The Chieftain was also equipped with three machine guns, a 12.7mm range-finding gun and two 7.62mm NATO machine guns, one coaxial and the other, which was mounted within reach of the commander's cupola, for antiaircraft use. The British Army decided to re-equip its Chieftains with an even more powerful 元0 high-pressure rifled gun. When introduced in May 1963, the Chieftain was the most powerfully armed tank in the world. The Chieftain Main Battle Tank was built around the 120mm LI 1A5 rifled tank gun. An infrared searchlight was mounted to the right of the commander's cupola. Two six-barreled smoke dischargers were mounted on the turret. The Chieftain Main Battle Tank was armed with the 120mm L11A5 rifled main gun, which made it one of the most heavily armed MBTs of its time.įull nuclear-biological-chemical protection was provided through a forced-air filtering system. The commander had full 360° vision through a variety of periscopes, which were also fitted with night vision devices. The commander, gunner, and loader were in the turret, which contained a separate rotating cupola for the commander. The driver sat near the front in a reclining seat with a hatch to the right. The hull was cast in three pieces, which were welded together, and, like earlier British tanks, divided into three compartments - driving, fighting, and engine, front to back. Appliqué armor provided additional turret protection at the front and behind the commander's cupola. The turret was cast in two pieces and then welded together. Armor thicknesses are classified, but cast and rolled armor was used on the hull. The Chieftain's silhouette was two feet shorter than that of its forerunner, the Conqueror. The initial engine, a 585-horsepower diesel, was replaced in 1967. The Chieftain is a heavy tank at 60 tons and is considered underpowered, even with the larger 650-horsepower Leyland engine installed. The design of the Chieftain emphasized firepower and protection, but the price paid was less mobility. The resulting tank was an accommodation among firepower, speed, and agility. In the late 1940s with the threat of the Soviet T-54/T-55 and the rumored T-62 in mind, designers at Leyland had intended the Chieftain Main Battle Tank to replace both the Centurion Medium Tank and the Conqueror Heavy Tank. The Centurion weighed in at nearly 57 tons and could move at only 22 miles per hour on the road. Each succeeding design also grew heavier.
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