M27 105mm Recoilless Rifle in obat12
Hi team -
Thanks again for all the work you do, I appreciate it. I haven't seen this topic in a search, so again please disregard if it has been discussed.
I just want to shine a spotlight on the M27 105mm recoilless rifle in obat12 (unit 261). It was adopted for regular infantry battalion heavy weapons companies with T/O&E 7-15 change 1 dated 30 September 1952; but the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team, dissatisfied with the bulk of the T8 90mm antitank gun, jumped without the T8s (replaced in the regimental support company with a third 4.2-inch mortar platoon), and replaced the 75mm recoilless rifles in the battalion heavy weapons companies with 105mm rifles, on their second combat drop at Munsan-ni on 22 March 1951. This is the earliest reference to the 105s I could find.
The M27 105mm recoilless rifle was mounted on a jeep, like the M40 series 106mm that replaced it; both could be demounted, the M27 105mm having a two-wheeled mount and the M40 106mm having a tripod with a single wheel on the front leg. The few references I've found on the 105mm in action show that it was fired from the mounted position, with a dedicated four-man crew on the jeep.
Regarding its replacement, the 106mm M40 was standardized in October 1954, and authorized with T/O&E 7-15R of February 1955. Knowing how long things take to field, especially during the lean Eisenhower years, it is conceivable that the last of the 105mm M27s didn't get replaced in active duty infantry battalions until the ROCID (aka Pentomic) TOE of 1957-58. The February 1955 T/O&E concurrently replaced the 75mm M20 recoilless rifles, making the recoilless rifle platoon 106mm-pure, but I don't know if it was a four-gun or six-gun platoon (leaning toward four-gun with reduction in manpower...a lot of that going on during Ike's administration). If you have a copy of this T/O&E, I would greatly appreciate if you would share it, thanks
John
|
Threaded Mode