Cruiser Tank Mk. I (A9)
The Cruiser Tank Mk. I (A9) was a British tank developed in the 1930s and used in the early years of World War II .
development
The concept of the Cruiser Tank Mk. I (A9) dates back to 1934, when it was planned as a close-range support tank. After the cancellation of the A6 project (19-tonner), this cruiser tank was seen as the successor to the medium Vickers tank series and was therefore developed to the point of series production. It took over some of the features of the A6 and the medium Mk. III, but was a lot lighter with a weight of 12 t. The first tests began in 1936, and 125 tanks were ordered in the summer of 1937. 75 were made by Harland & Wolff and another 50 by Vickers-Armstrongs . Initially, a Rolls-Royce car engine was installed, which turned out to be too weak and was therefore replaced by a bus engine from AEC .
The special feature of this tank was that it was the first construction to have a hydraulic system and a boat-shaped hull pan. The Mk I was a multi-turret tank and had two smaller, separately operated machine-gun turrets in addition to the main turret, which resulted in a crew of six, which is high for the size of the vehicle. The chassis was also used with reinforced armor in the "Valentine" infantry tank .
Technical data for the Cruiser Tank Mk. I (A9)
| Parameters | Data |
|---|---|
| producer | Vickers Armstrong |
| Weight | 12.7 t |
| crew | 6 (commander, gunner, loader, driver, 2 machine gunner) |
| Armament | |
| Main tower | an OQF 2 pounder (40 mm) gun with 100 rounds, a Vickers 7.7 mm MG (coaxial) with 3000 rounds |
| Auxiliary towers | One Vickers 7.7 mm MG with 3000 rounds each |
| engine | AEC A179; 6 cylinders; 150 PS / 110 kW at 2200 rpm |
| Displacement | In6, 9.6 liters |
| Power to weight ratio | 8.7 kW / t (11.8 PS / t) |
| Propulsion system | back |
| fuel | petrol |
| Corridors | five forward gears / one reverse gear |
| Top speed | 40 km / h (road) / 24 km / h (terrain) |
| Fuel supply | 327 liters |
| Fuel consumption | 203 liters / 100 km of road |
| Range | 161 km |
| Armor | 6-14 mm |
| Dimensions | |
| length | 5.79 m |
| width | 2.50 m |
| height | 2.65 m |
| Width of the chains | 27.1 cm |
| Chain links per chain | 78 |
| Ground clearance | 46 cm |
| Ground pressure | 1.06 kg / cm² |
| Climbing ability up to | 1.06 kg / cm² |
| Ford depth | 0.9 m |
| Trench overcoming up to | 2.4 m |
| First test | 1936 |
| introduction | 1937 |
| use | 1937 to North Africa 1941 |
| construction time | 1937 to 1938 |
| number of pieces | 125 |
Cruiser Tank Mk. I CS (A9)
The Kreuzerpanzer Mk. I CS ( C lose S upport / Nahunterstützung) had a 3.7 "= 94-mm howitzer instead of the 2-pounder, but this could only fire smoke grenades, 40 of which could be accommodated in the tank.
use
- 1st Armored Division - France (to Dunkirk )
- 2nd Armored Division - North Africa
- 7th Armored Division - North Africa
