During the North African Campaign of 1940-1943 the Italian army constantly expanded its mechanized forces to fight more effectively against the highly mobile British 8th Army. General Gambara's XX Motorized Corps consisted of Ariete (132nd) Armored Division and Trieste (101st) Motorized Infantry Division. By the fall of 1941 the Italian command was ready to supply the XX Corps with a mechanized reconnaissance unit.

Theoretically, all Italian corps had considerable assets of their own, but these units are not represented in Europa. Among these corps troops were the nuclei esploranti-corps reconnaissance troops. According to British intelligence, these units only existed in the Libyan theater of operations. In a motorized corps, such a unit would be entirely motorized, consisting of truckbome infantry, towed artillery, cyclists and armored units equipped with light and medium tanks or armored cars.

The British identified one such unit in November of 1941 just prior to Operation Crusader. This unit was the Raggrupamento Esplorante (RECAM). According to British sources, it was a multi- battalion force consisting of regular army armored and artillery units, several units drawn from the Italian African Police and two battalions of Fascist Youth (Giovani Fascisti), a specially recruited infantry formation.

British intelligence reports stated that the RECAM unit was badly mauled in the November battles, but a similar unit was being formed to replace it. This new unit was known by the initials RACAS. Records indicate that at least part of RECAM's assets survived the November battles to be transfeffed to the newly forming Corazzata Giovani Fascisti (136th) Infantry Division, which operated out of Siwa Oasis until the Axis withdrew from Libya.

RECAM had five maneuver battalions, one of which was a police unit. The police battalion consisted of two companies of motorcycle troops and a single company of armored cars (10 AFVs).

The police battalion was named the Romolo Gessi Battalion and had a strength of 283 officers and men. The motorized infantry component consisted of the Giovani Fascisti battalions mentioned earlier and a single motorized machine gun company. The armored units consisted of one battalion of medium tanks (only one company was actually ready in November) armed with the mechanically unreliable M13/40 or M13/41 (both armed with 47min guns) and a second battalion (the 32nd) of about 50 L6 light tanks. The L6 was a rather typical light tank. The earlier L6s mounted a 20nim automatic cannon and a coaxial 8mm machine gun, but later models were upgunned with a 37mm antitank gun and possibly an additional machine gun.

Also attached was a company-sized unit of mixed armored cars and L6 lights tanks. RECAM had considerable artillery assets, including two battalions and one company of 65/17 guns (Italian artillery battalions typically had 12 guns each), a single company of 100/17 guns, and an independent battery of 20mm antiaircraft guns. It also may have included a company of 47mm antitank guns (8 guns).

This brigade-size unit does not appear in War in the Desert. For Europa purposes I would deploy RECAM as a composite light- armored brigade with a combat rating of I and a movement of 8. This unit should be considered supported. 10 receive the unit, the Italians would convert a light tank battalion and a 1-8 motorized artillery regiment or alternately expend one armored replacement point for the unit, which would be available on the Nov 141 turn.

Editor's Comment:

Note that other reconnaissance units on both sides are not explicitly presented in War in the Desert. Examples are the German 3rd Reconnaissance Battalion (part of 21st Panzer XX), the British King's Dragoon Guards, 4th and 6th South African Armored Car Regiments, and so on.

Sources

Jack Greene, Mare Nostrum: The War in the Mediterranean, Watsonville: 1990.
Revised Notes on the Italian Army: December 1942, London: The War Office, 1942
Brief Notes on the Italian Army: August 1942, London: The War Office, 1942