Britain Cruiser Mk I C.S. (A9)

World War 2 Tank and Gun Database

The Cruiser Mk I C.S. was a Cruiser Tank designed in 1937, manufactured by Vickers Armstrong, it was based on the fully tracked A9 chassis and was in use from 1938 to 1941. It was commonly called a A9.

General Details (Cruiser Tank)

Specifications
Operational Date(s)	1938 - 1941
Ordnance classification	A9
Quantity Produced	10
Weight	12 tonne
Crew	6
M.G's small	3
M.G's large(>10mm)	n/a
Length	5.92 mtr
Width	2.56 mtr
Height	2.56 mtr
Engine Details/Performance
Max Road Speed	25 mph
Max Cross Country Speed	13 mph
Range Road	150 miles
Range Cross Country	60 miles
Fuel Type	Petrol
Fuel Capacity	86 gal
Horse Power	150 hp
Power/Weight	12 hp/tonne

General Information

The Cruiser Mk I C.S. was a Cruiser Tank designed in 1937, manufactured by Vickers Armstrong, it was based on the fully tracked A9 chassis and was in use from 1938 to 1941. It was commonly called a A9.

The vehicle was powered by Associated Equipment Company(AEC) 'AEC Type A179' petrol powerplant producing 150 HP which could drive the vehicle on roads at up to 25 mph with a range of about 150 miles before refuelling. Its cross country performance was good providing a max speed of about 13 mph and a range of about 60 miles.

It was armed with 3 light machine guns which were Vickers Medium Machine Guns. Its main armament consisted of an Ordnance Q.F. 3.7inch CS Howitzer weighing 9.000 kg.

The Mk I C.S. close support version was the Mk I but with a 3.7 inch howitzer mounted in the turret.

Armour Details

Turret
Front	14mm	@	20°	(15mm)
Side	12mm	@	20°	(13mm)
Rear	14mm	@	20°	(15mm)
Top	4mm	@	90°	(4mm)

Superstructure
Front	14mm	@	45°	(20mm)
Side	10mm	@	0°	(10mm)
Rear	10mm	@	0°	(10mm)
Top	5mm	@	90°	(5mm)

Hull
Front	14mm	@	30°	(16mm)
Side	10mm	@	0°	(10mm)
Rear	10mm	@	0°	(10mm)
Top	5mm	@	90°	(5mm)

Armour (x)mm @ (y)° (Effective mm @ 0°)

Effective Armour - Maximum 20 mm - Minimum 5 mm


Weapon Details
	Ordnance Q.F. 3.7inch CS Howitzer (Field Gun)
		Manufactured	unknown - 1941
		Calibre	94mm
		Length	L/15

Ammunition Details
Name/Id	Calibre Weight MVelocity					Explosive Content
3.7inch CS HE (HE High Explosive)	94mm 9Kg 189M/Sec					≈1.35Kg explosive
Range(Mtr)	500	1000	1500	2000	2500	3000	3500	4000
Flight Time(Secs)	2.92	6.46	10.7	15.77	21.78	28.88	37.22	47
lateral dispersion means the side to side variation of the shell from the aiming point
50%(CEP) of shells land within +/- (mtr)	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00
80% of shells land within +/- (mtr)
95% of shells land within +/- (mtr)
range dispersion means the back to front variation of the shell from the aiming point
50%(CEP) of shells land within +/- (mtr)
80% of shells land within +/- (mtr)
95% of shells land within +/- (mtr)
Direct Fire
Range(Mtr)	100	200	400	800
Flight Time(Secs)	0.54	1.09	2.23	4.7
Hit Probability(%)	95	88	55	8
Blast/Fragmentation Effects
Burst radius Infantry in open 99% kill	4 mtr	Burst radius Infantry in open 66% kill						8 mtr
Burst radius Infantry in open 33% kill	22 mtr	Armour Penetration inc roof at 1 mtr						4 mm
An explosion within 4 mtr of infantry in the open will cause 99% casualties - lethal.
An explosion within 8 mtr of infantry in the open will cause > 66% casualties and could damage some AFV's.
An explosion within 22 mtr of infantry in the open will cause 33% casualties.
The blast effect of this shell exploding within 1 mtr of an armoured vehicle will penetrate 4 mm of the tank armour including the roof.


Vickers Medium Machine Gun (Machine Gun) x 3

	History
	The Vickers medium machine gun was designed during World War I as a replacement for the Maxim gun from which its design was taken. It served throughout World War I and II as a fixed point machine gun used to suppress areas and act as a defensive point.
	Manufacturer	Vickers
	Manufactured	1912 - 1968
	Calibre	7.70mm
	Length	L/93
	Rate of Fire	450 rpm
	Number of Rounds	3000

Ammunition Details
Name/Id	Calibre Weight MVelocity					Explosive Content
Standard british .303 round - MkVIII (only used in Vickers Mg) (BALL Standard Small Arms)	7.70mm 0.01Kg 844M/Sec
Range(Mtr)	100	200	400	800	1200	1600	2000	2400
Flight Time(Secs)	0.12
Penetration(mm@30°)	1
Penetration(mm@0°)	2
Hit Probability(%)	74

About Penetration Figures

All penetration figures in this database are calculated to a common standard based on German WWII testing criteria (complete penetration with functioning fuze). This allows direct comparison between all nations' guns.

Original national test figures would be higher for some nations due to different criteria:

German: 1.00? (baseline - strictest)
British: 1.02? (slightly looser)
American: 1.05? (50% mass through plate)
Soviet: 1.10? (75% mass through plate)

For example, a Soviet gun showing 159mm here would be published as ~175mm in Soviet documents, and a German gun showing 120mm would be published as 120mm in German documents. The 159mm figure is directly comparable to the German 120mm - the Soviet gun really was more powerful.

National Testing Standards
German:	1.00? - Complete penetration, fuze functions (strictest)
British:	1.02? - Complete penetration
American:	1.05? - 50% of shell mass through plate
Soviet:	1.10? - 75% of shell mass through plate
All database figures are normalized to German standard for direct comparison. Multiply by the factor above to see original national test figures.

Hit probability is based on a static 2 x 2.4 metre panel at 0 degrees(vertical) at the range specified.

The data that has been used to create these records has come from Wikipedia, The Lone Sentry, The Bundes Archive and numerous books and websites that have provided the detailed information that has not been available anywhere else. The information we use to calculate the penetration tables, flight times and the hit probability comes from the Gun Calibre, the Shell Mass(Kg) and the muzzle velocity, plus range reductions to allow for gravity and wind resistance. This calculation originally came from a pre-war Krupp calculation which has been modified, and seems to fit the actual test results.