Cruiser Mk VIII Challenger

Not to be confused with the much later Challenger 1 and Challenger 2 main battle tanks.
Tank, Cruiser, Challenger (A30)[1]

Cruiser tank Challenger (A30)
Type Cruiser tank
Place of origin United Kingdom
Service history
Used by

United Kingdom
Czechoslovak government-in-exile
Polish Armed Forces in the West

Czechoslovakia[2]
Production history
Designer Birmingham Carriage & Wagon Company
Number built 200
Specifications
Weight 31.5 long tons (32.0 t)[3]
Length 26 ft 4 in (8.03 m)[3]
Width 9 ft 6.5 in (2.91 m)[3]
Height 8 ft 9 in (2.67 m)[3]
Crew 5 (Commander, gunner, loader, co-loader, driver)
Armour 20–102 mm (0.79–4.02 in)
Main
armament
 Ordnance QF 17 pounder (76 mm)
42 rounds
Secondary
armament
 0.30 in Browning machine gun[4]
Engine Rolls-Royce Meteor V-12 petrol engine
600 hp (450 kW)
Suspension Christie suspension
6 road wheels
Operational
range
 105 mi (169 km)[3]
Speed 32 mph (51 km/h)[3]

The Tank, Cruiser, Challenger (A30) was a British tank of World War II. It mounted the QF 17-pounder anti-tank gun on a chassis derived from the Cromwell tank to add heavier anti-tank firepower to the cruiser tank units.

The design compromises made in fitting the large gun onto the Cromwell chassis resulted in a tank with a powerful weapon, but with less armour. The extemporised Sherman Firefly conversion of the US-supplied Sherman was easier to produce and, combined with delays in production, meant that only 200 Challengers were built. However, it was able to keep up with the fast Cromwell tank and was used alongside them.

History

The driving force in the development of Challenger was Roy Robotham. Robotham had been a Rolls-Royce executive in the car division who, with no work to do, had led a team to develop a tank powerplant from the Rolls-Royce Merlin aircraft engine. The Rolls-Royce Meteor gave the British a powerful, reliable engine, which would power the A27M Cruiser Mk VIII Cromwell tank. Robotham's contributions gained him a place in the Ministry of Supply and on the Tank Board, despite his lack of experience in tank design.[5]

Initially, Vickers had been working on a "High Velocity" 75 mm (3.0 in) gun to be fitted to the Cromwell, but it was realised that the Cromwell's turret ring was too small to mount it. There were longer-term plans to develop improved tanks to replace the Cromwell - this would deliver the interim Comet tank and, at the end of the war, the Centurion tank.[6]

The General Staff brought forward specification A29 for a 17-pounder-armed cruiser tank. This was passed over for the alternate specification, A30 for a 17-pounder-armed tank.

In 1942, an order for a 17-pounder-gun-armed tank was placed with Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company (BRC&W) expecting it to be based on the A27M components. Turret and gun mounting was in the hands of Stothert & Pitt. Birmingham Carriage had to modify the Cromwell hull to take a bigger turret.

Design

Cruiser tank Challenger (A30)

The hull machine gun was removed to provide stowage space for the long 17 pounder cartridges. It was expected this larger ammunition, together with its stowage forward, would require two loaders. To fit the large weapon and a second loader, a turret larger than that of the Cromwell was required, the hull had to be lengthened and an extra road wheel added. This change in length, without a corresponding change in width across the tracks, reduced mobility compared to the Cromwell. To limit the weight, the amount of armouring was reduced, which was not possible on the hull, so it was reduced on the turret - 63 mm on the front and 40 mm on the side compared to 75 mm and 60 mm on the Cromwell. As the base of the turret was unprotected, a jacking feature was fitted to clear any jam resulting from enemy action. The first Challenger was completed in 1942 and when the second was tested at Lulworth, it was criticized that, although it would be effective at long range against the current best-gunned tank in German service (the Panzer IV "Special" with the long 75 mm gun), at shorter ranges it would be at a disadvantage due to slow firing rate and thin armour. An order for 200 was placed in February 1943 and in November, it was announced that no more would be ordered.

Service

A Challenger tank crosses a Bailey bridge near Esch, Netherlands. 27 October 1944

The vehicle was unpopular at first with crews complaining about tracks being thrown, lack of armour and the high silhouette.[7] No provision had been made for deep wading trunking and the A30 was unable to participate in the Normandy landings. Challenger crews had to wait until the Mulberry harbours were built and ports captured. The track throwing saw a great deal of attention and confidence in the vehicle increased.[8] As the Sherman Firefly conversion was easier to build, production of the Challenger was stopped after about 200 had been built. The Challenger and Firefly were armed with the 17-pounder and were used as an addition to tank squadrons, to deal with heavy tanks. Many were issued to units using Cromwells, simplifying maintenance as they shared many parts. The Challenger was liked better than the Firefly by its crews as it was faster and more manoeuvrable, while the Firefly had an even larger silhouette but the early bad reputation persisted.[9]

Other allied forces were issued with the Challenger, the 1st Polish Armoured Division receiving several in mid-1945 and the 1st Czechoslovak Armoured Brigade using it during the siege of Dunkirk in late 1944.[10][11] After the war, the Czechoslovak government purchased 22 Challengers from the brigade inventory, which served in the Czechoslovak army (first with 11th, later with 23rd Tank Brigade and then the 13th Independent Tank Battalion) until they were put in reserve in 1951 and scrapped in 1959.[12]

Variants

The Avenger or SP 17pdr, A30 (Avenger) was a variant on the Challenger idea with a differently shaped open topped turret to help reduce weight. With priority production at Vauxhall Motors for the Comet tank, those built in 1945 were not ready for use until after the end of the war in Europe. Some 250 were built and these formed part of the British Army of the Rhine in Germany.

Survivors

A30 Challenger, Overloon War Museum

Two vehicles survive. One is at the Overloon War Museum in the Netherlands. The other is awaiting restoration at the Isle of Wight Military Museum in the United Kingdom. Once restored, it will be displayed at the Bovington Tank Museum.[13]

References

  1. ↑ Bishop, Chris (1998). The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II. New York: Barnes & Noble. p. 27. ISBN 978-0-7607-1022-7.
  2. ↑ Fletcher Cromwell Cruiser Tank 1942-1950 p.42
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 White (1963), p. 54.
  4. ↑ Fletcher Cromwell Cruiser Tank 1942-1950 p.38
  5. ↑ Fletcher (1993)
  6. ↑ Fletcher (1993)
  7. ↑ Note from Service Engineer, 15.11.44; AA.2/JB.11.11.44
  8. ↑ Track Throwing, 15.11.44; Rm/GB.5/SW.15.11.44
  9. ↑ The Rolls Royce Meteor - Cromwell and other applications; Historical Series No. 35 published by the Rolls Royce Heritage Trust
  10. ↑ Hayward The Other Challenger quoting Six Monthly RAC Progress Reports
  11. ↑ Fletcher Cromwell Cruiser Tank 1942-1950 p 47
  12. ↑ Francev, Vladimír (2012). Československé tankové síly 1945-1992. Prague: Grada. p. 186. ISBN 9788024740294.
  13. ↑ Pierre-Olivier Buan (25 October 2011). "Surviving Cruiser Tanks" (PDF). Surviving Panzers website. p. 39. Retrieved 5 November 2011.

Bibliography

External links

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