Charioteer tank destroyer
| Charioteer | |
|---|---|
|
Charioteer at Yad La-Shiryon, Latrun. | |
| Type | Tank destroyer |
| Place of origin | United Kingdom |
| Service history | |
| In service | - |
| Used by | British Army |
| Wars |
1978 South Lebanon conflict Lebanese civil war |
| Production history | |
| Manufacturer | Robinson and Kershaw Ltd, Dukinfield, Cheshire |
| Number built | 442[1] |
| Specifications | |
|
| |
Main armament | Ordnance QF 20 pounder |
| Suspension | Improved Christie |
The Charioteer officially known as FV4101 Cromwell Heavy AT Gun[2] and FV4101 Tank Medium, Charioteer was a British armoured fighting vehicle. It was produced in the 1950s as a self-propelled anti-tank gun to add firepower to units serving in West Germany by mounting a 20 pdr (84mm) gun on a Cromwell tank chassis.
Development
In the early 1950s, in an attempt to give extra firepower to the Territorial Army units of the Royal Armoured Corps, some Cromwell tanks received a 20 pounder gun (the same as used by the Centurion) in a new but lightly armoured two-man turret.[3] The resulting vehicle was designated as the FV 4101 Charioteer tank destroyer. About 200 units were converted by Robinson and Kershaw Ltd at their works in Dukinfield, Cheshire.
Service
In practice the Charioteer was used by British Territorial Army units only and during mid and late 1950s most of the vehicles were sold to Austria, Finland, Jordan and Lebanon.
Operators
- Austrian Army used 56 vehicles from 1956 till 1965. Turrets of retired Charioteer tanks were fixed in Austrian bunker systems.
- Finnish Army bought 38 "Charioteer Mk VII Model B" by 1960 and they remained in use until 1979. The tanks were stored until 2007 when they were auctioned off.
- Jordanian Army equipped two squadrons (24 vehicles) of their 3rd Tank Regiment in 1954. Some of the Jordanian Charioteers were sold to Lebanon.
- Lebanese Armed Forces received 43 vehicles, passed on in 1976 to several Lebanese or Palestinian warring factions.
- Lebanese Arab Army operated unknown number of tanks between 1976 and 77.
- Lebanese Forces operated unknown number of tanks between 1980 and 1993.
- Lebanese "Tigers Militia" operated unknown number of tanks between 1976 and 1980.
- Palestine Liberation Organization operated several ex-Lebanese vehicles against Israel Defense Forces in Southern Lebanon during the 1978 South Lebanon conflict.
- The Territorial Army was the main operator of Charioteer.
Survivors
- An Austrian Charioteer in the Museum of Military History (HGM - Heeresgeschichtliches Museum) in Vienna.
- A Finnish Charioteer is on outdoor display in the Parola tank museum.
- Another Finnish Charioteer is on outdoor display near the main entrance of Army Academy in Lappeenranta.
- A Charioteer tank destroyer is on outdoor display in Yad la-Shiryon Museum in Latrun.
See also
Notes and references
- ↑ Finnish Defence Forces sale of used equipment
- ↑ "Fighting Vehicle 4101 Cromwell Heavy Anti-tank gun
- ↑ Bingham p27
- ↑ FV4101 Tank Medium, Charioteer (E1965.3)
- Bibliography
- Bingham, James (1971), AFV Profile No. 25 Cromwell and Comet, Profile Publishing
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to FV 4101 Charioteer. |
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