only showed me obsolete vehicles they wanted to get rid of..."

"the last days were very interesting... I was showed the production lines for the new Nordmark tank and was very impressed...Over 20ktons... similar to the Lt-35... only showed the infantry support version with a 76.2mm howitzer... unknown to me what will be the main antitank gun...interesting to me that nations so far are moving from the concept of cruiser and infantry tanks and are designing tanks in the 20ktons range... have my doubts they could fill our order of 150 tanks if their plans are to use this vehicle to replace the current tanks in their inventory(1)....still a good candidate to try to get a license..."

(1) an order of 150 tanks is close to ten tanks per month if we go with a peacetime production. They are supposed to start production in January 1935 and if accepting this order they could be forced to slow down their issue to their own armed forces. That why Korne considers that while he can see them accepting they could be hard pressed to fill the order in the alloted time.

January 22nd 1935- Lt Col Korne was more than pleased while staring at the Dutch coast, a passenger on a ship taking him to Great Britain. He considered the visit to the Dutch the one with more possibilities so far.

While their equipment was exactly as the one in Czechoslovaquia(1) they were more amicable to deal than their Czech counterparts. So while his trip wasn't nothing to talk about in regard to the equipment (2) he was than satisfied of the business side of things.

Excerpts of Lt Col Korne report

"The Lt-33 is the current Dutch vehicle in service plus they are starting full production of the Lt-35 in their local Skoda factories...Government and local Skoda officials are more than amicable to try to fit our needs...I'm now sure the way of the future are the 20ktons tanks...Every single nation so far I have visited except Poland (3) are planning the production of a tank on the 20kton range but each nation is in different stages of development."

(1) Lt-33 and Lt-35 tanks.

(2) he already observed those vehicles in Brno. He continues to be impress by their capabilites. The advantage they have is they already are in full production both in the Netherlands and in Czechoslovaquia.

(3) Poland's decision to began development of a 20kton tank was two months after Korne's visit to Poland.

February 8th 1935- Lt Col Korne left the Romanian embassy in London after delivering his report, his next destination being France. He was very pleased by the time he spent in Great Britain with Vickers being very interested in doing business, the quantity of vehicles showed to him sometimes overwhelming.

Excerpts of Lt Col Korne report:

"the Vickers 6 ton(1) was offered for license but while the vehicle was the standard at the beginning of the decade they are now being left behind by the new tanks entering production..."

"...Vickers new cruiser tanks(2) are an interesting design... two similar versions are being developed alongside each other...one being better protected than the other one but at the same time slower... the better protected version very similar in characteristics to the Lt-33(3)...could make a decent purchase..."

"...Vickers is also producing an infantry tanks(4)...a Royal Arsenal designed infantry tank is being produced by Vulcan Foundry... is protected by as much as 78mm armor and weights 27 tons(5)...the problems is the painful slow speed of the vehicle..."

"...off the record informed that indeed they were in the early stages of developing a 20 ton cruiser tank...they could be using an aircraft engine for propulsion and heavier guns than the ones already in service...(6)(7)"

(1)Weight 7.3 tonnes
Length 4.88 m
Width 2.41 m
Height 2.16 m
Crew 3
Armor 13 mm
Primary
armament 47 mm gun (Type B only)
50 rounds
Secondary
armament 1 or 2 machine guns
Engine gasoline
80–98 hp (60–70 kW)
Power/weight 11–13 hp/tonne
Suspension leaf spring bogie
Operational
range 160 km
Speed 35 km/h

(2) Cruiser tank A9
Weight 13 tonnes
Length 5.8 m
Width 2.5 m
Height 2.65 m
Crew 6 (Commander, gunner, loader, driver, 2x MG gunners)
Armour 6 - 14 mm
Primary
armament QF 2-pdr
100 rounds
Secondary
armament 3 x 0.303 Vickers MG
3,000 rounds
Engine AEC diesel
150 hp
Power/weight hp/tonne
Suspension Bogie
Operational
range 241 km
Speed 40 km/h

(3)Cruiser tank A10
Weight 14.3 tonnes
Length 18 ft 4 in (5.5 m)
Width 8 ft 4 in (2.6 m)
Height 8 ft 8 in (2.5 m)
Crew 5 (Commander, loader, gunner, driver, Hull MG gunner)
Armour 6 - 30 mm
Primary
armament OQF 2pdr
100 rounds
Secondary
armament two Vickers/BESA Machine guns
4,050 rounds
Engine AEC Type A179 6-Cylinder Petrol
150 hp
Suspension triple wheel bogie with coil spring
Operational
range 100 miles (road)
Speed 16 mph (road)
8 mph (off-road)

(4) Matilda Mk I
Weight 11 Long tons
Length 4.85 m (18 ft 5 in)
Width 2.28 m (8 ft 6 in)
Height 1.86 m (8 ft 3 in)
Crew 2 (commander/gunner, driver)
Armour 10–60 mm
Primary
armament .303 or .50 inch Vickers MG
4,000 rounds
Secondary
armament none
Engine Ford V8 petrol,
70 hp (52 kW)
Suspension Sprung bogie
Operational
range 80 miles (128.7 km)
Speed 8 mph (12.87 km/h),
off road: 5.6 mph (9 km/h)

(5)Matilda Mk II
Weight 27 long tons (27 tonnes)
Length 15 ft 11 in (6.0 m)
Width 8 ft 6 in (2.6 m)
Height 8 ft 3 in (3.5 m)
Crew 4 (Driver, gunner, loader, commander)
Armour 78 mm
Primary
armament QF 2 pdr (40 mm),br>93 rounds
Secondary
armament 7.92 mm BESA machine gun
2,925 rounds
Engine 2 × diesel, AEC or Leyland 6-Cylinder
180 hp (134 kW)
Power/weight 6.55 hp/tonne
Suspension Horizontal coil spring
Operational
range 80 km
Speed 15 mph (24 km/h) road
9 mph (15 km/h) off-road

(6) OOC: I was informed the vehicle will be powered by a modified Peregrine engine and armed by a 3 pounder and a 6 pounder in the infantry support mode. The british government will give more details later on.

(7) All the British vehicles mentioned above just entering production in early 1934 except for the one in development. Quantities in service are limited.

January 18th 1935- The Romanian government issued the following statement in regard to the Teschen border dispute:

"While we sympathize with Poland's concerns for the region we consider than a plebiscite will not be prudent at this time and other ways should be found to resolve the problems between Poland and Czechoslovaquia."

February 13th 1935- Lt Col Korne crumpled the communique he received from Romania and smiled. "We will release the funds for the license of the vehicles you recommended." was the short line send by the Cavalry Corps.

He knew that meant the previous plans need to be changed but the vehicles were needed if the mechanization of the Romanian forces was going forward. Korne grab the phone in his hotel room and made two calls, one to Renault and the other to Panhard and indicated them the license agreement for the vehicles discussed will be paid as they requested.(1) (2)

(1) the Renault UE tractor historically received a license to be build in Romania.
Weight 2.64 metric tons
Length 2.80 m
Width 1.74 m
Height 1.25 m
Crew 2
Armor 9 mm
Engine Renault 85
38 hp
Payload capacity 350 kg in cargo bin; 950 kg with trailer
Suspension leaf spring
Ground clearance 30 cm
Fuel capacity 56 litres
Operational
range 100 km
Speed 30 km/h


(2) the Panhard 178 armored car is an advanced vehicle for their time. If we go by WW 5 year rule they are already in service in the French Army. Romanian version will carry their standard 37mm AT gun and their 7.92mm machinegun.
Weight 8.2 tonnes
Length 4.79 m with gun
Width 2.01 m
Height 2.31 m
Crew 4
Armor 20 mm
Primary
armament 25 mm SA 35 cannon
Secondary
armament 7.5 mm Reibel machine gun
Engine Panhard SK
105 hp
Operational
range 300 km
Speed 72 km/h


OOC: The French armored vehicles of the 1930's were in the tech edge of their time and they still are in WW's 1935. Their main weakness is the one man turret and the short range of their main battle tank the Char B1. Maybe the Admiral will take care of that problem later but the French and the Russians have the most powerful tank forces in WW right in early 1935. Of course with the new designs their tanks could get obsolete fast, especially the French.

Quoted

Originally posted by perdedor99

(2) the Panhard 178 armored car is an advanced vehicle for their time. If we go by WW 5 year rule.

In general I personally view that as applying to aeronautical related technology.

Quoted

Originally posted by Kaiser Kirk

Quoted

Originally posted by perdedor99

(2) the Panhard 178 armored car is an advanced vehicle for their time. If we go by WW 5 year rule.

In general I personally view that as applying to aeronautical related technology.

IOTL a production run of thirty was made in 1935. The majority of the French vehicles were designed in the early 1930's and I have seen many cases here were vehicles are a couple of years ahead of schedule.

February 26th 1935- Lt Col Korne observed the Alps while sitting in the train taking him to his next stop, Italy. He spent 20 days in France, observing the vehicles produced by the many French companies and at the same time meeting old acquitances from the Cavalry School in Samur. He was truly impressed by the French vehicles but he recognized their designs could not match the new ones coming out in the near future.

Excerpts from Lt Col Korne report:

"the Ft-17 continues to be around but being phased out... more common in the minor colonies according to some of my friends(1)..."

"the Char D2(2) is the main battle tank of the French army...being phased after a short construction run by newer designs..."

"the Hotchkiss light tank(3) designs entered production early last year...being issued to cavalry units...problems with performance in open terrain and explain the reason not issued to infantry...

"the Renault light tank(4) began replacing the Ft-17 tank as the light tank...pretty good armor but main concern is the one man turret...being constructed at a very rapid pace to replace the older Ft-17..."

"the Somua cavalry tank(5) is the best I have seeing so farin French inventory... an excellent overall vehicle except for the one man turret...entered production in the middle of last year...was informed by Somua executives due to their production contract with the French government they are not for sale...attempts to get a license also failed..."

"the heavy tank (6) is so costly is being produced by many companies...well protected and armed but slow...I can see this vehicle is being seeing as the bench mark all other nations are trying to defeat...Renault agreed to sell 40 of them...three batches with final delivery by May 1936...(7)"

(1) former collegues from the Cavalry School

(2)Char D1
Weight 20 tonnes
Crew 3
Armor 40 mm
Primary
armament 47mm SA34 Gun, later models 47mm SA35 Gun
Secondary
armament 2x MG
Engine
120 hp
Suspension vertical springs
Speed 23 km/h

(3)Hotchkiss H34
Weight 11 tonnes
Length 4.22 m
Width 1.95 m
Height 2.15 m
Crew two
Armor 40 mm turret, 34 mm hull
Primary
armament 37 mm SA 18 gun
Secondary
armament 7.5 mm Châttelerault machine gun
Engine six cylinder 3480 cc
78 hp
Suspension horizontal helical springs
Fuel capacity 180 litres
Operational
range 129 km
Speed 28 km/h

(4) R-34 tank
Weight 10.6 metric ton
Length 4.02 m
Width 1.87 m
Height 2.13 m
Crew 2
Armor 43 mm
Primary
armament 37 mm L/21 SA18
Secondary
armament 7.5 mm MAC31 Reibel machine gun
Engine Renault V-4
85 hp (63 kW)
Power/weight 8.0 hp/ton
Suspension horizontal rubber cylinder springs
Operational
range 130 km
Speed 20 km/h

(5) S-34 tank
Weight 19.5 t
Length 5.38 m
Width 2.12 m
Height 2.62 m
Crew 3 (driver, radio operator/purveyor, commander/gunner)
Armor 47 mm
Primary
armament 47 mm SA 35 gun
Secondary
armament 7.5 mm Mitrailleuse mle 1931 optionally coaxial
Engine SOMUA V-8 petrol
190 hp (140 kW)
Suspension leaf spring bogies
Fuel capacity 510 litres
Operational
range off-road ~130 km, road ~230 km
Speed 40.7 km/h (off-road: 32.2 km/h)

(6) Char B1 tank
Weight 32 tonnes
Length 6.37 m
Width 2.46 m
Height 2.79 m
Crew 4
Armor 60 mm
Primary
armament 47 mm SA 34
Secondary
armament 75 mm ABS SA 35 howitzer and 2 x 7.5 mm Reibel machine guns
Engine petrol
272 hp
Power/weight 9.7 hp/tonne
Suspension bogies with a mixture of vertical coil and leaf springs
Operational
range 200 km
Speed 28 km/h, 21 km/h off-road

(7) Romanian tanks will be armed with 45mm guns and 7.92mm machienguns. the vehicles were historically difficult to make and expensive. Overcharging the Romanians could make possible for Renault to build more of their less expensive tanks for France.

February 27th 1935- Lt General Ion Sichitiu(1) have read the reports send by Korne personally from the very first one. He was ready to retire by the end of the year but he knew the original order of 150 tanks existed no more.

The competition between the Infantry and Cavalry(2)branches to build the first mechanized force in the Romanian Army was turning into a spending spree. The Cavalry approved funds for the purchase of French tractors and armored cars while the Infantry approved a purchase of French heavy tanks. He meanwhile sat on the sidelines, knowing the Air Corps will be the one suffering the consequences(3) for the inmediate future but he wasn't going to get involved in the internal struggle between the branches so close to his retirement. He also knew that with luck his successor could have not one but two armored divisions under his command.

(1) Chief of Staff of the Romanian Army.

(2) Two divisions will be build, one by the Cavalry and one by the Infantry. They willbe using different models for each but the advantage will for the Cavalry because they will get the license to build more tanks while the Infantry will be forced to purchase.

(3) they will start production of some aircrafts by the end of the year but their air forces will be weak compared with others in the region.

March 3rd 1935- Lt Col Korne observed his colleagues from the Romanian Infantry branch dining at the hotel's restaurant and shook his head. Korne's reports of his trip thru Europe were read by the lead military minds in Romania and the Infantry recognized that indeed armored vehicles were the future of warfare, but as infantry support.

Now Korne found himself not purchasing tanks for Romania but for the Cavalry branch, except for the French heavy tanks tasked to the infantry. The new arrivals were being escorted tomorrow to observe some of the Italians tanks and to observe the organization of one of their armored divisions.(1) Korne was doing his own separate and independent research, knowing full well his competitors most likely will follow him to Iberia also.

-------------------------------------
Col Rudolph Schwab look in the direction of Lt Col Korne after finishing his meal and nodded his head in acknowledgement of his colleague from the Cavalry branch. He, together with six other senior infantry officers, were in a fact finding mission to try to find a model to raise their planned tank division. While many officers in the Romanian Army were francophiles the recent leanings of King Carol signalled a trend of some type of reaching out to Italy for guidance in military issues was going on and many officers also agreed with this, Schwab included. For his part Schwab also knew Korne was a francophile, a graduate of the French cavalry school at St Cyril, and he wasn't going to be surprised if he decided to purchase French tanks for his branch of service. (2)

(1) The Romanian Infantry designed tank division will mimic the Italian ones.

(2) Schwab is wrong.

March 29th 1935- The Romanian Army announced today the purchase of an undisclosed number of tanks, (1) self-propelled artillery (2) and anti tank guns from Italy with a delivery date no later than the last quarter of 1936. The purchase was considered by Lt General Ion Sichitiu(3) "a step in the right direction."

(1) add 5 extra tanks to the number in the Armored Division

(2) Semoventes. Add 5 to the number in the Armored Division.

(3) Chief of the Romanian General Staff.

March 24th 1935 - Lt Col Korne was sitting in the seaplane taking him first to the island of Majorca and later to Iberia to observe the vehicles of the Iberian Kingdom. He thought his colleagues in the Infantry branch were going to follow him to Iberia but he was wrong, they decided to purchase the export tank(1) recently designed as an after thought of the new joint Italo-Dutch self propelled gun chassis. (2) The infantry also ordered some 37mm Semoventes (3) and 47mm antitank guns(4). Korne was impressed by the Italians’ equipment but in reality his mind was already made up.

Excerpts from Korne’s report:

“M15/30 medium tanks are behind current new designs... not recommended for Cavalry duty.”

“Semoventes based in the M15/30 tank are very useful but in my opinion will not work in the projected unit.”

“The new armored cars (5) and tanks (6) designed for Africa are fast and very well armed for their size but they are some concerns with reliability, especially with the tank...”

(1)Length 6 meters
Width 2.6 meters
Height 2.4 meters
Crew 4 men
Engine 300 horsepower
Fuel Capacity 200 gallons
Combat Weight 24.5t
Growth Capability (Transmission) 6.2t
Growth Capability (Suspension) 5.4t
Ground Pressure 14.5psi
Power/Weight Ratio 12.1hp/ton
Top Speed 22.1mph
Operating Range 168m
Armament: 1x47/32 + 1x8mm Turret, 1x8mm hull
Effective armour
KE (mm)
Front Hull Armor 80
Side Hull Armor 47
Rear Hull Armor 42
Top Hull Armor 30
Hull Floor Armor 20
Front Turret Armor 50
Side Turret Armor 50
Rear Turret Armor 30
Top Turret Armor 30

(2) sixty two of them ordered by Romania also. Using same chassis of the export tank except no turret with a 100mm gun.

(3)Semovente S37/33
Based on previous M15/30 chassis
Crew 3
Engine 110hp - petrol
Weight 13 tons
Speed 35kph
Armament : 1 x 37/54, 1 x 6.5 MG
Length 4.92m
Width 2.20m
Height 1.60m
Armor 14 - 30mm

(4) 47mm Bohler AT guns

(5) AB34 armored car

(6) M13/34 tank with 47mm gun.

1. Modello 25/35



2. Semovente 105/35, starting trials in early 1935. Dutch version simpler but mounting 75/18 IIRC for an assault gun sort of thing. The Italian version is for mobile artillery and elevates up to 40°, the high trunnions limit use for direct fire. If this becomes necessary I'll cut the tops off.



3. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v12/red_admiral/S13_33.gif

6. The M13/34 has become to be regarded as a lump of useless junk totally unsuited to desert use after Italian trials. We'll have to see how they fair in South America...