A43 Black Prince
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The A43 Black Prince was a british tank created in World War II as an upgrade of the Churchill tank
Description
Edit
Added by Cypher3As a development from the Churchill, the Black Prince was a continuation of the line of Infantry tanks, that is tanks intended to operate in close support of British infantry. The parallel development in British tank design were the Cruiser tanks which were intended for more mobile operations.
The cruiser line of tanks led to the Cromwell tank (and the 17 pounder armed Challenger variant) and then the Comet tank, (which had a variant of the 17 pounder gun) entering service during the war. While not as heavily protected as the Churchill, the Comet showed the way tank development was going. This led to the last of the cruiser line and the first of the "Universal tanks", the very successful Centurion tank.
In the light of the slow speed of the Black Prince and the 17 pounder armament of the Centurion, the Black Prince project would be limited. Only six prototypes were completed while the first Centurions were rushed to Germany to try to beat the war's end.
Black Prince tanks saw useful service during the Korean War in 1951, where their high gear ratios gave them an unparalleled gradient climbing capability in the hilly terrain of the Korean peninsula.[1]
SurvivorsEdit
The only surviving Black Prince tank is held by the Bovington Tank Museum in Bovington, UK.
SpecificationsEdit
| Black Prince (A43) | |
|---|---|
| Crew | Commander, driver, gunner, loader, co-driver/hull gunner.3
51,3,4,12 |
| Physical Characteristics | |
| Weight | 112,000 lb 3
49 tons1, 50 tons4,12,13 49,786 kg1 , 50,802 kg12 |
| Length w/gun | 25' 6"1, 28' 11"3,4,12
7.7 m1, 8.81 m12 |
| Length w/o gun | |
| Height | 9'1,3,4,12
2.7 m1, 2.74 m12 |
| Width | 11' 3"1,3,12, 11' 3.5"4
3.4 m1, 3.43 m12 |
| Width over tracks | |
| Ground clearance | |
| Ground contact length | |
| Ground pressure | |
| Turret ring diameter | |
| Armament | |
| Main | 76 mm (17 pdr)1
17 pdr OQF3 17 pdr4,12 |
| Secondary | |
| MG | 2: 7.92 mm Besa MGs1,3,12
2: MG4 |
| Side arms | |
| Quantity | |
| Main | |
| Secondary | |
| MG | |
| Side arms | |
| Armor Thickness (mm) | 18 - 1521
25 - 1524,5 253, 1523,12 |
| Hull Front, Upper | |
| Hull Front, Lower | |
| Hull Sides, Upper | |
| Hull Sides, Lower | |
| Hull Rear | |
| Hull Top | |
| Hull Bottom | |
| Turret Front | |
| Turret Sides | |
| Turret Rear | |
| Turret Top | |
| Engine (Make / Model) | Beford Flat 121
Bedford Twin3 Bedford4,7,12 |
| Bore / stroke | |
| Cooling | |
| Cylinders | 2x63,7, 1212 |
| Capacity | |
| Net HP | 3503,4,7,12 |
| Power to weight ratio | |
| Compression ratio | |
| Transmission (Type) | Merrit-Brown1 |
| Steering | |
| Steering ratio | |
| Starter | |
| Electrical System | |
| Ignition | |
| Fuel (Type) | Gasoline12 |
| Octane | |
| Quantity | |
| Fuel consumption road | |
| Fuel consumption cross country | |
| Performance | |
| Traverse | 360°3 |
| Max speed | 11 mph1,3,4,12,13
17.7 kph1, 18 kph12 |
| Cross country speed | 7 mph3 |
| Road radius | 80 miles3, 100 miles1,12
160.93 km1, 161 km12 |
| Cross country radius | |
| Turning radius | |
| Elevation limits | |
| Fording depth | 3' 4" unprepared.3 |
| Trench crossing | 10'3 |
| Vertical obstacle | 2' 6"3 |
| Climbing ability | |
| Suspension (Type) |
Sprung bogies.3 |
| Wheels each side | |
| Return rollers each side | |
| Tracks (Type) | |
| Length | |
| Width | 24"3 |
| Number of links | |
| Pitch | |
| Tire tread | |
| Track centers/tread | |
| Production | 612, Vauxhall12 |
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