Czech weapons internment in Romania in 1939

[Marcel Kares]

Czech weapons internment in Romania in March of 1939.

Czech (Czechoslovak) weapons / arms and military equipments confiscated in Romania after withdrawing of the Czech Army from Ruthenia (in this easter part of pre war Czechoslovakia were dislocated only very small parts of Czech Army) to Romania on the 16/17th March 1939.

One part of Czech Army from Ruthenia withdrawined to Romania after four days hardly fights against Hungary Army (second part withdrawined to Slovakia). This heroic war was for Czech soldiers very hard because Czechoslovak Republic was occupied on 15. March by Germany (Protectorate Bohmen und Mahren and free Slovak country).

Czech soldiers handed theirs equipments over the Romanian authorities:

- Probably 7.000 rifles vz. 24 and vz. 33 (very well Czech version of Mauser rifle for Czech bullets 7,92 mm) + 100.000 of ammunition for small arms.
- probably 1000 revolvers
- 36 heavy machine guns Schwarzlose vz. 24
- 150 light machine guns ZB vz. 26
- 2 light mine-throwers Skoda vz. 36 (calibre 80 mm)
- 4 antitank guns Skoda A-3 and Skoda A-4 (Czech name KPUV vz. 34 and vz. 37, calibre 37 mm)
- 8 howitzers Skoda 10,5 cm (Czech name 10,5 cm vz. 14/19)
- 5 personals cars
- 150 trucks
- 5 buses
- 4 automobile cisterns
- 100 horses and mules
- 200 bycicles
- 3 armoured cars OA vz. 27
- 9 armoured cars OA vz. 30
- 3 tankettes Praga P-I, Czech military name Tancik vz. 33 (tankette Mo. 33)
- 1 aircraft Letov S-328
- and another military equipment: artillery amunition, helmets, uniforms, spare parts, sappers materials, military kitchens, bayonets and more another equipments. All price hereof materials was about 25–30 millions pre war Czech Crowns (very great amount of money).
For completely example, Germany captured in Czechoslovakia on March of 15 this military materials (here is state only small parts of all materials Czech Army, numbers aren t quite exactly): 432 tanks, 65 armoured cars, 6 armoured trains, 1.630 planes, 501 anti-aircraft guns, 2.175 artillery guns, 785 mine-throwers, 43.870 mashine guns, 114.000 revorvers, 1.090.000 rifles, 3 millions pcs. of artillery ammunition, one milliard pcs. of ammunition for small arms, all war-ship of Czechoslovak Danube fleet, 217.128 horses, 25.349 cars, 720 buses, cca 5000 motorcycles, all Czech fortes and another military equipment (small part of the hereof equipment stayed in free Slovak state). That was the bigest capitulation in the world and in the world history.

Skoda PA-III, Czech military name OA vz. 27 (armoured car Mo. 27) – probably Czech registration no. 13.350, 13.351 and 13.352. The Romanian Army used these armoured cars Skoda OA vz. 27 for guard/patrol duties. Two of these armoured cars were destroyed in Ploiesti (in service garage for trucks Skoda) on summer 1944 during American bombing.

Tatra T-72 – Czech military name OA vz. 30 (armoured car Mo. 30) – Czech registration no. 13.330, 13.380, 13.382, 13.386, 13.387, 13.389, 13.390, 13.392 and 13.395. The Romanian Army used these confiscate armoured car Tatra OA vz.30 for recognizace (scout) and connective duties. Some of these armoured cars even served reputedly in Bucharest battalion / in the personal guard of the Romanian dictator general Antonescu (Batalionul de garda al maresalului Antonescu or Regimentul de garda al Conducatorului Statului). In the years 1942-1943 were these armoured car serviced in service garage for trucks Tatra in Ploiesti. Three armoured cars Tatra OA vz.30 was destroyed during American bombing of Ploiesti on summer 1944.

Please I have four questions for you.
1) Do somebody have photos of the Czech armoured cars OA vz. 27 , OA vz. 30 and tankettes Tancik vz. 33 in Romanian Army or next exactly information?
2) And second question. Do somebody have photos and information about Czech planes Avia Ba-122, Letov S-328 and Zlin Z-XII in Romania before war and during war? Did Romanian Air force use fighters Avia B-534 for towing DFS gliders? Is this information old mistake or not. My last information are that Romanian Air force used for towing DFS gliders IAR 37/38/39 planes.
3) Thirst question. Do somebody have photos and information about Czech police armoured car Praga TNSPE in Romania? Czech firm CKD-Praga sold these police armoured car to Romania in 1934-1937, three TNSPE-34 and 4 TNSPE-37.
4) And last question. Do somebody have photos and information about Czech riverine armoured minelayers OMm 35 and OMm 36? On March 1939 captured these modern riverine minelayers Germany (Germany name FM-1 and FM-2) and in 1940 were sold these very good riverine ships to Romania. After capitulation of Romanian Danube division on 26. August 1944 handed to Soviet Danube fleet.

My private e-mail address is: mkares@seznam.cz.

Thanks for yours possible answers and help.

Cheers, Marcel.

P. S. Please excuse my poor English.

[Iamandi]

3. In romanian magasine Modelism International i read one article about 2-3 of this armoured cars in use of Romanian interior forces. If i remeber right, at least one of them was used for fire fighting, because of the water jet system on board - destinated to fught against civilian manifestators. I have this issue of Model;ism, but it is at my mother's home so, but my visits are at 2-3 months.. and i can forget about that when i will go.
2. No informations about b-534 (nice plane, by the way) in RoAF. Bulgarians have it. But, you are right, IAR37 to 39 towed DFS gliders. I think Ju-52 also.

Iama

[sid guttridge]

Hi Marcel,

The Czechoslovak Air Force was able to fly out westwards and so did not have to send any aircraft to Romania. (The Bulgarians later received ex-Czech Avia B534s off the Germans, but the Romanians did not get any).

The Czechoslovak 12th Infantry Division was also largely able to retreat into Slovakia.

The weaponry taken into Romania from Ruthenia probably came largely from two sources:

1) The Czechoslovak Border Guard, which had the armoured cars.

2) The Sich Guard of the Ukrainian Nationalist government of Ruthenia, which had only infantry weapons up to heavy machine gun size.

There does exist at least exist one photo of an older armoured car used by the Bucharest police during the Iron Guard uprising of January 1941. Whether this was Czech, I do not know.

Cheers,

Sid.



.

[BG7M]

I remember I saw a photo of an police armoured car with water gun in "Almanachul Bucurestilor" 1939, but unfortunately I don't have the almanach anymore. It is now in Germany, useful in research of old romanian companies whose emitted tokens in 1930's-1940's, made by Mr. E Schaeffer - the author of the Romanian tokens catalogue....
It was a simple photo, without the brand name of the car, only: "the new Bucharest's police armoured car"...

[Victor]

Most likely it was a TNSPE.

[Kepi]

A retouched image of a police armoured water tank, used against riots. In 1936 the police had only two such vehicles. The water canon of these armoured cars had 100 meters range, and a very high pressure that could annihilate any hostile demonstrator. For some aggressive demonstrations the vehicles were also equipped with two HMGs and gas launchers.
It seems that every Public Guardians detachment was equipped with a group of motor-machineguns (“moto-mitraliere”). It’s not very clear how these motor-machineguns looked like: motorbikes with side-car or armoured automobiles.



The photo was taken from the book: Colonel Gabriel Marinescu, Prof. Ion Modreanu, Const. Buruiana, Aspecte din viata politiei capitalei, ed. Eminescu SA, Bucuresti 1936 (courtesy National Military Museum Library).

[Kepi]

Another image of a Praga TNSPE police vehicle



(http://mailer.fsu.edu/~akirk/tanks/romania/romania-other.html

[sample]

it is a bit off topic, but here

http://www.wwiivehicles.com/czechoslovakia...led_guns/s1.asp

there is a quotte: "Exported to Romania and Yugoslavia and not used in Czechoslovakian Army."

I haven't seen any other information about this sefl-propelled gun used in Romania

regards

This post has been edited by sample on March 14, 2007 10:25 am

[JiriTintera]

Dear Sirs,
existing two versions police cars.



TN SPE-34 - http://forum.valka.cz/viewtopic.php/t/5249...e/CZK-TN-SPE-34



TN SPE-37 - http://forum.valka.cz/viewtopic.php/t/5249...e/CZK-TN-SPE-37


This post has been edited by JiriTintera on August 18, 2010 02:18 pm