Charioteer | |
---|---|
![]() Charioteer at Yad La-Shiryon, Latrun. | |
Type | Tank destroyer |
Place of origin | |
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 | |
Primary 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 purchased 56 vehicles in 1956.
- 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.
Jordan
- Jordanian Army equipped two squadrons (24 vehicles) of their 3rd Tank Regiment in 1954. Some of the Jordanian Charioteers were sold to Lebanon.
- Template:LIB
- 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
- 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.
- A Charioteer is on display at the Bovington Tank Museum in Dorset, UK.[4]
See also[]
- Conqueror tank
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
External links[]
|
![]() |
This page uses some content from Wikipedia. The original article was at Charioteer tank destroyer. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Tractor & Construction Plant Wiki, the text of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons by Attribution License and/or GNU Free Documentation License. Please check page history for when the original article was copied to Wikia |