7 cm Gebirgsgeschütz M 99

7 cm Gebirgsgeschütz M 99
A Gebirgsgeschütz M 99 in action
Type	Mountain gun
Place of origin	Austria-Hungary
Service history
In service	1902?-1918
Used by	Austria-Hungary
Wars	World War I
Production history
Designed	1899-1902
Number built	300
Specifications
Weight	315 kilograms (694 lb)
Shell	4.68 kg (10.3 lb)
Caliber	70 millimetres (2.8 in)
Breech	eccentric interrupted screw
Recoil	none
Carriage	box trail
Elevation	-10° to +26°
Muzzle velocity	310 m/s (1,000 ft/s)
Maximum firing range	4,800 m (5,200 yd)

The 7 cm Gebirgsgeschütz M 99 was a mountain gun used by Austria-Hungary during World War I. It was obsolete upon introduction as it had a bronze barrel, a spring-loaded spade to absorb the recoil forces and it had to be relaid after every shot. The high elevations required of mountain guns greatly complicated the provision of barrel recoil systems as the breech could recoil into the ground, and it would be some years before satisfactory systems were worked out. These would result in the 7 cm Gebirgsgeschütz M 8 and M 9 that used the same barrel and ammunition as the M 99, but had gun shields and more advanced recoil systems. These guns weighed 402 kilograms (886 lb) and 456 kilograms (1,005 lb) respectively, although the exact differences between them are unclear other than they broke down into four and five loads for transport respectively.

The Gebirgsgeschütz M 99 broke down into three loads for transport.

References

• Ortner, M. Christian. Austro-Hungarian Artillery From 1867 to 1918: Technology, Organization, and Tactics. Vienna, Verlag Militaria, 2007 ISBN 978-3-902526-13-7

External links

• Gebirgsgeschütz M 99 on Landships