| 词条 | Churchill Crocodile |
| 释义 |
|name=Churchill Crocodile |image=Churchill Crocodile 01.jpg |image_size = 300px |caption=A Churchill Crocodile firing its flame-projector |origin= United Kingdom |type=Infantry tank/Flame tank |is_vehicle=yes |is_UK=yes |service= (British Empire) |used_by= United Kingdom |wars= Second World War Korean War |designer= |design_date= |manufacturer= |unit_cost= |production_date= |number= |weight= |length= |width= |height= |crew= |armour= |primary_armament= Ordnance QF 75 mm |secondary_armament= Flame thrower, Machine gun |engine= |engine_power= |transmission= |steering= |fuel_capacity= |pw_ratio= |suspension= |vehicle_range= |speed= }} The Churchill Crocodile was a British flame-throwing tank of late Second World War. It was a variant of the Tank, Infantry, Mk VI (A22) Churchill Mark VII, although the Churchill Mark IV was initially chosen to be the base vehicle. The Crocodile was introduced as one of the specialised armoured vehicles developed under Major-General Percy Hobart, informally known as "Hobart's Funnies". It was produced from October 1943, in time for the Normandy invasion. Design and developmentFrom early in the war, there had been experiments with mounting flamethrowers on British vehicles; leading to vehicles such as the Cockatrice, Basilisk and the Wasp (the latter being a flamethrower on a Universal Carrier). The Churchill Oke, a flamethrower carrying Churchill Mark II developed by a Royal Tank Regiment officer, was tested operationally on the Dieppe Raid. Parallel development work was carried out by the Petroleum Warfare Department, AEC and the Ministry of Supply (MoS) on Valentine tanks. The Department of Tank Design preferred the Churchill, which was the Infantry tank successor to the Valentine, as a basis for further work.[1] General Percy Hobart saw the Crocodile demonstrated in 1943 and pressured the MoS to produce a development plan[2] and the Chief of the General Staff added the flamethrowers to the 79th Division plan. Final designThe flamethrower equipment was produced as a kit that REME workshops could fit in the field, converting any available Churchill Mk VII. The conversion kit consisted of the trailer, an armoured pipe fitted along the underside of the tank, and the projector, which replaced the hull mounted Besa machine gun. The Crocodile was therefore still able to function as a gun tank with its turret mounted Ordnance QF 75 mm gun. Of the 800 kits produced, 250 were held in reserve for possible operations against the Japanese.[3] The remainder was sufficient for producing three regiments of tanks as well as training and replacements for battlefield casualties. The Crocodile's six and a half ton, armoured trailer carried {{convert|400|impgal|l}} of fuel[4] as well as five cylinders containing compressed gas propellant.{{refn|group=Note|Initially compressed air was used, but later the preference was to use compressed nitrogen. See Fletcher (2007), p.16 and p,23}} This was enough for eighty[5][6] one-second bursts. The trailer, connected to the tank by a three way armoured coupling,{{refn|group=Note|The coupling coped with Yaw, pitch, and roll of the trailer with respect to the tank}} and could be jettisoned from within the tank if necessary. For transport over long distances, Crocodile units were issued with AEC Matador lorries to tow the trailers. The tanks themselves would be moved on tank transporters.[7] Flame projectorThe thrower had a range of up to {{convert|120|yd|m}},[8] although some sources quote {{convert|150|yd|m}}.[9][10] To ignite the flame, the projector used a fine spray of petrol from the Crocodile's main fuel tank, this was ignited by a spark plug, and in turn ignited the main fuel jet. The operator could spray long or short bursts of flaming fuel onto the target. The operator could also spray the target with unignited fuel, then set it on fire with a short, lit burst.[11] Refuelling took at least 90 minutes and pressurization around 15 minutes; the pressure required had to be primed on the trailer by the crew as close to use as feasible, because pressure could not be maintained for very long. The fuel was projected at a rate of {{convert|4|impgal|l}} per second. The fuel burned on water and could be used to set fire to woods and houses. ServiceUsed by units of the 79th Armoured Division in concert with the Churchill AVRE, and other Funnies, the Crocodile was an effective assault weapon whose threat could induce enemy troops to retreat or surrender. The Crocodile was a specialised weapon limited by the short range of its flamethrower. On the other hand, it was used so successfully against bunkers that many surrendered after the first ranging shots. Aspects of the mechanism were considered by the British to be so secret that disabled units, if they could not be recovered, were rapidly destroyed by any means, even air strike, if necessary.[12] British Crocodiles supported the U.S. Army in the Normandy bocage, at the Battle for Brest, and during Operation Clipper, the Anglo-American assault on Geilenkirchen. C Squadron also supported the 53rd Welch Division assault on 's-Hertogenbosch in October 1944. The units that used the Crocodile in North west Europe, generally as part of 31st Armoured Brigade, were:
The flame projector was a powerful psychological weapon, so feared by the Germans that captured Crocodile crews were often summarily executed.[13][14] In Italy, the 25th Armoured Assault Brigade operated Crocodiles.[15] From late 1950 until their withdrawal in 1951, Churchill Crocodiles served in Korea as part C Squadron, 7th Royal Tank Regiment in 29th Brigade. Surviving vehiclesMark VII Crocodiles are owned by the Muckleburgh Collection in Norfolk, the Cobbaton Combat Collection in Devon, Eden Camp Museum in North Yorkshire, the D-Day museum in Portsmouth, the Wheatcroft Collection, the Kubinka Tank Museum in Russia and the Museum of the Regiments, Calgary, Alberta. A Mark VIII is at the Royal Australian Armoured Corps Museum. Two (one in running order) are privately owned in the UK. One in running order is under private ownership in the USA.[16] One example without a trailer is on display at the Bayeux Museum of the Battle of Normandy. Another example with a trailer is held at the Bovington Tank Museum. Another, complete with a trailer, is on display on Fort Montbarey parade ground in Brest (Brittany); it was given as a Memorial by Queen Elizabeth II. Notes
1. ^Fletcher, (2007) p.12 2. ^Churchill's secret weapons p 71 3. ^Churchill's secret weapons, p. 72 4. ^The Encyclopedia of Tanks and Armored Fighting Vehicles - The Comprehensive Guide to Over 900 Armored Fighting Vehicles From 1915 to the Present Day, General Editor: Christopher F. Foss, 2002 5. ^Fortin, Ludovic. British Tanks In Normandy, Histoire & Collections. {{ISBN|2-915239-33-9}} 6. ^Fowler, Will. D-Day: The First 24 Hours, Lewis International Inc. {{ISBN|1-930983-22-0}} 7. ^Fletcher, (2007) p.23 8. ^Fowler gives a range of 80-120 m (73-110 yards), Fortin gives a range of 70-110 m (64-100 yards) 9. ^How We Blasted the Huns with Flame in France, The War Illustrated, 29 September 1944 10. ^{{cite web|url=http://www.desertrat.brigades.btinternet.co.uk/equipment.htm |title=Equipment used by the Armoured Brigades |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070405053519/http://www.desertrat.brigades.btinternet.co.uk/equipment.htm |archivedate=5 April 2007 }} 11. ^Fletcher, (2007) p.18 12. ^Wilson, A., 'Flame Thrower', William Kimber & Co Ltd, 1956 13. ^{{cite book|title=Normandy 1944: The Road to Victory|page=46|author=Richard Doherty|publisher=Spellmount|year=2004|isbn=1862272247}} 14. ^{{cite book|title=D-day: Piercing the Atlantic Wall|page=234|author=Robert J. Kershaw|publisher=Naval Institute Press|year=1994|isbn=1557501513}} 15. ^Crow, D Tanks of World War II 1979 16. ^http://www.toadmanstankpictures.com/churchill_crocodile.htm
External links
| people = | year = 1944 | title = A70 135-7 – Churchill Crocodile Flame-throwing Tanks (Part 1) | url = https://film.iwmcollections.org.uk/record/2058 | minutes = | medium = Film | language = | trans_title = | publisher = Imperial War Museum | location = | accessdate = 11 September 2018 | id = | isbn = | oclc = | quote = | ref = {{harvid|IWM Film A70 135-7}}
| people = | year = 1944 | title = A70 135-8 – Churchill Crocodile Flame-throwing Tanks (Part 2) | url = https://film.iwmcollections.org.uk/record/554 | minutes = | medium = Film | language = | trans_title = | publisher = Imperial War Museum | location = | accessdate = 11 September 2018 | id = | isbn = | oclc = | quote = | ref = {{harvid|IWM Film A70 135-8}}
| people = | year = 1944 | title = A70 11-1 – TRAINING WITH CHURCHILL CROCODILE FLAMETHROWING TANKS (PART 1) | url = https://film.iwmcollections.org.uk/record/2340 | minutes = | medium = Film | language = | trans_title = | publisher = Imperial War Museum | location = | accessdate = 11 September 2018 | id = | isbn = | oclc = | quote = | ref = {{harvid|IWM Film A70 11-1}}
| people = | year = 1944 | title = A70 11-2 – TRAINING WITH CHURCHILL CROCODILE FLAMETHROWING TANKS (PART 2) | url = https://film.iwmcollections.org.uk/record/1404 | minutes = | medium = Film | language = | trans_title = | publisher = Imperial War Museum | location = | accessdate = 11 September 2018 | id = | isbn = | oclc = | quote = | ref = {{harvid|IWM Film A70 11-2}}{{WWIIBritishAFVs}} 4 : Infantry tanks|World War II tanks of the United Kingdom|Flame tanks|History of the tank |
| 随便看 |
|
开放百科全书收录14589846条英语、德语、日语等多语种百科知识，基本涵盖了大多数领域的百科知识，是一部内容自由、开放的电子版国际百科全书。