Battistelli, Paolo Corazzati nel deserto

Le forze italiane in Africa settentrionale nel 1942. Studi e documenti

In the spring of 1942, the Italian armed forces in North Africa were completely reorganised on the basis of experience gained in the desert war and the German example. Armoured vehicles became increasingly important and supplemented the medium tanks already in use in the desert since 1940 with the new L 6 light tanks, 75 mm self-propelled guns and AB 41 armoured cars. A better understanding of the enemy forces was gained, enabling their strengths and weaknesses to be assessed and exploited. The many shortcomings and existing strengths of the Italian vehicles were examined. The focus of training was on the training centres. These completely reorganised units successfully participated in Rommel's offensive against the Gazala Line, the first step in a battle that ended in June with the capture of Tobruk. This was followed by the advance into Egypt as far as El Alamein. Here, the Italian forces, which had been put to the test, suffered their first setbacks and the offensive came to an end. This book examines in detail the reorganisation and subsequent deployment of Italian army units in North Africa in 1942. It supplements the text with a very interesting and unpublished report that highlights all the shortcomings of the M tanks and emphasises their strengths thanks to combat reports and technical analyses, which also cover the new AB 41 armoured cars.