| Škoda 24 cm L/40 K97 | |
| Origin: | German Empire |
| Type: | Naval gun |
| Is Ranged: | yes |
| Is Explosive: | yes |
| Is Artillery: | yes |
| Service: | 1904–1918 |
| Used By: | Austria-Hungary |
| Wars: | World War I |
| Designer: | Krupp |
| Design Date: | 1897 |
| Manufacturer: | Škoda |
| Production Date: | 1904 |
| Variants: | Škoda 24 cm L/40 K/01 |
| Weight: | K97: 28.3sp=usNaNsp=us K/01: 28.6sp=usNaNsp=us |
| Length: | 9.6sp=usNaNsp=us |
| Part Length: | 8.8sp=usNaNsp=us |
| Cartridge: | Separate loading cased charges and projectiles |
| Cartridge Weight: | 229sp=usNaNsp=us |
| Caliber: | 24sp=usNaNsp=us 40 caliber |
| Rate: | K97: 2 rpm K/01: 2.5 rpm |
| Velocity: | K97: 705sp=usNaNsp=us K/01: 725sp=usNaNsp=us |
| Max Range: | 12sp=usNaNsp=us at +16.25°[1] |
| Breech: | Horizontal sliding-wedge |
| Recoil: | Hydro-pneumatic |
| Elevation: | -4° to +20° |
| Traverse: | -130° to +130° |
The Škoda 24 cm L/40 K97 was an Austro-Hungarian naval gun developed in the years before World War I that armed a class of pre-dreadnought battleships and armored cruisers of the Austro-Hungarian Navy. The actual bore diameter was 23.8abbr=onNaNabbr=on, but the classification system for artillery rounded up to the next highest centimeter.
The origins of the Škoda 24 cm L/40 K97 lay in an earlier gun designed and built by the Krupp company in Germany. In 1894 Krupp designed the 24 cm SK L/40 and started production in 1898 for the Imperial German Navy's pre-dreadnought battleships and armored cruisers. Krupp produced a variant of the 24 cm SK L/40 for the Austro-Hungarian Navy called the 24 cm L/40 K94 which armed their armored cruiser SMS Kaiser Karl VI, the pre-dreadnought Habsburg-class battleships and the Monarch-class coastal defense ships. In 1897 Škoda bought a production license from Krupp and began production in 1904 at the Pilsen works of the Škoda 24 cm L/40 K97 and later the Škoda designed 24 cm L/40 K/01. Both Germany and Austria-Hungary developed their own ammunition with differing weights and lengths, however their ballistic performance was similar.
The 24 cm SK L/40 was the first large caliber German naval gun to use a Krupp horizontal sliding-wedge breech block and separate loading metallic cased propellant charges and projectiles.[2] Unlike other large naval guns of the time which used separate loading bagged charges and projectiles, this gun used charges inside of a brass cartridge case to provide obturation. It is believed that the K94 and the K97 were both constructed of A tube, three layers of reinforcing hoops and a jacket.[3]
The Škoda 24 cm L/40 K97 was the primary armament of the Erzherzog Karl-class of pre-dreadnought battleships of the Austro-Hungarian Navy. The Krupp built K94 guns of the unique armored cruiser SMS Kaiser Karl VI were later replaced with Škoda built K97 guns during a refit in 1916. While the Škoda designed 24 cm L/40 K/01 armed the unique armored cruiser SMS Sankt Georg.
Ship details: