Renault FT 75 BS
In service 1918 - 1930s
A close-support FT with a short 75 mm howitzer in a fixed casemate, built to blow up bunkers the 37 mm could not touch.
Built byRenault
Development history
The standard FT 37 mm gun could not break concrete, so Renault fitted a short 75 mm Blockhaus Schneider howitzer in a fixed superstructure in place of the turret. Only around forty were completed and few if any saw action before the Armistice, but the concept - a light chassis carrying a low-velocity gun for bunker-busting - reappeared in every army assault-gun thinking in the 1930s. Sources differ on the exact number built, generally given as 39 to 40.
Photo gallery
Period photographs with source and licence details.
Variants
One canonical record, 1 recorded variants.
FT 75 BS
1918Short 75 mm Blockhaus Schneider howitzer in a fixed casemate for bunker demolition.
Notable actions
- Late 1918 operations (limited)