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4th Tank Battalion "M.O. Passalacqua"
Italian Army tank unit / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 4th Tank Battalion "M.O. Passalacqua" (Italian: 4° Battaglione Carri "M.O. Passalacqua") is an inactive tank battalion of the Italian Army, which was based in Solbiate Olona in Lombardy and last operationally assigned to the Mechanized Brigade "Legnano". The unit's lineage traces back to the World War II IV Tank Battalion M13/40, which was formed in October 1940 by the depot of the 32nd Tank Infantry Regiment and attached to the 131st Armored Division "Centauro" for the Greco-Italian War. In April 1942, the battalion was transferred to the 133rd Tank Infantry Regiment, with which it deployed to Libya for the Western Desert campaign. In November 1942, the regiment and battalion were destroyed during the Second Battle of El Alamein. In 1959 the battalion was reformed and assigned to the 31st Tank Regiment. In 1963, the battalion was transferred to the 3rd Bersaglieri Regiment. In 1975 the battalion was renamed 4th Tank Battalion "M.O. Passalacqua". In 1992, the battalion was disbanded and its personnel used to form the 67th Armored Infantry Regiment "Legnano".[1]
4th Tank Battalion "M.O. Passalacqua" | |
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4° Battaglione Carri "M.O. Passalacqua" | |
![]() Battalion coat of arms | |
Active | 8 Oct. 1940 — 8 Dec. 1942 1 Feb. 1959 — 27 Aug. 1992 |
Country | ![]() |
Branch | Italian Army |
Part of | Mechanized Brigade "Legnano" |
Garrison/HQ | Solbiate Olona |
Motto(s) | "Oltre il fuoco" |
Anniversaries | 1 October 1927 |
Insignia | |
Tank units gorget patches |
Originally the unit, like all Italian tank units, was part of the army's infantry arm, but on 1 June 1999 the tankers specialty was transferred from the infantry arm to the cavalry arm. The battalion's anniversary falls, as for all tank units, which have not yet distinguished themselves on the battlefield, on 1 October 1927, the day the tankers speciality was founded.[1]