A military armoredcar is a lightweight wheeled armored fighting vehicle, historically employed for reconnaissance, internal security, armed escort, and other subordinate battlefield tasks. With the gradual decline of mounted cavalry, armored cars were developed for carrying out duties used to be assigned to light cavalry. Following the invention of the tank, the armored car remained popular due to its faster speed, comparatively simplified maintenance and low production cost. It also found favor with several colonial armies as a cheaper weapon for use in underdeveloped regions. During World War II, most armored cars were engineered for reconnaissance and passive observation, while others were devoted to communications tasks. Some equipped with heavier armament could even substitute for tracked combat vehicles in favorable conditions—such as pursuit or flanking maneuvers during the North African Campaign.
An anti-aircraft vehicle, also known as a self-propelled anti-aircraft gun (SPAAG) or self-propelled air defense system (SPAD), is a mobile vehicle with a dedicated anti-aircraft capability. The Russian equivalent of SPAAG is ZSU, for zenitnaya samokhodnaya ustanovka.
The Tank, Infantry, Mk III, Valentine was an infantry tank produced in the United Kingdom during World War II. More than 8,000 of the type were produced in eleven marks, plus various specialised variants, accounting for approximately a quarter of wartime British tank production. The many variants included riveted and welded construction, petrol and diesel engines and a progressive increase in armament. It was supplied in large numbers to the USSR and built under licence in Canada. It was used extensively by the British in the North African campaign. Developed by Vickers, it proved to be both strong and reliable, which was unusual for British tanks of the period.
The Cromwell tank, officially Tank, Cruiser, Mk VIII, Cromwell (A27M), was one of the series of cruiser tanks fielded by Britain in the Second World War. Named after the English Civil War-era military leader Oliver Cromwell, the Cromwell was the first tank put into service by the British to combine high speed from a powerful, reliable engine and reasonable armour. The intended dual-purpose high velocity gun could not be fitted in the turret, so a medium velocity dual purpose gun was fitted instead. Further development of the Cromwell combined with a high velocity gun led to the Comet tank.
Crusader, in full "Tank, Cruiser Mk VI, Crusader", also known by its General Staff number A.15, was one of the primary British cruiser tanks during the early part of the Second World War. Over 5,000 tanks were manufactured and they made important contributions to the British victories during the North African campaign. The Crusader tank would not see active service beyond Africa, but the chassis of the tank was modified to create anti-aircraft, fire support, observation, communication, bulldozer and recovery vehicle variants.
The Tank, Cruiser, Mk I (A9) was a British cruiser tank of the interwar period. It was the first cruiser tank: a fast tank designed to bypass the main enemy lines and engage the enemy's lines of communication, as well as enemy tanks. The Cruiser Mk II was a more heavily armoured adaptation of the Mark I, developed at much the same time.
The Tank, Cruiser, Mk II (A10), was a cruiser tank developed alongside the A9 cruiser tank, and was intended to be a heavier, infantry tank version of that type. In practice, it was not deemed suitable for the infantry tank role and was classified as a "heavy cruiser".
The Leichter Panzerspähwagen was a series of light four-wheel drive armoured cars produced by Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1944.
AEC Armoured Car is the name of a series of British heavy armoured cars built by the Associated Equipment Company (AEC) during the Second World War.
The Marmon-Herrington Armoured Car was a series of armoured vehicles that were produced in South Africa and adopted by the British Army during the Second World War. RAF Armoured Car companies possessed them, but seem never to have used them in action, making greater use of Rolls Royce Armoured Cars and other types.
The Vickers Medium Mark II was a British tank built by Vickers in the Inter-war period.
The Vickers Medium Mark I was a British tank of the Inter-war period built by Vickers from 1924.
The Lanchester 6x4 armoured car was a British armoured car with a 6x4 drivetrain produced in limited numbers in the late 1920s and early 1930s. A heavier, more rugged development of the earlier Lanchester 4x2 armoured car, it remained in service with Territorial and colonial units until the early 1940s and saw action in the Battle of Malaya.
Car, Armoured, Heavy (Aust), also known as Rhino, was an armoured car designed in Australia during the Second World War. Due to enemy action and design problems the project never got beyond a prototype stage.
The Lanchester armoured car was a British armoured car built on the chassis of the Lanchester "Sporting Forty", it saw wide service with the Royal Naval Air Service and British Army during the First World War. The Lanchester was the second most numerous World War I armoured car in British service after the Rolls-Royce armoured car.
Tanks of the Second World War
The Delaunay-Belleville armoured car was a British armoured car built on the chassis of the luxury French Delaunay-Belleville tourer. It saw service with the Royal Naval Air Service in the early years of the First World War.
The Seabrook armoured lorry was a British heavy armoured car built on the chassis of an American 5-ton truck which saw service with the Royal Naval Air Service during the First World War.
The Pierce-Arrow armoured AA lorry was a self-propelled anti-aircraft carrier mounting a QF 2-pounder AA "pom-pom" gun, it was used by the Royal Marine Artillery during the First World War.
The Talbot armoured car was a British armoured car built on the chassis of a Clément-Talbot tourer. Built in small numbers to several patterns, the Talbot armoured cars saw service with the Royal Naval Air Service (R.N.A.S.) in the early years of the First World War, serving alongside Rolls-Royce and Delaunay-Belleville armoured cars.
