Chieftain tank
Encyclopedia : C : CH : CHI : Chieftain tank
 Chieftain Mk 3.
| |
| Chieftain (FV4201) General characteristics | |
|---|---|
| Length | m |
| Width | 3.5 m |
| Height | 2.9 m |
| Weight | t |
| Suspension | Horstmann |
| Speed | 48 km/h road 30 km/h off-road |
| Range | 500 (road) km |
| Primary armament | 120 mm rifled (L11A5) |
| Secondary armament | 2 x L7 MG |
| Armour | 388 mm |
| Power plant | 750 horsepower>hp (560 kW) |
| Crew | 4 |
Overview
The Chieftain was a radical evolutionary development of the successful Centurion line of tanks that had emerged after the second world war. The British had learned during the war that their tanks often lacked sufficient protection and firepower compared to those fielded by the enemy, and that this had led to high casualty levels when faced with the superior German tanks of the time.
The Centurion was a capable vehicle but the Soviet Union produced the heavy T10 tank in the mid 1950s. The Conqueror tank was developed to specifically counter it but the British needed a new design and they would be unable to build fleets of tanks the size of the Pact armies. Therefore, while Continental European nations such as West Germany and France were pursuing lighter, more mobile tanks, Britain stuck with a heavier, more survivable design. Leyland who had been involved in Centurion had built their own prototypes of a new tank design in 1956 and these led to a War Office specification for a new tank. The design was accepted in the early 1960s. Chieftain was designed to be as well protected as possible and to be equipped with a powerful 120 mm rifled cannon. The heavy armour came at the price of reduced mobility which was perhaps the Chieftain's main drawback. This was chiefly due to engine power limitations. The engine selected took the multi-fuel route and as introduced gave less than the planned output. Even as the engine was refined the power fell short of the ideal.
Design
The Chieftain design included a heavily sloped hull and turret. The driver lay semi-recumbent in the hull which helped to reduce overall height. To the left side of the turret was a large infra-red searchlight in an armoured housing. The suspension was of the Horstmann bogie type, with large sideplates to protect the tracks and provide stand-off protection from hollow charge attack.Like its European competitors, the Chieftain found a large export market, most notably in the Middle East.
The Chieftain proved itself capable in combat and able to be upgraded with enhancements both for overall improvement and to meet local requirements. The Chieftain tanks were continuously upgraded until the early 1990s when they were replaced by the Challenger series of tanks whose design was influenced by that of Chieftain. The final Chieftain version used by the British Army until 1995, incorporated 'Stillbrew" armour named after Col Still and John Brewer from the Military Vehicles and Engineering Establishment (MVEE), the Improved Fire Control System (IFCS) and the Thermal Observation Gunnery Sight (TOGS).
The first Chieftain model was introduced in 1967, and has since been delivered to at least six countries, including Iran (where it was named the "Mk5(P)), Kuwait, Oman, Jordan. The largest of the foreign sales was to Iran, which took delivery of around 1,000 Mk5Ps before the 1979 revolution. Further planned deliveries of the more capale 4030 series were cancelled at that point. So the tank's main combat experience was in the Iran-Iraq war of 1980-88.
Specifications
- Crew: 4
- Combat Weight: 55 tons
- Overall Length: 10.8 m (gun forward)
- Hull Length: 7.5 m
- Height: 2.9 m
- Width: 3.5 m
- Powerplant: Leyland L60 (diesel) 750 hp
- Range: 500km
- Max Road Speed: 48 km/h
- Cross-Country Speed: 30 km/h
- Armour 388mm RHA; equivalence 600 mm - in reclined hull down position 1000 mm
Armament
- 120 mm L11A5 rifled tank gun
- *Rate of fire: 8 rounds per minute
- *Elevation: -10 to +20 degree
- *Laser rangefinder
- Coaxial L8A1 7.62 mm machine gun
- Cupola-mounted L8A1 7.62mm machine gun
Equipment
- Twin Clansman VRC 353 Radio sets
- C42/Larkspur VHF radio
- 2 X 6-barrel smoke dischargers on turret
- Bulldozer blade (optional - fitted to one tank per troop)
Variants
- Cheiftain Mk 1
- 40 training vehicles for 1965/1966.
- Chieftain Mk 2
- First service model with 650 hp engine.
- Chieftain Mk 3
- Extra equipment fitted giving rise to several submarks.
- Chieftain Mk.5
- Final production variant, with upgrades to the powerplant and NBC protection system.
- Chieftain Mk.6-11
- Incremental upgrades to pre-Mk.5 vehicles.
- Chieftain Mk.12
- Mark 5 upgrade - addition of Improved Fire Control System (IFCS). Addition of ROMOR ("Stillbrew") spaced armor units.
- FV4205
- Bridge-laying vehicle.
- FV4204 ARV/ARRV
- Armoured Recovery Vehicle, Armoured Recovery and Repair Vehicle.
- Chieftain Mineclearer
- Mine-clearing development.
- Chieftain Sabre
- Twin 30 mm AA turret.
- Khalid/Shir 1
- Jordanian / Iranian variant with running gear of the Challenger 1.
- Weapon Carriers
- The Chieftain chassis was modified to mount air defense weapons ("Marksman" 2 x 35 mm cannon) and a 155mm howitzer in various modifications.
External links
- [FAS.org]
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.