WesWorld

A quick overview of the War Office plans and equipment now under development or nearing date of service entry.

Tanks

Light Tank Mk VII (A21): Modified Mk VI with sloped armour, new turret armed with a 2pdr gun and co-axial MG and hydraulically assisted steering. Designed in 1940 by Vickers the Mk VII is powered by a 148hp Meadows petrol engine for a top speed of 30mph and 125 mile road radius. Armour is 38-6mm thick and three crewmen are carried.

Alecto (A22): a mobile anti-tank gun with a 6pdr gun mounted low in a Mk VII hull with an open top. Four crewmen are carried and the engine and armour is unchanged. The Alecto II is armed with the new Ordnance 3.7in Mortar QF Mk II (95mm Howitzer) and the Alecto III will be armed with the 25pdr field gun.

Cruiser Tank Mk V Crusader II (A15); an improved model with 51mm thick armour maximum with 10mm minimum and some suspension and equipment improvements.

Crusader I AA Mk I; Basic Crusader I hull with the turret removed and single 6pdr Mk VI semi-auto AA gun fitted with an open-topped shield.

Cruiser Tank Mk VII Centaur (A19): Improved Crusader with bigger turret ring (for guns up to 75mm) and new turret and thicker armour with a Thornycroft RY14 500hp engine. Fitted with 6pdr Mk II with a muzzle brake and 95mm howitzer (mod 3.7in) in the CS variant; designed 1940 by Leyland and this is essentially a British-built TC-2 Ram. Armour is 76-20mm; dimensions 20ft 10ins long, 10ft wide, 8ft 2ins high; battle weight 63,300lbs; maximum speed 30mph and 18mph cross-country and a road radius 165 miles. Fording depth is 3ft; vertical obstacle 3ft and trench crossing 7ft 6ins.

Tank Guns
Ordnance 6pdr QF Mk IV has a muzzle brake.

Ordnance 3.7in Mortar QF Mk II (95mm Howitzer) 1940: Calibre 95mm, weight of shot 25lbs, muzzle velocity 1,075fps, armour penetration 110mm at 500 yards (HEAT only), fires smoke, HEAT and HE rounds. Mounted in CS tanks with the 6pdr mounting using a counterweight.

Armoured Cars
AEC Armoured Car: A private venture begun in late 1937 by Associated Equipment Company, makers of heavy trucks, buses and the Matador gun tractor. Based on the chassis of the Matador, a new body of flat armoured plate 57-8mm thick is fitted as is the Vickers Valentine turret. Maximum speed is 40mph and range 250 miles. Weight is 11 tons and three or four crewmen can be carried. In 1940 AEC began marketing a version with a 6pdr gun.

Field Artillery
Ordnance QF 3.7in Howitzer Mk II; developed alongside the Ordnance 3.7in Mortar QF Mk II tank-mounted howitzer from 1940. Fires same ammunition as this type (25lb smoke, HE, HEAT). The carriage is a simple split-trail type, the barrel is unchanged from the 3.7in Mortar Mk II but the breech is from the 25pdr field gun and a new recoil system is fitted. Calibre 95mm, weight of shot 25lbs, muzzle velocity 1,075fps, armour penetration 110mm at 500 yards (HEAT only), maximum range 6,600 yards, 8 degrees traverse and -5 to 45 degrees elevation.

Rifles
.280 Rifle No.5 Mk III; after the new calibre trials during 1938-39 the Army has chosen the Enfield Lock .280 7mm cartridge and the Vickers Rifle No.5 Mk I. The rifle will be refined and will use the .280 cartridge and will enter production during 1941 as the Rifle No.5 Mk III.

Machine Guns
.303in Vickers-Berthier Light Machine Gun No.2 Mk II; has better cooling and revised stock and handle.

.280 Enfield Lock Light Machine Gun Mk I, Enfield Lock has begun development of a new light machine gun based around their new .280 7mm cartridge which has been accepted as the new standard rifle round of the British Army. Details have not yet been released.

A couple interesting things here:

Quoted

Originally posted by Hood
A quick overview of the War Office plans and equipment now under development or nearing date of service entry.

Tanks

Cruiser Tank Mk VII Centaur (A19): Improved Crusader with bigger turret ring (for guns up to 75mm) and new turret and thicker armour with a Thornycroft RY14 500hp engine. Fitted with 6pdr Mk II with a muzzle brake and 95mm howitzer (mod 3.7in) in the CS variant; designed 1940 by Leyland and this is essentially a British-built TC-2 Ram. Armour is 76-20mm; dimensions 20ft 10ins long, 10ft wide, 8ft 2ins high; battle weight 63,300lbs; maximum speed 30mph and 18mph cross-country and a road radius 165 miles. Fording depth is 3ft; vertical obstacle 3ft and trench crossing 7ft 6ins.

Interesting. Quite a lot more powerful, and heavier, than any of the Panzer IVs, and than the M4A1 as well.

Quoted

Tank Guns
Ordnance 3.7in Mortar QF Mk II (95mm Howitzer) 1940: Calibre 95mm, weight of shot 25lbs, muzzle velocity 1,075fps, armour penetration 110mm at 500 yards (HEAT only), fires smoke, HEAT and HE rounds. Mounted in CS tanks with the 6pdr mounting using a counterweight.

So why use a bigger bore than the 25 pounder QF, if you're not going to fire a heavier shell?

Quoted

Field Artillery
Ordnance QF 3.7in Howitzer Mk II; developed alongside the Ordnance 3.7in Mortar QF Mk II tank-mounted howitzer from 1940. Fires same ammunition as this type (25lb smoke, HE, HEAT). The carriage is a simple split-trail type, the barrel is unchanged from the 3.7in Mortar Mk II but the breech is from the 25pdr field gun and a new recoil system is fitted. Calibre 95mm, weight of shot 25lbs, muzzle velocity 1,075fps, armour penetration 110mm at 500 yards (HEAT only), maximum range 6,600 yards, 8 degrees traverse and -5 to 45 degrees elevation.

Same question as above....

Quoted

Rifles
.280 Rifle No.5 Mk III; after the new calibre trials during 1938-39 the Army has chosen the Enfield Lock .280 7mm cartridge and the Vickers Rifle No.5 Mk I. The rifle will be refined and will use the .280 cartridge and will enter production during 1941 as the Rifle No.5 Mk III.

Interesting.... So what're the capabilities of this new cartridge?

Quoted

Machine Guns

.280 Enfield Lock Light Machine Gun Mk I, Enfield Lock has begun development of a new light machine gun based around their new .280 7mm cartridge which has been accepted as the new standard rifle round of the British Army. Details have not yet been released.

Ah...... I'm suspecting the new Enfield .280 will look a LOT like the historical 7x43, given this.

The Centaur will look like its OTL version but obviously has great potential when/ if the 75mm gun is ready.
With all the super-tanks about I think the Centaur is about right. Not a super-tank in itself but capable of doing the job needed of it without 90mm guns etc etc. The specs are as OTL with a different engine.

The 95mm howitzer is the OTL weapon of the same name fitted to the Centaur and Chruchill VIII. Specs are as OTL.
The Ordnance QF 3.7in Howitzer Mk II is an attempt to bypass the dreadful OTL infantry support howitzer than flopped so badly in Italy while retaining commonality with the tank variant.

Yes the cartridge will be the 7x43. The LMG is early days yet.

Quoted

So why use a bigger bore than the 25 pounder QF, if you're not going to fire a heavier shell?

It's a lot smaller round and gun, especially in the recoil, so that it can fit in the same space as the 75mm QF or 6pdr.

Quoted

With all the super-tanks about I think the Centaur is about right.

Depends on how likely you are to meet one of the heavy tanks. Historical mix of 75mm/95mm/17pdr worked ok in the historical war, but different problems here.

Missed a weapon;

Ordnance BL 5.5in Gun Mk III, Weight in action is 12,768lbs, shell weight 100lb (there is a lightweight 80lb shell), muzzle velocity is 1,675fps and maximum range is 16,200 yards. The carriage has 60 degrees of traverse and 40 degrees of elevation. Shell types are HE, concrete-piercing, fletchette, smoke and illumination. Under development from 1939 and entry into service planned for 1941. This will replace the last of the 6in guns in service.

By 1943 the Army should have the following in RA service;
QF 25pdr Mk I
QF 3.7in Mk II (howitzer)
QF 4.5in Mk I
BL 5.5in Mk III
BL 7.2in Mk I (howitzer)

Ireland might be amenable to an eventual acquisition of the Ordnance BL 5.5in Gun Mk III, but it will be several years before it comes up to the top of the list.

No problems with that. Ireland is always more than welcome.