Chobham Armour Hardback

Description

A comprehensive overview of the work of the Military Vehicles Research andDevelopment Establishment on Chobham Common, which provided armouredvehicles for the British Army from 1945 to its close in 2004.Through much of World War II British tanks and armoured vehicles were outmatched bythe German tanks they encountered and this led to the British Army placing muchemphasis on ensuring that the same situation would not arise again if the Cold Warturned hot. The task of developing the Main Battle Tanks and supporting armouredvehicles to out-range and quickly destroy the Soviet threat fell to the scientists andengineers at the Fighting Vehicle Research and Development Establishment onChobham Common near to Chertsey. It was the design authority for all British Militaryvehicles for most of the period.Military vehicle and equipment expert William Suttie draws extensively on official MODreports to tell the story of the development of the British Cold War armour, such as theCenturion, Chieftain, Challenger, and many other wheeled and tracked armour vehiclesthat served the British Army of The Rhine. The vehicles developed at the Chertsey sitewere never used for their intended purpose on the plains of North-west Germany, buthave proved their worth in British operations in places like Korea, Bosnia, Kuwait, Iraqand Afghanistan, as well as in the hands of other users around the world.Fully illustrated with photographs, schemes and drawings, including some that havenever been published before, this is a unique detailed overview of the development of allpost-war British armoured vehicles.Sales and Marketing HighlightsDrawing on MOD reports and interviews with those involved in the process,this book covers the design and development of British armour in the postwaryears.Describes the many prototypes, concepts and studies carried for vehicles thatnever went beyond the paper study or prototype stage, and how theseinformed the development of those that did.Features previously unpublished photographs and artwork to depict the widerange of concept vehicles considered.