The SPA AS.37 was an Italian military light truck, used during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. The AS.37 Autocarro Sahariano was developed from 1937 on the frame of the

TL.37 The TL.37 was an Italian military artillery tractor of World War II. It was manufactured by SPA (''Società Piemontese Automobili''), an Italian car maker that was a subsidiary of Fiat. Development and history The tractor was chosen for the R ...

artillery tractor An artillery tractor, also referred to as a gun tractor, is a specialized heavy-duty form of tractor unit used to tow artillery pieces of varying weights and calibres. It may be wheeled, tracked, or half-tracked. Traction There are two ...

and was especially conceived to be employed in the North African desert. The most significant improvement of this new vehicle was its increased range: 900 km with added water tanks. The A.S.37 could transport 8 men and their equipment in its rear cargo box. The Autocarro Protetto 37 (A.P.37) was a light armoured personnel carrier variant. At least 200 were built and served in the Balkans and in Italy.

Overview

The military authorities did not judge the problem of desert vehicles urgent,

FIAT Fiat Automobiles S.p.A. (, , ; originally FIAT, it, Fabbrica Italiana Automobili di Torino, lit=Italian Automobiles Factory of Turin) is an Italian automobile manufacturer, formerly part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, and since 2021 a subsidiary ...

, supported by Marshal

Italo Balbo Italo Balbo (6 June 1896 – 28 June 1940) was an Italian fascist politician and Blackshirts' leader who served as Italy's Marshal of the Air Force, Governor-General of Libya and Commander-in-Chief of Italian North Africa. Due to his young ...

, Governor of

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Su ...

launched its own initiative which resulted in the A.S.37. The first 200 A.S.37 specimens were sent Libya in 1938 and were assigned to Commando LED the Sahara Libico and to Autogruppo della Tripolitania. Marshal Balbo wanted to use A.S.37's for the motorization of the Company Sahariane, which was to have 22 vehicles. In March 1942, 584 A.S.37 were in service, and by April 30, 1943 a total of 802 were in service in North Africa. The A.P.37 was a specialized armored carrier variant protected with 6-8mm of armor and usually armed with 1 x 8mm Breda machine gun. Troop carrying capacity was typically 7x troops. The A.P.37 variant was only deployed to Italy and the Balkans. https://www.quartermastersection.com/italian/afvs/749/AS37 The crews of A.S.37 put forth very favourable judgements on these vehicles; their four-wheel drive and large diameter wheels prevented them from becoming easily bogged down. The A.S.37 principal defect lay in a silhouette too high and thus too visible.

Bibliography

* Gli Autoveicoli tattici E logistici del Regio Esercito Italiano fino Al 1943, tomo secondo, Stato Maggiore dell' Esercito, Ufficio Storico, Nicola Pignato & Filippo Cappellano, 2005 * Gli Autoveicoli del Regio Esercito nella Assisted Guerra Mondiale, Nicola Pignato, Storia Militare * Dal TL 37 all ' A.S. 43, It trattore leggero, the autocarro sahariano, I derivati, artigliery, GMT, Nicola Pignato, Filippo Cappellano

References

{{WWIIItalianAFVs World War II vehicles of Italy Artillery tractors Military trucks of Italy Military vehicles introduced in the 1930s SPGs. SPAs. Armored cars and trucks of 1937