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{{Orphan|date=February 2014}}
{{Orphan|date=February 2014}}
[[Image:Sentinel (AWM 101156).jpg|thumb|[A production AC1 tank] AC MkI [[Sentinel tank]] on trials]]

[[Image:1st Armoured Div (AWM 025473).jpg|thumb|1st Armoured Division M3 Grant tanks in June 1942]]
[[Image:1st Armoured Div (AWM 025473).jpg|thumb|1st Armoured Division M3 Grant tanks in June 1942]]
{{History of the tank|state=uncollapsed}}
{{History of the tank|state=uncollapsed}}
The [[Australian Army]] has used tanks from their first use after [[World War I]], into the interwar period, during [[World War II]], the [[Cold War]] and into the modern era.
This article deals with the history of tanks employed by various military forces belonging to the [[Australian Army]] from their first use after [[World War I]], into the interwar period, during [[World War II]], the [[Cold War]] and into the modern era.


==Overview==
==Overview==
The [[First World War]] established the validity of the tank concept. After the war, many nations needed to have tanks, but only a few had the industrial resources to design and build them. During and after World War I, Britain and France were the intellectual leaders in tank design, with other countries generally following and adopting their designs. The [[Australian Army]] took interest in tanks soon after War World I and procured some of the foreign designs.
The [[First World War]] established the validity of the tank concept. After the war, many nations needed to have tanks, but only a few had the industrial resources to design and build them. During and after World War I, Britain and France were the intellectual leaders in tank design, with other countries generally following and adopting their designs. The [[Australian Army]] took interest in tanks soon after War World I and procured some of the foreign designs, and later even went to build its own design.

⚫
The Australian Army began with a force consisting of [[Vickers Limited|Vickers]] tanks, and its emphasis on the use of Allied armored vehicle development and fielding meant Australia desinged but did not field tanks of their own designs on the battlefield. However Australia’s armoured forces fought in key conflicts including those in World War 2, Vietnam, and peacekeeping missions in the modern era.

==Australian tank program==
The Australian tank program designed and developed a [[cruiser tank]] called the the [[Sentinel tank]] and it was the first tank to be built with a hull cast as a single piece, and the only tank to be produced in quantity in Australia. The few Sentinels that were built never saw action as [[Australian Armoured Units of World War II|Australia's armoured divisions]] had been equipped by that time with British and American tanks.<ref name="AustralianArmour">Hopkins, R.N.L. (1978): ''Australian Armour A History of the Australian Armoured Corps 1927–1972'', Australian War Memorial ISBN 0-642-99407-2</ref>
he AC1 began as a [[Ordnance QF 2 pounder|2 pounder]] gun-equipped design in November 1940, and was initially intended to be a true [[Cruiser tank]]. Like the Canadian [[Ram tank|Ram]] the Australian Cruiser was to be based on the engine, drive train, and lower hull of the American [[M3 Lee|M3 Medium]] tank, mated to an upper hull and turret built closely along the lines of a British [[Crusader tank|Crusader]]. By 1942, trying to keep pace with German tanks, the design specification had become more like an American [[medium tank]].

Due to a lack of home grown experience in tank design a mission was sent to the US to examine the M3 design and Colonel W.D. Watson MC, an artillery officer with many years tank design experience was provided by the UK. He arrived in December 1940.<ref>Mellor p304</ref>

The Australian Cruiser tank Mark 1 (AC1) was designated "Sentinel" in February 1942. Fabrication was by Sydney's [[Chullora Tank Assembly Shops]] with serial production vehicles emerging in August 1942, the premises also being used as a testing ground. The design used existing parts where available from other tank designs, simplified where necessary to match the machining capacity present in Australia. The hull was cast as a single piece, as was the turret; a technique not used on the hull of any other tanks of the era.<ref name="AFVProfile">Bingham, J (1971): AFV/Weapons Profiles 31 'Australian Sentinel and Matildas', Profile Publications Limited</ref>

The original vehicle was designed to mount a [[Ordnance QF 2 pounder|QF 2 pounder]] this was later changed to a [[Ordnance QF 6 pounder|QF 6 pdr]] (57&nbsp;mm, 2.25 in). However none of these were available and the first 65 tanks were built with the 2 pounder. Two [[Vickers machine gun]]s were carried as secondary armament, one in the hull and a second mounted coaxially beside the main gun. The preferred engines suitable to power a 28 tonne tank, a [[Pratt & Whitney R-1340|Pratt & Whitney ''Wasp'']] single row [[petrol]] radial, or a [[Guiberson]] [[Diesel fuel|diesel]] radial, were not available within Australia, so the Sentinel was powered by the combined output of three [[Cadillac]] 346 in³ (5.7 [[Litre|L]]) [[V8 engine|V8]] petrol car engines installed in clover-leaf configuration (two engines side-by-side to the front and a single to the rear: all three feeding a common gearbox). Sixty-five production vehicles had been completed by June 1943.<ref name="ArmedAndReady">{{cite book |last=Ross |first=A.T. |year=1995 |title=Armed and Ready The Industrial Development and Defense of Australia 1900–1945 |publisher=Turton & Armstrong |isbn=0-908031-63-7}}</ref>
[[Image:AC3 tank (AWM 101155).jpg|thumb|left|An AC3 tank.]]

The Sentinel was to be succeeded by the AC3, a much improved design with better armour protection, and most importantly increased firepower. The next step up in firepower available in Australia was the [[QF 25 pounder|25 pounder]] (87.6&nbsp;mm, 3.45 in) gun-[[howitzer]]. This was quickly redesigned as a tank gun, work that would later prove useful for the design of the [[Ordnance QF 25-pounder Short|Short 25 Pounder]]. Mounted in a fully traversable turret larger than that of the AC1 but using the same 54&nbsp;inch (1372&nbsp;mm) turret ring, it was slightly cramped for the turret crew but gave the AC3 both armour piercing capability as well as an effective high explosive round. The hull machine gun and gunner were removed from the design to make room for stowage of the larger 25 pounder ammunition. Powered by the same three Cadillac V8 engines as the AC1, they were now mounted radially on a common crank case and geared together to form the "Perrier-Cadillac",<ref>Named after the French engineer Robert Perrier who was largely responsible for the design (Mellor p319)</ref> a single 17.1 L, 24 cylinder engine, very similar in some respects to the later A57 [[Chrysler multibank]] used in some variants of the US M3 and M4 tanks. One pilot model AC3 had been completed and work had started on producing 25 tanks for trials when the programme was terminated.

In an effort to further improve the firepower of the Australian produced tanks, a turret was developed and mounted on one of the earlier development vehicles to assess the vehicle's ability to mount the foremost [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] anti-tank gun of the day – the British [[Ordnance QF 17 pounder|17 pounder]] (76&nbsp;mm, 3 in). This was achieved by mounting two 25 pounder gun-howitzers which when fired together would significantly exceed the recoil of a 17 pounder.<ref name="UniversalTank">Fletcher, D (1993): ''The Universal Tank British Armour in the Second World War Part 2'', HMSO, ISBN 0-11-290534-X</ref> It was later fitted with a 17 pounder and after successful gunnery trials the 17 pounder was selected for the AC4 design. For the AC4 the 17 pounder was to be mounted in a new and larger turret, attached by a 70&nbsp;inch (1778&nbsp;mm) diameter turret ring, the space for which was accommodated by changes to the upper hull permitted by the compact nature of the "Perrier-Cadillac".<ref>[http://www.naa.gov.au 'National Archives of Australia'] MP508/1, 325/703/3084 G.S. Specifications Cruiser Tank AC3 and AC4</ref>


The completed Sentinel tanks were used for evaluation purposes only and were not issued to operational armoured units. The Australian Cruiser tank programme was terminated in July 1943, but interestingly, in 1943 the [[Australian 3rd Army Tank Brigade|3rd Army Tank Battalion]] was equipped with a squadron of AC1 tanks which had been modified to resemble German tanks. These tanks were used in the filming of the movie [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0037212/ 'The Rats of Tobruk']. This appears to have been the only time a squadron of Sentinels was used for any purpose.<ref>Handel, P (2003) ''Dust, Sand and Jungle'', RAAC Memorial and Army Tank Museum, ISBN 1-876439-75-0.</ref>
⚫
The began with a force consisting of [[Vickers Limited|Vickers]] export tanks, and emphasis on the use of Allied armored vehicle development and fielding meant Australia did not field tanks of their own designs on the battlefield. However Australia’s armoured forces fought in key conflicts including those in World War 2, Vietnam, and peacekeeping missions in the modern era.


==Post World War I==
==Post World War I==
[[File:FT17 coverage of a French infantry onrush WWI.jpg| 180 px|left|thumb|Tactics involving a combination of thousands of [[tank]]s equipped with cannon (aka "[[male tank|males]]", as shown in this photo) and machine guns ("[[female tank|females]]"), both models with rotating turrets, made the difference for the success of 1918 Allied counter-offensives.]]
After [[World War I]], many European countries attempted to mechanize their cavalry. In parallel, Australian cavalry also shifted to military armored units. Australia's army (like the US, French, British and Russian armies) tried various methods to integrate modern armor into their traditional horse cavalry formations.
After [[World War I]], many European countries attempted to mechanize their cavalry. In parallel, Australian cavalry also shifted to military armored units. Australia's army (like the US, French, British and Russian armies) tried various methods to integrate modern armor into their traditional horse cavalry formations. The Australian Army had been in [[Battle of Amiens]] when they were part of the attack by more than 10 Allied divisions, Australian, [[Canada|Canadian]], British and French forces—with more than 500 tanks.<ref name = "Bean" />{{rp |497}}


Some time after the close of World War I, the Australian Army obtained tanks from foreign sources, mainly British. Australia did not have any indigenous tank production capability and so procured British [[Vickers Medium Mark II]] tanks to build its force. With this beginning, the Australian Army established an armored force, the [[1st Tank Section]] armoured unit formed in 1930 equipped with the Vickers Medium Mark II medium tank.<ref name="armour">{{cite web |url=http://www.australian-armour.com/1stTankSection.html |title=1st Tank Section |publisher=Australian Armour |accessdate=6 April 2010}}</ref>
Some time after the close of World War I, the Australian Army obtained tanks from foreign sources, mainly British. Australia did not have any indigenous tank production capability at time and so procured British [[Vickers Medium Mark II]] tanks to build its force. With this beginning, the Australian Army established an armored force, the [[1st Tank Section]] armoured unit formed in 1930 equipped with the Vickers Medium Mark II medium tank.<ref name="armour">{{cite web |url=http://www.australian-armour.com/1stTankSection.html |title=1st Tank Section |publisher=Australian Armour |accessdate=6 April 2010}}</ref>


The unit was based at [[Randwick, New South Wales]] and training was undertaken at Greenhills part of the Liverpool Military Area, Sydney.<ref>[http://cas.awm.gov.au/photograph/133675 Australian War Memorial, photograph 133675]</ref> This unit was disbanded in November 1937 with the men and equipment transferring to the newly created [[1st Light Tank Company (Australia)|1st Light Tank Company]].<ref name="armour"/> It was not the [[Australian Army|Australian Armies]] only armoured unit as World War II approached. The [[2nd Light Tank Company]] armoured unit formed in March 1939 and also equipped with the [[Vickers Medium Mark II]] medium tank.<ref name="armour">{{cite web |url=http://www.australian-armour.com/1stLightTankCompany.html |title=2nd Light Tank Company |publisher=Australian Armour |accessdate=29 August 2011}}</ref>
The unit was based at [[Randwick, New South Wales]] and training was undertaken at Greenhills part of the Liverpool Military Area, Sydney.<ref>[http://cas.awm.gov.au/photograph/133675 Australian War Memorial, photograph 133675]</ref> This unit was disbanded in November 1937 with the men and equipment transferring to the newly created [[1st Light Tank Company (Australia)|1st Light Tank Company]].<ref name="armour"/> It was not the [[Australian Army|Australian Armies]] only armoured unit as World War II approached. The [[2nd Light Tank Company]] armoured unit formed in March 1939 and also equipped with the [[Vickers Medium Mark II]] medium tank.<ref name="armour">{{cite web |url=http://www.australian-armour.com/1stLightTankCompany.html |title=2nd Light Tank Company |publisher=Australian Armour |accessdate=29 August 2011}}</ref>


The [[1st Royal New South Wales Lancers]] was an [[Australian Army]] light cavalry (reconnaissance) regiment which turned from horses to tanks, and subsequently saw action in the [[Second World War]] as the [[1st Light Horse Brigade#1st Light Horse Regiment|1st Light Horse Regiment]].
The [[1st Royal New South Wales Lancers]] was an [[Australian Army]] light cavalry (reconnaissance) regiment which turned from horses to tanks, and subsequently saw action in the [[Second World War]] as the [[1st Light Horse Brigade#1st Light Horse Regiment|1st Light Horse Regiment]].

Inspired by British designs, the Australian tank program designed and developed the [[Sentinel tank]] in response to the war in Europe, and to the threat of Japan expanding the war to the Pacific or even a feared [[Japan]]ese [[invasion]] of Australia.


==World War II==
==World War II==
Line 53: Line 73:


==Overview of tanks in the Australian Army==
==Overview of tanks in the Australian Army==
[[File:Australian Army Abrams tank July 2011.jpg|thumb|A 1st Armoured Regiment Abrams tank in 2011]]
[[File:Australian Army Abrams tank July 2011.jpg|thumb|right|A Australian Army 1st Armoured Regiment Abrams tank in 2011]]
[[Vickers Medium Mark II]] medium tank.
[[Vickers Medium Mark II]] medium tank.


Line 61: Line 81:


[[Centurion tank]]
[[Centurion tank]]

[[Sentinel tank]]
[[Image:AC1 Sentinel 8030.jpg|thumb|right|The AC1 Sentinel tank at the RAAC Tank Museum.]]
All but three of the AC1 Sentinel tanks were dismantled or disposed of in 1945.<ref>[http://www.naa.gov.au 'National Archives of Australia'] MT1274/1 325/0118/1 Australian "Cruiser" tanks: dismantling and disposal of 63 in total 66</ref> Surviving Sentinels can be seen at the [[Royal Australian Armoured Corps Memorial and Army Tank Museum|RAAC tank museum]] at Puckapunyal Victoria (serial number 8030), and at the [[Bovington Tank Museum]] (serial number 8049). The only completed AC3 (serial number 8066) is located at the Treloar Technology Centre at the [[Australian War Memorial]] in Canberra.
[[Image:AC E1(AWM P03498.010).jpg|thumb|right|AC E1 development vehicle with a test turret and 17 pounder gun]]


[[Leopard 1]] Main Battletank
[[Leopard 1]] Main Battletank
Line 87: Line 112:
{{Cold War tanks|style=wide}}
{{Cold War tanks|style=wide}}
{{Post-Cold War tanks|style=wide}}
{{Post-Cold War tanks|style=wide}}
[[Category:Cruiser tanks]]

[[Category:World War II tanks of Australia]]
[[Category:Military vehicles 1940–1944]]
[[Category:Australian armoured units]]
[[Category:Australian armoured units]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1930]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1930]]

Revision as of 17:34, 27 February 2014

[A production AC1 tank] AC MkI Sentinel tank on trials
1st Armoured Division M3 Grant tanks in June 1942

This article deals with the history of tanks employed by various military forces belonging to the Australian Army from their first use after World War I, into the interwar period, during World War II, the Cold War and into the modern era.

Overview

The First World War established the validity of the tank concept. After the war, many nations needed to have tanks, but only a few had the industrial resources to design and build them. During and after World War I, Britain and France were the intellectual leaders in tank design, with other countries generally following and adopting their designs. The Australian Army took interest in tanks soon after War World I and procured some of the foreign designs, and later even went to build its own design.

The Australian Army began with a force consisting of Vickers tanks, and its emphasis on the use of Allied armored vehicle development and fielding meant Australia desinged but did not field tanks of their own designs on the battlefield. However Australia’s armoured forces fought in key conflicts including those in World War 2, Vietnam, and peacekeeping missions in the modern era.

Australian tank program

The Australian tank program designed and developed a cruiser tank called the the Sentinel tank and it was the first tank to be built with a hull cast as a single piece, and the only tank to be produced in quantity in Australia. The few Sentinels that were built never saw action as Australia's armoured divisions had been equipped by that time with British and American tanks.[1] he AC1 began as a 2 pounder gun-equipped design in November 1940, and was initially intended to be a true Cruiser tank. Like the Canadian Ram the Australian Cruiser was to be based on the engine, drive train, and lower hull of the American M3 Medium tank, mated to an upper hull and turret built closely along the lines of a British Crusader. By 1942, trying to keep pace with German tanks, the design specification had become more like an American medium tank.

Due to a lack of home grown experience in tank design a mission was sent to the US to examine the M3 design and Colonel W.D. Watson MC, an artillery officer with many years tank design experience was provided by the UK. He arrived in December 1940.[2]

The Australian Cruiser tank Mark 1 (AC1) was designated "Sentinel" in February 1942. Fabrication was by Sydney's Chullora Tank Assembly Shops with serial production vehicles emerging in August 1942, the premises also being used as a testing ground. The design used existing parts where available from other tank designs, simplified where necessary to match the machining capacity present in Australia. The hull was cast as a single piece, as was the turret; a technique not used on the hull of any other tanks of the era.[3]

The original vehicle was designed to mount a QF 2 pounder this was later changed to a QF 6 pdr (57 mm, 2.25 in). However none of these were available and the first 65 tanks were built with the 2 pounder. Two Vickers machine guns were carried as secondary armament, one in the hull and a second mounted coaxially beside the main gun. The preferred engines suitable to power a 28 tonne tank, a Pratt & Whitney Wasp single row petrol radial, or a Guiberson diesel radial, were not available within Australia, so the Sentinel was powered by the combined output of three Cadillac 346 in³ (5.7 L) V8 petrol car engines installed in clover-leaf configuration (two engines side-by-side to the front and a single to the rear: all three feeding a common gearbox). Sixty-five production vehicles had been completed by June 1943.[4]

An AC3 tank.

The Sentinel was to be succeeded by the AC3, a much improved design with better armour protection, and most importantly increased firepower. The next step up in firepower available in Australia was the 25 pounder (87.6 mm, 3.45 in) gun-howitzer. This was quickly redesigned as a tank gun, work that would later prove useful for the design of the Short 25 Pounder. Mounted in a fully traversable turret larger than that of the AC1 but using the same 54 inch (1372 mm) turret ring, it was slightly cramped for the turret crew but gave the AC3 both armour piercing capability as well as an effective high explosive round. The hull machine gun and gunner were removed from the design to make room for stowage of the larger 25 pounder ammunition. Powered by the same three Cadillac V8 engines as the AC1, they were now mounted radially on a common crank case and geared together to form the "Perrier-Cadillac",[5] a single 17.1 L, 24 cylinder engine, very similar in some respects to the later A57 Chrysler multibank used in some variants of the US M3 and M4 tanks. One pilot model AC3 had been completed and work had started on producing 25 tanks for trials when the programme was terminated.

In an effort to further improve the firepower of the Australian produced tanks, a turret was developed and mounted on one of the earlier development vehicles to assess the vehicle's ability to mount the foremost Allied anti-tank gun of the day – the British 17 pounder (76 mm, 3 in). This was achieved by mounting two 25 pounder gun-howitzers which when fired together would significantly exceed the recoil of a 17 pounder.[6] It was later fitted with a 17 pounder and after successful gunnery trials the 17 pounder was selected for the AC4 design. For the AC4 the 17 pounder was to be mounted in a new and larger turret, attached by a 70 inch (1778 mm) diameter turret ring, the space for which was accommodated by changes to the upper hull permitted by the compact nature of the "Perrier-Cadillac".[7]

The completed Sentinel tanks were used for evaluation purposes only and were not issued to operational armoured units. The Australian Cruiser tank programme was terminated in July 1943, but interestingly, in 1943 the 3rd Army Tank Battalion was equipped with a squadron of AC1 tanks which had been modified to resemble German tanks. These tanks were used in the filming of the movie 'The Rats of Tobruk'. This appears to have been the only time a squadron of Sentinels was used for any purpose.[8]

Post World War I

File:FT17 coverage of a French infantry onrush WWI.jpg
Tactics involving a combination of thousands of tanks equipped with cannon (aka "males", as shown in this photo) and machine guns ("females"), both models with rotating turrets, made the difference for the success of 1918 Allied counter-offensives.

After World War I, many European countries attempted to mechanize their cavalry. In parallel, Australian cavalry also shifted to military armored units. Australia's army (like the US, French, British and Russian armies) tried various methods to integrate modern armor into their traditional horse cavalry formations. The Australian Army had been in Battle of Amiens when they were part of the attack by more than 10 Allied divisions, Australian, Canadian, British and French forces—with more than 500 tanks.[9]: 497 

Some time after the close of World War I, the Australian Army obtained tanks from foreign sources, mainly British. Australia did not have any indigenous tank production capability at time and so procured British Vickers Medium Mark II tanks to build its force. With this beginning, the Australian Army established an armored force, the 1st Tank Section armoured unit formed in 1930 equipped with the Vickers Medium Mark II medium tank.[10]

The unit was based at Randwick, New South Wales and training was undertaken at Greenhills part of the Liverpool Military Area, Sydney.[11] This unit was disbanded in November 1937 with the men and equipment transferring to the newly created 1st Light Tank Company.[10] It was not the Australian Armies only armoured unit as World War II approached. The 2nd Light Tank Company armoured unit formed in March 1939 and also equipped with the Vickers Medium Mark II medium tank.[10]

The 1st Royal New South Wales Lancers was an Australian Army light cavalry (reconnaissance) regiment which turned from horses to tanks, and subsequently saw action in the Second World War as the 1st Light Horse Regiment.

Inspired by British designs, the Australian tank program designed and developed the Sentinel tank in response to the war in Europe, and to the threat of Japan expanding the war to the Pacific or even a feared Japanese invasion of Australia.

World War II

A 2/6th Armoured Regiment tank supporting infantry during the assault on Buna
Members of the 2/5th Armoured Regiment with a M3 Grant tank
A 2/9th Armoured Regiment Matilda II firing its three inch howitzer at Japanese positions during the Battle of Tarakan
A 2/4th Armoured Regiment Matilda II advancing with Australian infantry on Bougainville in March 1945

The 1st Light Horse Regiment subsequently served during the Second World War as the 1st Armoured Regiment equipped with Matilda tanks.

An Australian Matilda Frog flamethrower tank in Borneo, 1945.

But at the start of the Second World War, due to the limitations of the Defence Act (1903), which prevented the government from sending the Militia to fight outside Australian territory, it was decided to raise an all-volunteer force to serve overseas. This force was known as the Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF),[12] and many of the 1st Light Horse (Machine Gun) Regiment's members volunteered and assigned to the 2/2nd Machine Gun Battalion, they took part in the fighting in the Mediterranean theatre.[13]

The 1st Armoured Regiment was originally converted from the 1st Armoured Car Regiment on 5 January 1940. In March 1942 the regiment was again renamed, being converted to the 1st Motor Regiment.[14] This change was short lived however, and it was changed again in May to the 1st Tank Battalion, becoming part of the Australian 3rd Army Tank Brigade, equipped with Matilda tanks.[14] In 1943 the unit became part of the 4th Armoured Brigade and was designated as an AIF unit, thus allowing it to be deployed to any theatre of the conflict,[15] and it deployed to New Guinea in August 1943 and fought in the Sattelberg and Lakona. The unit was then withdrawn to Australia in mid-1944.[15][16] On 1 June 1944, the unit was renamed the 1st Armoured Regiment.[14][15] and in May 1945, it took part in the amphibious landings at Balikpapan in support of the 7th Division, being involved in one of the final Australian campaigns of the war in Borneo.[15]

The Australian 1st Armoured Division was raised in 1941 as part of the Second Australian Imperial Force (AIF). While the Division was originally to be deployed to North Africa in late 1941, it was retained in Australia following the outbreak of the Pacific War. The 1st Armoured Division's armoured regiments were equipped with M3 Grant medium tanks and M3 Stuart light tanks in April and May 1942. Following this, the division was concentrated in northern New South Wales where it completed its training with a series of large exercises around Narrabri.[17] In January 1943, the division was moved to the area between Perth and Geraldton, Western Australia, where it formed part of III Corps to counter the perceived threat of a Japanese invasion of Western Australia.[18]The 1st Armoured Division formed a key element of Australia's defences against a feared Japanese invasion and was disbanded in Western Australia in September 1943.

The Australian 2nd Armoured Division was established on 21 February 1942 by redesignating and reorganising the 2nd Motor Division (which was previously the 2nd Cavalry Division). As an armoured division, it consisted of one armoured brigade of three armoured regiments, and one motor brigade consisting of three motor regiments, supported by an armoured car regiment.[19]

It was equipped with M3 Grant medium tanks and M3 Stuart light tanks. The 2nd Armoured Division was disbanded in Queensland on 19 February 1943. Similarly the Australian 3rd Armoured Division armoured unit was established on 15 November 1942[20] by redesignating the 1st Motor Division (which was previously the 1st Cavalry Division). As an armoured division the 3rd Armoured was equipped with M3 Grant medium tanks and M3 Stuart light tanks. The Division's 3rd Motor Brigade was gradually disbanded between March to August 1943 and the 3rd Armoured Division was disbanded in Queensland on 19 October 1943 as a result of manpower shortages in the Australian Army.

When it was initially feared that Japan might invade Australia, and with the UK unable to spare tank production for Australia, a programme to produce an indigenous tank was started. This resulted in the Sentinel cruiser tank produced from 1942. Although evaluated it was never issued to operational units and the supply of US tanks meant it was no longer needed.

Cold War

Following the end of the war the Australian Army was demobilised and the 1st Armoured Regiment was reconstituted as a reserve formation on 1 April 1948, adopting the designation of the 1st Armoured Regiment (Royal New South Wales Lancers), in recognition of its previous history.[21] During this time the regiment continued to operate Matilda tanks and was based at Lancer Barracks in Parramatta, in New South Wales.[22] However, in 1949 the regiment was renamed the 1st Royal New South Wales Lancers and its battle honours and history were perpetuated by this unit, in order to reallocate the former name to the tank regiment that was to be established in the new Australian Regular Army.[13][15][Note 1] Later, in 1956 the 1st Royal New South Wales Lancers merged with the 15th Northern River Lancers to form the 1st/15th Royal New South Wales Lancers, equipped with a small number of Centurion tanks.

Soldiers of the 1st Armoured Regiment are briefed while sitting in front of their Centurion tanks at Vũng Tàu in South Vietnam during 1968

1st Armoured Regiment armoured regiment was formed as a tank unit in the new Australian Regular Army on 7 July 1949. Initially the new regiment was equipped with Churchill tanks, although this was only a temporary measure until Centurion tanks could be acquired.[23] However, due to the unsuitability of the Churchill and the late arrival of the new platform, the regiment was not deployed as part of Australia's commitment to the Korean War. The first Centurions finally began arriving in June 1952, with the regiment receiving 39 tanks.[24] The regiment subsequently saw service during the Vietnam War.

During 1964–1965 the regiment provided most of the men for 1 Troop, A Squadron, 4th/19th Prince of Wales Light Horse, which was subsequently equipped with the new M113A1 Armoured Personnel Carrier and was deployed on active service to South Vietnam in May 1965.[25]

Post Cold War to the present

A Leopard AS1 MBT of the 1st Armoured Regiment during an exercise in Queensland in 2005.

There were changes for the 1st Armoured Regimentt, and for the Australian Army, with the abolition of National Service after the end of Australian involvement in Vietnam depleting its strength to the point where training was severely restricted until it was reinforced during 1974. B Squadron was re-designated as the Medium Tank Trials Unit in 1972 and subsequently carried out extensive user and technical trials to evaluate the replacement for the ageing Centurions. In 1977 the Centurion was replaced in service by the Leopard 1, which had been selected over the American built M60 Patton.[25] Today, the unit is based in Darwin as part of the mechanised 1st Brigade, and is the only armoured unit in the Australian Army to be equipped with main battle tanks, operating the M1A1 Abrams AIM.

Overview of tanks in the Australian Army

A Australian Army 1st Armoured Regiment Abrams tank in 2011

Vickers Medium Mark II medium tank.

Matilda II tank

Churchill tank

Centurion tank

Sentinel tank

The AC1 Sentinel tank at the RAAC Tank Museum.

All but three of the AC1 Sentinel tanks were dismantled or disposed of in 1945.[26] Surviving Sentinels can be seen at the RAAC tank museum at Puckapunyal Victoria (serial number 8030), and at the Bovington Tank Museum (serial number 8049). The only completed AC3 (serial number 8066) is located at the Treloar Technology Centre at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra.

AC E1 development vehicle with a test turret and 17 pounder gun

Leopard 1 Main Battletank

M1A1 Abrams AIM Main Battle Tank

Notes

Footnotes
  1. ^ See 1st Armoured Regiment (Australia).
Citations
  1. ^ Hopkins, R.N.L. (1978): Australian Armour A History of the Australian Armoured Corps 1927–1972, Australian War Memorial ISBN 0-642-99407-2
  2. ^ Mellor p304
  3. ^ Bingham, J (1971): AFV/Weapons Profiles 31 'Australian Sentinel and Matildas', Profile Publications Limited
  4. ^ Ross, A.T. (1995). Armed and Ready The Industrial Development and Defense of Australia 1900–1945. Turton & Armstrong. ISBN 0-908031-63-7.
  5. ^ Named after the French engineer Robert Perrier who was largely responsible for the design (Mellor p319)
  6. ^ Fletcher, D (1993): The Universal Tank British Armour in the Second World War Part 2, HMSO, ISBN 0-11-290534-X
  7. ^ 'National Archives of Australia' MP508/1, 325/703/3084 G.S. Specifications Cruiser Tank AC3 and AC4
  8. ^ Handel, P (2003) Dust, Sand and Jungle, RAAC Memorial and Army Tank Museum, ISBN 1-876439-75-0.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Bean was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ a b c "1st Tank Section". Australian Armour. Retrieved 6 April 2010. Cite error: The named reference "armour" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  11. ^ Australian War Memorial, photograph 133675
  12. ^ Grey 2008, p. 146.
  13. ^ a b "1st RNSWL". New South Wales Lancers Memorial Museum. 2010. Archived from the original on 6 June 2010. Retrieved 15 June 2010. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  14. ^ a b c Hopkins 1978, p. 319.
  15. ^ a b c d e "1st Armoured Regiment". Second World War, 1939–1945 units. Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 31 October 2009.
  16. ^ Hopkins 1978, p. 128.
  17. ^ Lambert 2012, p. 96.
  18. ^ Lambert 2012, pp. 96–97.
  19. ^ Hopkins 1978, p. 104.
  20. ^ Hopkins 1978, p. 326.
  21. ^ Hopkins 1978, p. 323.
  22. ^ Hopkins 1978, p. 183.
  23. ^ "1st Light Horse Regiment". First World War, 1914–1918 units. Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
  24. ^ Hopkins 1978, p. 200.
  25. ^ a b "History—1st Armoured Regiment". Department of Defence. Retrieved 13 June 2010.
  26. ^ 'National Archives of Australia' MT1274/1 325/0118/1 Australian "Cruiser" tanks: dismantling and disposal of 63 in total 66

References

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