Britain
Cruiser Mk VIII (Centaur IV)

Tweet The Cruiser Mk VIII was a Cruiser Tank designed in 1941, manufactured by Leyland, it was based on the fully tracked A24 chassis and was in use from 1944 to 1945. It was commonly called a Centaur IV. General Details (Cruiser Tank) Specifications Operational Date(s) 1944 - 1945 Ordnance classification A27L Quantity Produced 0 Weight 27.5 tonne Crew 5 M.G's small 1 M.G's large(>10mm) n/a Length 6.40 mtr Width 2.92 mtr Height 2.49 mtr Engine Details/Performance Max Road Speed 27 mph Max Cross Country Speed 14 mph Range Road 165 miles Range Cross Country 66 miles Fuel Type Unknown Fuel Capacity unknown Horse Power 395 hp Power/Weight 14 hp/tonne General Information The Cruiser Mk VIII was a Cruiser Tank designed in 1941, manufactured by Leyland, it was based on the fully tracked A24 chassis and was in use from 1944 to 1945. It was commonly called a Centaur IV. The vehicle was powered by Nuffield 'Liberty' powerplant producing 395 HP which could drive the vehicle on roads at up to 27 mph with a range of about 165 miles before refuelling. Its cross country performance was good providing a max speed of about 14 mph and a range of about 66 miles. It was armed with 1 light machine gun , a BESA Machine Gun 7.92mm. Its main armament consisted of an Ordnance Q.F. 95mm Howitzer which could penetrate 59 mm of flat plate at 800 metres The Centaur was the Leyland version of the Cavalier and were mainly used for training or special purpose roles. Armour Details Turret Front 76mm @ 0° (76mm) Side 63mm @ 0° (63mm) Rear 57mm @ 0° (57mm) Top 20mm @ 81° (20mm) Superstructure Front 63mm @ 0° (63mm) Side 32mm @ 0° (32mm) Rear 32mm @ 0° (32mm) Top 20mm @ 90° (20mm) Hull Front 57mm @ 0° (57mm) Side 32mm @ 0° (32mm) Rear 32mm @ 0° (32mm) Top 20mm @ 90° (20mm) Armour (x)mm @ (y)° (Effective mm @ 0°) Effective Armour - Maximum 76 mm - Minimum 20 mm Weapon Details Ordnance Q.F. 95mm Howitzer (Field Gun) Manufactured unknown - 1945 Calibre 95mm Ammunition Details Name/Id Calibre Weight MVelocity Explosive Content 95mm APHE (APHE Armor Piercing High Explosive) 95mm 6.72Kg 502M/Sec Range(Mtr) 100 200 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400 Flight Time(Secs) 0.2 0.41 0.83 1.74 2.74 3.83 5.05 6.4 Penetration(mm@30°) 64 60 56 51 45 41 37 32 Penetration(mm@0°) 75 70 65 59 53 48 43 38 Hit Probability(%) 98 98 98 77 39 22 6 3 95mm HE (HE High Explosive) 95mm 11.34Kg 320M/Sec ≈1.701Kg explosive Range(Mtr) 100 200 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400 Flight Time(Secs) 0.32 0.64 1.3 2.73 4.29 6.01 7.92 10.04 Direct Fire Range(Mtr) 100 200 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400 Flight Time(Secs) 0.32 0.64 1.3 2.73 4.29 6.01 7.92 10.04 Hit Probability(%) 98 98 93 39 15 3 2 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 5 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 5 mm of the tank armour including the roof. Weapon Details BESA Machine Gun 7.92mm (Machine Gun) 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 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

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: 2025-01-01