Britain
Cruiser Mk IIA C.S. (A10)
Ordnance classification - A10

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The Cruiser Mk IIA C.S. was designed in 1937, manufactured by Vickers Armstrong based on the existing fully tracked A9 and was in use from 1939 to 1941.

General Details Specifications Operational Date(s) 1939 - 1941 Ordnance classification A10 Quantity Produced 30 Weight 14.3 tonne Crew 5 M.G's small 2 M.G's large(>10mm) n/a Length 5.60 mtr Width 2.56 mtr Height 2.62 mtr Engine Details/Performance Max Road Speed 16 mph Max Cross Country Speed 8 mph Range Road 100 miles Range Cross Country 40 miles Fuel Type Petrol Fuel Capacity 117 gal Horse Power 150 hp Power/Weight 10 hp/tonne General Information The Cruiser Mk IIA C.S. was designed in 1937, manufactured by Vickers Armstrong based on the existing fully tracked A9 and was in use from 1939 to 1941. 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 16 mph with a range of about 100 miles before refuelling. Its cross country performance was adequate providing a max speed of about 8 mph and a range of about 40 miles. It was armed with 2 light machine guns which were BESA Machine Gun 7.92mms. Its main armament consisted of an Ordnance Q.F. 3.7inch CS Howitzer which could penetrate 33 mm of flat plate at 400 metres The Mk II C.S. close support version was the Mk I but with a 3.7 inch howitzer. The vehicle had the two auxilliary machine gun from the Mk I removed , and replaced by one hull mounted machine gun. The armour was upgraded hence the speed reduction. Armour Details Turret Front 30mm @ 20° (32mm) Side 26mm @ 20° (28mm) Rear 30mm @ 20° (32mm) Top 7mm @ 90° (7mm) Superstructure Front 22mm @ 45° (31mm) Side 22mm @ 0° (22mm) Rear 12mm @ 0° (12mm) Top 7mm @ 90° (7mm) Hull Front 22mm @ 30° (25mm) Side 22mm @ 0° (22mm) Rear 12mm @ 0° (12mm) Top 7mm @ 90° (7mm) Armour (x)mm @ (y)° (Effective mm @ 0°) Effective Armour - Maximum 32 mm - Minimum 7 mm

Weapon Details BESA Machine Gun 7.92mm (Machine Gun) x 2 History Developed by BSA from the Czechoslovak ZB vz.53 heavy machine gun which used the German 7.92×57mm Mauser ammunition. It was mostly used as the main armament of the Light Tank Mk VIC and Armoured cars such as the Humber Mk I to Mk III. This 7.92mm gun was used in the armoured divisions as their supply lines were separated from the infantry who used .303 bullets. Once the British started capturing German ammunition this could be immediately used in these tank machine guns. Manufactured 1939 - 1966 Calibre 7.92mm Length L/93 Rate of Fire 450 rpm Number of Rounds  2000     Ammunition Details Name/Id Calibre Weight MVelocity Explosive Content Cartridge SA, 7.92 (AP Standard Small Arms) 7.92mm 0.011Kg 785M/Sec Quoted Penetration 11mm @ 1000mtr/0° Range(Mtr) 100 200 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400 Flight Time(Secs) 0.16 0.37 1.1 Penetration(mm@30°) 10 8 5 Penetration(mm@0°) 12 10 6 Hit Probability(%) 98 98 98 Cartridge SA, 7.92 (BALL Standard Small Arms) 7.92mm 0.012Kg 785M/Sec Range(Mtr) 100 200 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400 Flight Time(Secs) 0.15 Penetration(mm@30°) 2 Penetration(mm@0°) 3 Hit Probability(%) 98 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.

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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Page Last Updated: 2023-04-08 06:27:28