Morris CS9

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Morris CS9 of 12th Royal Lancers at Villiers St Simon, 29 September 1939.
Morris CS9/LAC
General characteristics
Crew	4 (commander, gunner, driver, radio operator)
Length	4.77 m
Width	2.05 m
Height	2.13 m
Weight	4.5 t
Armour and armament
Armour	7 mm
Main armament	Boys anti-tank rifle
Secondary armament	7.7 mm Bren machine gun
Mobility
Power plant	Morris 6-cyl. gasoline 96 hp (72 kW)
Suspension	4 x 2 wheel
Road speed	73 km/h
Power/weight	21.3 hp/tonne
Range	385 km

Morris CS9/LAC was a British armoured car used by the British Army in the World War II.

[edit] History

The vehicle was based on a Morris 4x2 15-cwt truck chassis. On this chassis a riveted hull was mounted with an open-topped two-man turret. The armament consisted of either Boys anti-tank rifle and Bren MG or Vickers MG. The vehicle carried a No. 19 radio set.

The prototype was tested in 1936. A further 99 cars were ordered and were delivered in 1938. 38 of these cars were used by the 12th Royal Lancers in the Battle of France, where all of them were destroyed or abandoned. Another 30 served with the 11th Hussars in Africa. It was found that when fitted with desert tyres the vehicle had good performance on soft sand. However, its armour and armament were insufficient. The vehicle was retired halfway through the North African Campaign.

[edit] References

• George Forty - World War Two Armoured Fighting Vehicles and Self-Propelled Artillery, Osprey Publishing 1996, ISBN 1-85532-582-9.