![]() ![]() The Horstmann design did not offer the same ride quality as the Christie system, but took up less room and was easier to maintain. In case of damage by mines, individual suspension and wheel units could be replaced relatively easily. The Christie suspension, with vertical spring coils between side armour plates, was replaced by a Horstmann suspension with three horizontally sprung, externally mounted two-wheel bogies on each side. The department produced a larger hull by adapting the long-travel five-wheel suspension used on the Comet with the addition of a sixth wheel, and extending the spacing between the second and third wheels. Centurion in the hands of the 14th/20th King’s Hussars Top speed was not vital, while agility was to be equal to that of the Comet. After a series of fairly mediocre designs in the A series in the past, and bearing in mind the threat posed by the German 88mm gun, the War Office demanded a major revision of the design requirements, specifically: increased durability and reliability, the ability to withstand a direct hit from the German 88mm gun and providing greater protection against mines, while remaining within a maximum weight of 40 tons. In 1943, the Directorate of Tank Design, under Sir Claude Gibb, C.B.E., F.R.S., was asked to produce a new design for a heavy cruiser tank under the General Staff designation A41. In British Army use it was replaced by the Chieftain. It became one of the most widely used tank designs, equipping armies around the world, with some still in service until the 1990s. As recently as the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict the Israel Defence Forces employed heavily modified Centurions as armoured personnel carriers and combat engineering vehicles. South Africa still employs over 200 Centurions: The vehicles of the SANDF were modernised in the 1980s and again in the 2000s, and the resulting model is known as the Olifant.īetween 19, 4,423 Centurions were produced, consisting of 13 basic marks and numerous variants. South Africa used its Centurions in Angola. The Royal Jordanian Land Force used Centurions, first in 1970 to fend off a Syrian incursion within its borders during the Black September events and later in the Golan Heights in 1973. Centurions modified as armoured personnel carriers were used in Gaza, the West Bank and on the Lebanese border. Israel used Centurions in the 1967 Six Day War, 1973 Yom Kippur War, and during the 1978 and 1982 invasions of Lebanon. The Centurion later served in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, where it fought against US-supplied M47 and M48 Patton tanks and they served with the Royal Australian Armoured Corps in Vietnam. ![]() The chassis was also adapted for several other roles.ĭevelopment of the tank began in 1943 and manufacture of the Centurion began in January 1945, six prototypes arriving in Belgium less than a month after the war in Europe ended in May 1945. It first entered combat with the British Army in the Korean War in 1950, in support of the UN forces. ![]() It was a successful tank design, with upgrades, for many decades. The Centurion, introduced in 1945, was the primary British main battle tank of the post-World War II period. ![]()
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