Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 Free

FREE CHIEFTAIN MAIN BATTLE TANK 1965-2003 PDF

The Chieftain FV was the main battle tank of the United Kingdom during the s, s and s. A development of the Centurion and therefore a continuation of the Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 cruiser series, sharing a substantial commonality of parts with both its predecessor and successor. It was the "most formidable main battle tank in the world" with, at the time of its introduction in the most powerful main gun and most effective armour of any tank yet made. Faster than the Centurion, able to maintain its speed longer than the Leopard 1 and out-gunning its contemporaries, the Chieftain was also the first tank to enhance its already superior armour with composite armour add-ons, beginning with Chobham developed in the UK. It remained in service until replaced by the Challenger 1. The Chieftain was an evolutionary development of the successful cruiser line of tanks that had emerged at the end of the Second World War. Leylandwho had been involved in the Centurion tank, had built their own prototypes of a new tank design inand these led to a War Office specification for a new tank. The General Staff specification drew on the experience of Centurion tanks in the Korean Waras well as that of the Conqueror tank. The tank was expected to be able to engage the enemy at long range and from defensive positions, be proof against medium artillery. To this end, the gun was to have a greater angle of depression than the Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 degrees of Conqueror and better frontal armour. The tank was expected to achieve a firing rate of 10 rounds per minute in the first minute and six per minute for the following four. The first few prototypes were provided for troop trials fromthis identified a number of changes. Changes to address engine vibration and cooling resulted in redesign of the Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 hull. This increased the design weight to nearly 50 tons and as such the Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 which had been designed for 45 tons was strengthened. Track pads had to be fitted to protect roads from damage and the ground clearance increased. The design was accepted in the early s. Britain and Israel had collaborated on the development in its latter stages [11] with a view to Israel purchasing and domestically producing the vehicle. Two prototypes were delivered as part of a four-year trial. InNATO had specified that its forces should use multi-fuel engines. This was further hampered by the Horstmann coil spring suspensionwhich made it a challenge to drive cross country and provide the crew with a comfortable ride. Due to the cylinder linings being pressure fitted, coolant leaks within Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 cylinder block were common, resulting in white smoke billowing from the exhaust. In the late s, engine design changed with the introduction of Belzona which was used to improve the Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 seals. This meant better performance and an increased speed. However, cross-country performance remained limited. Several aspects of Chieftain design were trialled by the production of the FV "ton Centurion" with a reclined driver position and mantletless gun mounting. Chieftain display at the Bovington tank museum For security reasons, early prototypes had a canvas screen covering the mantlet and a sheet metal box mounted over the sloping glacis plate to disguise the configuration of the vehicle. The driver lay semi-recumbent in the hull when his hatch was closed down, which helped to reduce the profile of the forward glacis plate. The commander, gunner and loader were situated in the turret. To the left side of the turret was a large searchlight with infra-red capability in an armoured housing. The Leyland L60 engine is a two-stroke opposed piston design intended for multi-fuel use so that it could run on whatever fuel was available. Primary problems included, cylinder liner failure, fan drive problems and perpetual leaks due to vibration and badly routed pipework. However, as the engine power improved, the tank itself became heavier. The tank was steered by conventional tillers hydraulically actuating onto external brake discs. The discs worked via the epicyclic gearbox providing "regenerative" steering. In the turret, the loader was on the left and the gunner on the right of the gun with the commander behind the gunner. The suspension was of the Horstmann bogie type, with large side plates to protect the tracks and provide stand-off protection from hollow charge attack. Detail of the mm L11A5 rifled gun. The main armament was the mm L11A5 rifled gun. This differed from most contemporary main tank armament as it used projectiles and charges that were loaded separately, as opposed to a single fixed round. The charges were encased in combustible bags. Other tank guns, such Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 on the Conqueror, needed to store the spent shell cartridges or eject them outside. In the event of a hit penetrating the fighting compartment, the jacket would rupture, soaking the charges and preventing a catastrophic propellant explosion. This contains radios, ammunition, fire control equipment and has further stowage externally. The gun could fire a wide range of ammunition, but the most commonly loaded types were high explosive squash head HESHarmour-piercing discarding sabot APDSor practice round equivalents for both types. The Chieftain could store up to 64 projectiles though a maximum of 36 APDS, limited by the propellant stowage. The gun was fully stabilised, with a fully computerized integrated control system. The secondary armament consisted of a coaxial L8A1 7. This practice increases the rate of fire, but would be hazardous with one-piece ammunition. Chieftain had an NBC protection system, which Centurion lacked. The tank commander had a rotating cupola with nine vision blocks -giving all round view, plus the 7. The aiming systems were provided for both the gunner and the tank commander; they had 1x or 10x selectable magnification power, increasing to x15 in the Mk5 and beyond, and they were replaceable with IR vision systems for night operations 3x magnification power. The commander could rotate his cupola to bring Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 sight onto a target and then engage the mechanism that brought the turret round on to the correct bearing so that the gunner could complete the aiming. The commander's controls had Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 capability on those of the gunner. The left side of the turret had a large searchlight with an electrically controlled infra-red filter inside an armoured box, with a relatively long range — up to 1—1. This allowed engagements at much longer ranges, and also could be linked to the fire control system, allowing more rapid engagements and changes of target. The upgrade was not finished until the end ofwhen some examples but not the majority had the IR searchlight Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 with TOGS. These became the Mark 13 version. JuniWest Berlin18 June Chieftain proved Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 capable in combat and able to be upgraded with enhancements, both for overall improvement and to meet local requirements. The marque was continuously upgraded until the early s, when it was replaced by Challenger 1. Ex-Iranian Chieftain Mk. Chieftain target hulks at Lulworth Ranges The first model was introduced in Chieftain was supplied to at least six countries, including Iran, Kuwait, Oman and Jordan. An agreement for sales to Israel and local production was cancelled by the British Government in[20] despite considerable Israeli technical and tactical input into the development of the tank, especially the capacity to operate successfully in desert environments, and the provision for the tank to make good use of hull-down positioning. Two examples were delivered to and extensively trialled by the Israeli Armoured Corps. This experience spurred the creation of the indigenous Israeli Merkavathe development programme of which was led by General Israel Talwho had worked closely with the British in the Anglo-Israeli Chieftain project. It was in the Middle East that the Chieftain was to see all of its operational experience. First, it was used extensively by Iran during the Iran—Iraq War of —88, including the largest tank battle of the warwith mixed results as many suffered from chronic engine problems. Kuwait had Chieftans on the eve of the Iraqi Invasion of Kuwait. Thirty-seven Chieftans of the Kuwaiti 35th Armored Brigade fought at the Battle of the Bridges against elements of the Iraqi Hammurabi and Medina divisions before withdrawing over the Saudi border [23] None of the brigade's tanks were lost in the battle, and the 35th Armored Brigade known as Al-Fatah became part of Joint Command Forces East during the Gulf War and was able to Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 into Kuwait undefeated. The rest of the Kuwaiti Chieftains were either lost or captured. After the liberation of Kuwait, the ageing Chieftans were replaced by the Yugoslav M Mark 1 and Mark 2 models had a coaxial Browning. Sign In Don't have an account? Contents [ show ]. Retrieved 21 May Retrieved Armored Corps Magazine. Jewish Telegraphic Agency. World of Tanks. Aug 26, BBC News. September—October Armor magazine. Army Armor Center. FV Abbot AS UK unarmoured or non-fighting vehicles. Cold War tanks. Categories :. Cancel Save. Iran—Iraq WarGulf War. Leyland Motors. TN 12 [2]. Wikimedia Commons has media related to Category:Chieftain tanks. This page uses Creative Commons Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 content from Wikipedia view authors. Chieftain (tank) | Military Wiki | Fandom

JavaScript seems to be disabled in your browser. You must have JavaScript enabled in your browser to Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 the functionality of this website. This Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 uses cookies to provide all of its features. By using our website you consent to all cookies in accordance with our Cookie Policy. Enter your email address below to sign up to our General newsletter for updates from Osprey Publishing, Osprey Games and our parent company Bloomsbury. Chieftain Main Battle Tank — Add to Basket. About this Product. Development of its successor began as early as The Chieftain incorporated significant innovations including a reclining driver position and two-piece ammunition for greater survivability. The Chieftain saw combat during the Iran-Iraq War, with the Kuwaitis during the Iraqi invasion and with the British Army during the Gulf War of as special-purpose variants. This book explores the design, development and operation of one of the most influential vehicles used in modern warfare. Biographical Note. Simon Dunstan is a well-established author, film maker and photographer in the field of military history, with several titles already published with Osprey. He specialises on the subject of armoured warfare, a field on which he has been writing for two decades. His books have covered topics such as helicopter and armoured warfare in Vietnam, the Challenger main battle tank, The British Guards and armoured warfare in Korea. Simon lives and works in London. Peter Sarson has produced graphic cutaways for many armoured vehicle publications, and is regarded as one of the world's great illustrators of military vehicles. Peter lives and works Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 Dorset, UK. You may also be interested in the following product s. More info. Military History. Subscribe to our newsletter. Subscribe To see how we use this information about you and how you can unsubscribe from our newsletter subscriptions, view our Privacy Policy. Related Content. See all related content. Google Books Search. Bundle Offer! Chieftain (tank) - Wikipedia

The British Chieftain was exceptional Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 for a number of reasons. It had impressive firepower and protection. When introduced in it was the most powerful main battle tank in the world. There are a number of interesting facts about this tank that many never heard of before. As such, they shaped the Chieftain probably more than even the British Army, and in return Israel was promised a delivery of hundreds of factory-new Chieftains. The IDF Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 quite excited for this, because the Chieftain was to be the first tank delivered to Israel that wasn't foreign surplus. Instead, political disputes over the Israeli occupation of the Sinai Peninsula and other territories following the Six Day War resulted in the contract being terminated, with the production vehicles and parts impounded. A license for Israeli production of the Chieftain was suspended in as well, and later terminated in Quite irate over this turn of events, the IDF decided instead that the Centurion's successor would be developed and produced in Israel, which resulted in the Merkava. This obviously wasn't enough vehicles to use in an operational capacity, and the Israelis also opted not to reverse-engineer them. The Conqueror was the UK's last heavy tank, and an utter failure; weighing-in at 64 tonnes, the Conqueror's powertrain was hopelessly too weak and fragile, only were built, they were never exported, the only location abroad they were ever deployed to was West Germany, and they were operational for only 11 years. This system offers numerous advantages over Torsion Bars, including greater suspension travel and easier maintenance; a broken Torsion Bar requires the entire underside of a tank to be torn-away, the damaged part severed with a cutting torch, and everything welded back together, while a broken bogie on a Horstmann suspension is simply unbolted, flung-aside, and a new one bolted-in. Being Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 from a clone of the Centurion hull, the Merkava also uses a Hosrtmann suspension another curious relationship the Chieftain has with Israel. Only the Challenger 2 switched to hydropneumatic suspension. Few such engines have ever been successful, and the L60 was not one of them; they were notoriously unreliable and smoked excessively. So excessively, the engine compartment was sometimes completely caked in black soot after a mission. Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 crews hated these engines, and these tendencies were cited by the Dutch Army as the reason they rejected the Chieftain in favor of the Leopard 1following Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 trials that ran from January 15th to March 22nd This device boiled Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 for the purpose of brewing tea, though it was also often used for heating field rations. It has also been used by "less civilized" tankers to brew coffee. All of the export customers ended up being in the Middle East. A proposed alternate sale to Egypt failed as well. This no doubt pleased the Israelis, however. They performed badly during the initial offensives, thanks in no small part to the Iranian government having purged or reassigned most of their experienced personnel and leaders. Many Chieftains fell into the hands of the Iraqi Army during this time, some of them hastily abandoned in working order. The Iraqis weren't so lucky when they faced Chieftains on the defense however, and their counteroffensive was broken. A fair number of ex-Iranian Chieftains remained in the Iraqi inventory following the war. Three Companies of Kuwaiti Army Chieftains 36 tanks in total of the 35th Armored Brigade joined the defenses overlooking the bridges near the junction where the Sixth Ring Road meets Highway 70, some 25 km west of Al Jahra. At hours, these forces engaged leading elements of the Iraqi Republican Guard, from the 1st "Hammurabi" Armored Division. The Kuwaitis inflicted heavy losses Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 the elite Iraqi Republican Guard IRG forces, destroying numerous armored vehicles, and even a self-propelled howitzer being transported on a trailer. The first wave withdrew before it could suffer crippling losses, and was followed by the leading elements of the 2nd "Al-Medina" Armored Division, another IRG formation, which more or less had the same result. Due to the closed terrain, contact wasn't made between the opposing armies past about 1. This holding action was discontinued later that day, simply because the Kuwaitis were running out of ammunition. By the end of the battle, the only losses to the Chieftains had been two tanks abandoned and scuttled due to mechanical breakdowns, while the entire Kuwaiti defense had suffered only 24 casualties. The number of Iraqi casualties has never been verified, but they lost some armored vehicles, including at least 30 tanks. Among the heavy armor vanquished by the Chieftain were TM1s or possibly the much cruder Asad Babilsa type of tank that had NATO convinced for 20 years that the Chieftain would be helpless against. However, Kuwaiti Chieftains managed to achieve a small amount of fame and media coverage during their return to Kuwait, as it was being liberated by the Coalition. No mention has been made by internet sources as to whether these were used in combat during the Persian Gulf War, or whether any were destroyed or captured during the s. The Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 of these tanks during and after the Invasion of Iraq is also unclear. Given that Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 Coalition would not have supplied them to Iran, Jordan's Chieftain inventory has been gradually declining, and all other operators had retired them Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003they were probably either scrapped or left rusting away in tank graveyards, or perhaps re-purposed as range targets. These tanks were also alleged in the same document to have been upgraded to the equivalent of the Khalid tank, with air conditioning, and Chieftain Main Battle Tank 1965-2003 armor and night vision equipment. This claim is questionable, as no Chieftains have ever been observed in operational use by Iraq, and the alleged upgrades were never applied to any of Iraq's other armored vehicles, let alone a small number of captured enemy tanks. Want to publish your own articles? Visit our guidelines for more information. Can't find what you're looking for?