World War II tankettes in
Bardia after the Italian surrender On 15 May 1940, the LX Tank Battalion L (with L standing for or Light) was formed in
Tripolitania Libya and assigned to the
60th Infantry Division "Sabratha". The battalion was equipped with obsolete
L3/35 tankettes. On 20 July 1940, the battalion moved to the
Cyrenaica and was assigned to the
61st Infantry Division "Sirte". On 30 August 1940, the battalion transferred one of its companies to the Mixed Tank Battalion of the
Maletti Group, while the battalion itself was assigned to the
XXI Army Corps. In early December 1940, the battalion was assigned to the
Special Armored Brigade, with which it fought during the British
Operation Compass. After the Italian defeat in the
Battle of Sidi Barrani, the
fall of Bardia and the
British capture of Tobruk the Special Armored Brigade, which tried to stop the British offensive on 24 January at
Derna and
Mechili. However in the night of 28/29 January Italian forces disengaged and, with the Special Armored Brigade acting as rearguard, retreated West to
Benghazi. The battalion was assigned to the
Motorized Brigade "Pinerolo" and consisted of a command, a command and services company, two tank companies with
M47 Patton tanks, and a mechanized company with M113
armored personnel carriers. The battalion fielded now 536 men (34 officers, 83 non-commissioned officers, and 419 soldiers). On 12 November 1976, the
President of the Italian Republic Giovanni Leone granted with decree 846 the 60th Armored Battalion "M.O. Locatelli" its flag. In 1979 the Motorized Brigade "Pinerolo" was reorganized as
Mechanized Brigade "Pinerolo" and consequently, on 1 February 1979, the 60th Armored Battalion "M.O. Locatelli" was renamed 60th Tank Battalion "M.O. Locatelli". The battalion consisted now of a command, a command and services company, and three tank companies with
M47 Patton tanks and fielded 434 men (32 officers, 82 non-commissioned officers, and 320 soldiers). In 1989, the battalion replaced its
M47 Patton tanks with
Leopard 1A2 main battle tanks.
Recent times On 28 September 1992, the 60th Tank Battalion "M.O. Locatelli" lost its autonomy and the next day the battalion entered the newly formed 60th Tank Regiment "M.O. Locatelli". On 17 October 1992, the 60th Tank Regiment "M.O. Locatelli" was renamed
133rd Tank Regiment and the flag of the 60th Tank Regiment "M.O. Locatelli" was transferred to the
Shrine of the Flags in the
Vittoriano in Rome for safekeeping. == See also ==