Experimental French SAu 40 self-propelled gun based on the Somua S35 tank. The abandoned SPG has either artisanal or incomplete camouflage.
SAu40 was developed by SOMUA in 1935-1937. The SAU had a 75 mm gun mle.1929 and a single turret with a 7.5 mm machine gun in the frontal part of the hull.
The first prototype SAu 40 on the chassis S40 (modification of S35) was assembled in 1937, but the gun for it was ready only by 1939. Order for serial production SAu 40 was issued in October 1939, but the number of self-propelled guns is unknown. The prototype and according to some sources, up to four more SAu 40s were sent to the front in June 1940 and were used in combat operations.
Western Front of the Wehrmacht during World War II in Europe.
Photo place: Compiegne, France
Time when the photo was taken: 1940