Item# 35134

British Mbt Challenger Kit

Ca234

Discontinued

The first production Challengers were delivered to the British Army early i 1983. They were built by the Royal Ordnance Factory at Leeds, in West Yorkshire, England, ... Learn more

British Mbt Challenger Kit

  1. Description

    The first production Challengers were delivered to the British Army early i 1983. They were built by the Royal Ordnance Factory at Leeds, in West Yorkshire, England, and the Challenger is the latest in along line of famous battle tanks produced in Leeds which include the Chieftain, Centurion and Conqueror.
    The Chieftain was designed by the Fighting Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (later known as the Military Vehicles and Engineering Establishment) late in the 1950's and entered service in 1967. More than 800 Chieftains were built for the British Army both at Leeds and the Vickers factory located near Elswick, England. Having completed production for Britain, the factories were kept busy with orders from overseas governments, Iran alone ordering over 2,000 different variants, and Kuwait ordering 143. Since its introduction in 1967 the Chieftain has been kept up to date and continually modified to remain an effective weapons system.
    Project FV4030 (Chieftains for Iran) called for 1,300 M.B.T.'s which were improved Chieftains. The Iranians had already delivered 187 FV4030/1 when the New Revolutionary Government cancelled all orders in February 1979. FV4030/2, called the "Shir Iran 1", was well advanced and over 100 of these M.B.T.s were to be delivered to Iran in 1980. The much improved specifications included new engines and gear boxes and much greater performance. When the order was cancelled the tanks were modidied and sold to the Jordanian government and renamed "The Khalid". Jordan received 278 Khalids with deliveries beginning in 1980.
    The original Iranian order was to be in three phases and during 1977 seven prototypes of the FV4030/3 were produced. This variant, "The Shir Iran II", used Chobham armour and had a completely re-designed hull and turret, and since much of the research and development plus tooling had been paid for by the late Shah of Iran it seemed prudent to use this as a basis for further development of a new M.B.T. for the British Army during the 1980's. Originally, the successor to the Chieftain for the British Army was to be developed jointly with the government of West Germany, and was known as the F.M.B.T (Future Main Battle Tank).
    Because of the high expense involved and the differing tank philoophies between the two countries the plan was abandoned and replaced by the national M.B.T.80 program, which in turn, because of expense, was terminated in 1981. In July 1980 the British Minister for Defense stated in the House of Commons "It is now clear that the M.B.T.80 cannot be available until the early 1990's, and in order to meet the threat a much earlier enhancement of British Army armoured capabilities is required. I have, therefore, decided to bring into service by the mid 1980's a new tank know as "Challenger". This was the FV4030/4, a modified variant of the "Shir Iran II", and the British government ordered 240. The General Staff Requirement for the Challenger stated that the M.B.T. should ahve increased agility, availability at an early date, and compatibility with the European railway system. The Challenger has a hull and turret of Chobham armour and it is believed to have the highest degree of protectio of any tank in the world today.
    For at least three years before the Minister for Defence made his announcement about the Challenger, the NATO powers had been much concerned about the increasing sophistication of the T72 and T64 tanks then appearing in great numbers in most Warsaw pact countries. Initially it was thought that the Chieftain and their crew qualitative superiority could, in spite of small numbers, overcome this threat; however, it was soon realized that these T64/T72 tanks with the new 125mm high velocity fin stabilized ammunition presented a very dangerous potential. The U.S.A. had the M1 Abrams well on the way and the West Germans had the Leopard II, so for many reasons, not just cost, it was decided to go ahead with the Challenger.
    The Challenger M.B.T. is one of the most advanced armoured fighting vehicles in the world today. Modern technology has enabled outstanding improvements in firepower, protection and mobility, meeting the tough demands of today's battle conditions. It was a logical development of the Chieftain M.B.T. and embodies substantial advances in all areas of tank design. It is powered by a Rolls Royce CV12 diesel engine, producing 1200BHP, which is coupled to an automatic hydrostatic transmission to form an integral power pack of high performance.
    The exceptionally accurate L11 120mm rifled gun, together with laser range finding and two axis gun stabilization provides day or night sighting and the wide range of separate charge ammunition renders it capable of defeating any tank in service today. The highly advanced fire control system provides the highest firt round hit probability under the widest range of battle conditions. The Challengers incorporation of Chobham armour provides it with an exceptionally high level of protection against all forms of anti-tank weapons. In addition, particular attention has been paid to improving hull protection against mine attacks. Crew consists of a commander, driver, loader and gunner. A cupola mounted 7.62 calibre L37A2 machine gun and coaxial 7.62 calibre TKL8A2 machine gun provide secondary armament. It also has two clusters of 5 smoke dischargers providing 1800 MLS coverage.

  2. Specifications

    • Discontinued True
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