Britain Cruiser Mk I C.S. (A9) Ordnance classification - A9

Tweet 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 which could penetrate 38 mm of flat plate at 100 metres 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) 100 200 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400 Flight Time(Secs) 0.54 1.08 2.21 4.63 7.28 10.21 13.44 17.06 Direct Fire Range(Mtr) 100 200 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400 Flight Time(Secs) 0.54 1.08 2.21 4.63 7.28 10.21 13.44 17.06 Hit Probability(%) 98 98 57 8 2 0 0 0 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. Weapon Details 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) 0.14 Penetration(mm@30°) 2 Penetration(mm@0°) 3 Hit Probability(%) 98

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.

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