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During the '50s, continuing a path that had begun to trace already in the Second World War, there had been an
unstoppable development in the quality and reliability of the wagons.

This fact, combined with the large number of vehicles put into service by the two opposing blocs, had contributed to
making the threat posed on the battlefield by the armored units even more fearful than in the past. This progress, of
course, also concerned the ammunition and the guns, both those used on the wagons and those intended to counter the
threat posed by the carts themselves.

The need to equip infantry units with light, maneuverable and powerful anti-tank weapons led to the forced choice to favor
quarry-laden ammunition, mainly used by cannons without recoil and by those anti-tank missile systems that then took
their first steps.
At this point the analysis of the guns, mounted on the wagons or not, is outside my current analysis, maybe we'll talk
about it next time. I would like to focus our attention on anti-tank missile systems, which were developed in those years
and on the models that came into service in our army.

It was the French of the North Aviation to give birth to the first truly efficient anti-tank missile system, the SS-10.
If today its 1500 meters of range does not impress us at all we have to think about what this figure represented in the mid-
50s: bringing about more or less about forty kilos between missile, coil and driving system could be fired, with reasonable
probability to hit the mark, a head with a hollow charge weighing 5,5 kg from a non-standard position that needed a few
minutes for its preparation, at a distance, 1500 meters, in fact, previously unthinkable for a system of that encumbrance
and of that weight that until then simply did not exist.

It was a not indifferent commercial success, estimated 30,000 copies produced (and sold).
Naturally our cousins from beyond the Alps did not sleep on their laurels and perfected the original model according to
two trends.
The first led to the implementation of ENAC (ENgine Telèguidè AntiChar), of similar size and weight to the SS-10 but with
improved range and control.
the control assembly, note the binoculars and the control lever.
The second line of development led to the SS-11, substantially larger and more powerful (weight at launch doubled) and
with a useful range of just over 3000 meters. The ENTAC was still widely usable by a team that had been installed while
the SS-11 was destined mainly, but not exclusively, for "mounted" use on both vehicles and helicopters. The first
produced 130,000 pieces, or 160,000 or, say some, 180,000, every comment is superfluous.
Their diffusion was very wide and among the several dozens of armed forces who endowed it, the US Army figured. While
waiting for the US industry to produce something of its own, the SS-10 was first adopted, followed by the ENTAC and the
SS-11 systems, which were destined to be integrated into the field in view of the their different performances and
characteristics. There was a widespread belief that a national product would soon be adopted, which was not so rapid
and if the SS-10 was short-lived, the other two remained in inventory until the early 1970s.
A signal of what was felt by the US Army, the urgency of putting these systems into service can be grasped by the fact
that they were distributed while retaining their original French designation, which was quite unusual.
Finally, in 1963, the official US designation arrived and then the SS-10 became MGM-21, ENTAC was the MGM-32 and
finally the SS-11 became the AGM-22 but the damage now it was done and almost no one ever used official
designations.

And from us?

Our army also equipped itself with an anti-tank line that included the integration of medium and large-range missiles and
sr cannons.
For use at longer distances the SS-11 was adopted in variant B1, ie with a transistorized guide system (!).
The "Cobra" and "Mosquito" models of similar performance characteristics were introduced into service at smaller
distances, the first produced by the German MBB the second developed by the Swiss Oerlikon-Contraves and produced
in Italy by Contraves-Italy.

Reading the characteristics of the SS-11 B1 we learn that we are in our hands a guided wire-guided missile, self-
propelled, rotated by means of rotation, telegramed on the target by means of electronic pulses of varying intensity and
polarity, produced by a special generator and transmitted to the missile through two conducting wires.
And so he continues:
The weapon is of complex structure but of safe and effective use against armored targets at distances between 500 and
3000 meters. It can be used from the ground or from the cockpit installed on VCTT and on helicopters.

The listed benefits include:

- the high destructive power,

- maximum shooting accuracy even at long distances,
- the speed and effectiveness of use since, within certain limits, it is not necessary to estimate the distance and speed of
the target,
- the possibility of launching from unfilled positions,
- the ease of concealment and masking,
- the possibility, for the shooter, of being in a different position from that of launching the missile.

Here is the summary of the salient data:

The composition of the team, foreseen within the c / c companies of the infantry regiments, bersaglieri and wagons, was
as follows:

1 non-commissioned commanding officer, shooter;

1 graduated serving;
1 graduated radiophonist;
2 soldiers supplyers;
1 VCTT pilot;
1 VCTT

Below are the images of the missile action area (also mentioned in the previous table) and of the ignition sequence of the
starting and cruising engines.
For the moment I have run out of time at my disposal.

I will come back to this topic shortly, continuing the discussion on the SS-11 and giving some information on Cobra and
Mosquito.

I add a small contribution taken from a well-known carrista site where you can see the SS11 missiles on board
an AMX12 troop carrier of the counter-tank company of the 183rd Nembo Infantry Regiment, mid-1960s:

http://digilander.libero.it/pmg/contributi/carlo_f/amx12fm.jpg

ontinuous / second part

In my previous post we just had time to mention the general characteristics of our SS-11 B1, now the time has
come to deepen the topic a little.
If the missile (one or more) is placed on a vehicle we find it nice and ready, already mounted on its support,
what taste is there you say, we are interested to see what happens in land use starting from the disassembled and
stowed complex for transport.

In the simplest case, launching a single missile, we are faced with three cases, one contains all the commands,
one contains the disassembled missile and one contains the drums of the connection cables. In the case of
multiple launches, multiply the number of missile cases up to a maximum of six.
The packing box of the shooting post
The box containing the single dismounted missile
The team commander (only shooter), according to the orders received, chooses the place where to prepare the
station and indicates the arrangement of the missiles. The servant and the two suppliers complete the station
according to the instructions received.
The shooter pulls the T10K control box out of the box, mounts it and checks it, tests the efficiency of the
circuits and the battery charge (it should be all in order since a specialized electromechanical platoon has
already checked everything before) .
Three views of the T10K, first disassembled and finally ready for use, the binoculars are a 10X35 with 155 ° of
field of vision.

In the following photo the n. 1 of the legend indicates the knob of the switch, is that which materially fires the
missile.
Even the missile is extracted from the box that contains it and mounted on the spot, you have to assemble the
front and the rear interposing the battery pack (without which it is not possible to join the other two pieces), a
simple short circuit allows to evaluate the charge of the same.
If the launch is single, simply connect the control box to the missile using one of the seven-pole cables
supplied. Here is how the complex appears, the shooter will settle on the side (upwind) with respect to the
missile.

Some instructions on the optimal arrangement of the very simple launching pad, obtained from the same
transport container.
If multiple launches are to be made, the individual missiles (up to six) will be connected, each via its own
seven-pin cable, to the selection box, guarded by the servant, then the same box is connected to the T10K via a
19-pole cable , through this cable also runs a telephone line that allows the linking of the shooter (box T10K)
with the servant (selection box). The seven-pole cable is available in two versions, one 15 meters long and
another 100 meters long, to launch from a secluded position.
Preparation for multiple launches
The selection box, the selection switch, allows you to select the missile to be started.
These few lines and the following illustration summarize the missile driving technique.
The armament of the quill happened after the completion of the flight of a variable distance between 200 and
400 meters. In the two following illustrations the synoptic table of the warheads and the relative illustration
The ability to exploit the full potential of the weapon system was largely related to the goodness of the training
received by the shooter. My never forgotten instructor, officer of the Bersaglieri, during the courses for
graduated told of impossible centers and incredible evolutions performed by the most skillful shooters.

hird part, the last one

To conclude this brief overview of the first c / c missiles entered into service in the ranks of our army, we can
only say something about the two medium-range systems designed to integrate the most powerful system we
have already examined.

We have mentioned the Cobra and the Mosquito at the opening of discussion, let's see now to know them
better.

Here we can compare them dimensionally with their western coevians.

The two had similar, lighter and more maneuverable characteristics than the SS-11, as well as VCTT's intended
for use by AR and, of course, from the ground.

The missiles had cylindrical - trunk - conical body. Equipped with four wings arranged in a cross, placed at the
back of the cylindrical body. Each wing was equipped with an interceptor that, remotely controlled, exercised
the functions of driving the missile.

The Cobra.
The Mosquito.
The guide was secured by a remote control box, the shooter using a lever and via a conductive cable transmitted
to the projectile the necessary course corrections bringing it to align with the target. On impact the operation of
the quill caused the detonation of the charge contained in the head.

The Cobra remote control box.

The propulsion was ensured by a two-stage solid propellant charge, one for the departure and one for the flight.

The maximum range, in both cases, was about 2000 meters.

In the case of the Cobra it was possible to prepare a multiple launching post for up to eight missiles, only six,
for the Mosquito.

The necessary to prepare the single Mosquito station

The Cobra was normally equipped with a hollow charge drill head, an inert head for shooting training is also
available.
In the warhead the quill was armed automatically after 3 seconds of flight (three hundred meters).

On the Mosquito, besides the perforated hollow drill, an explosive anti-personnel head could be mounted, the
inert training head had a parachute to facilitate its recovery and re-employment.

In the two war heads the activation of the spool could be automatic (3 seconds of flight) or controlled by the
shooter or the servant, excluding the automatism before the fire, the shooter reserved to activate the spool by
means of a special command on the control box before impact with the target.

The wire guided missile team was as follows:

- a non-commissioned squad commander;
- a serving graduate;
- a serving soldier;
- a conductor soldier (radio player)
- an AR with a ¼ ton trailer.
The same team could be mounted on VCTT

A Mosquito ready to launch.

Here is his flight profile.
The performance chart of the Mosquito .......
....... and that of the Cobra.
As already mentioned, the effectiveness of these weapon systems was linked to the degree of training of the
shooter, his ability to control the missile, insensitive to the evasive maneuvers of his prey and to the hail of
bullets that presumably would fall on him as soon as he it was understood from which side the missile departed
that needed to be guided with firmness and precision until the impact.

The most widespread use of wire-guided c / c missiles in their election task took place during the Kippur war. It
was the protagonist of the Soviet AT 3 Sagger, in all similar to the Mosquito if not for the range of about three
thousand meters.

In the early days of the conflict the Egyptians made a very wide use of it, unthinkable even for the most
pessimistic among Israeli analysts. After a few days, play or die, Israeli tankmen had developed evasive
techniques based on the movement and fire of the machine guns that effectively countered the work of Egyptian
shooters. The result was to have chariots literally draped by the guide wires of dodged missiles, with exhausted
but live crews.

By the time of that conflict the first-generation wire-guided missile could already be considered overtaken by
missiles in the "tube", as often happens, however, when they pull on you, it was also an obsolete weapon, there
is no Jane's almanac that takes. No consolation if you leave your skin for a system that was snubbed in the
specialized magazines as now outdated.

Until recently it was possible to consult, on the Fort Knox Armored School website, several interesting articles
on the lessons learned from the experiences of Israeli tankers, now I went to look for them without finding them
again.

With this I think it's all for now

The publications at the base of my previous posts are dated 1966 and there is no indication that they replace previous
instructions on the same system. Therefore, they would appear first on the subject.

By their nature, and as already mentioned, manual-guided missiles (so-called first generation) based their effectiveness
entirely on the skill of the shooter, whose skills had to be refined and maintained with constant and expensive training.

Two consequences: the presence, within the team, of a single shooter and the fact that he was not a conscript.

The subsequent semi-automatic guided missiles (so-called second generation) did not require special training, it was
enough to keep the target at the center of the reticle, point. At the head of thirty meters the missile was enslaved to the
driving system and traveled to the target at almost twice the speed of its predecessors who had to limit them to adapt to
the limits imposed by the reaction times of human reflexes.

If, on the one hand, the possibility of removing the launcher from the shooter from the other side had disappeared, on the
other hand, even a graded lever could perform the task of a shooter.

While we are here, do you think that you know better, during an upcoming discussion, the 106 sr?
Of course if you agree

The formation of the missile platoons c / ca medium (Cobra and Mosquito) and large (SS-11) range begins from January
1, 1963 (with provision for sanctions of the following April).
Initially such platoons c / c were organically constituted at the following departments:

medium-range systems
- cp. experimental c / c and cp. command of the III / 17 ° rgt.f. Acqui (demonstration battalion available to the Cesano
Infantry School)
- cp. command of the btg.alp. Aosta (demonstration unit of the Alpine Military School)
- cp. command of the battalion paratroopers and BEDs
- cp. counterships of the Bersaglieri battalions
- sq. command of the exploding squadron groups of the armored divisions

large-range systems
- cp. experimental c / c of the Infantry School (see above)
- cp. regimental command of the infantry, bersaglieri and armored regiments of the infantry and armored divisions
(bridging provision pending the establishment of the counter-tank companies at regiment level).

I resume this old but always interesting discussion to insert (finally) an "operational" image of the Mosquito system c / a
throwing average supplied to the Italian Army.
In this case we are talking about the systems supplied to the "Folgore" paratroopers during the great "Pantera" exercise
held at the end of September 1975 on the Meduna-Cellina and organized within the Aries division at the time of its
reorganization and articulation on the three brigades Mameli, Manin and Garibaldi.