THE LATEST TANK

Evening Star, Issue 18158, 26 December 1922, Page 7

THE LATEST TANK

CREW OF FIFTY MEN. TRAVELS AT TWENTY MILES AN HOUR. LONDON, November 16. A new type of tank has been devised for the British Government which may bring about important modifications in military tactics, render certain now_ formidable weapons harmless, and minimise the terrible casualties which hitherto have been regarded as inseparable from modern warfare. Externally tho new machine is a larger edition of the Mark V. tank with which the Army was equipped at the end of the war. The hard steel shell, however, conceals secrets which a hostile Power would give much to discover. An engine of a nq,w type is installed, giving a normal speed of twenty miles an hour. This comparatively great speed increases the effect of the machine as a weapiri of surprise and assault, besides rendering it exceedingly difficult for hostile artillery to hit. A wonc’Vful system of springs prevents jars and shocks, _ and thus qnables the gunners .to maintain a steady aim and rapid fire. In addition, this smoothness of travel minimises the risk of the revolving caterpillar “tracks” getting broken. An automatic gun of a new type which fires a rapid stream of lin armor-piercing bullets will probably be mounted.

One of Hie most important features is the economy of interior space. Fifty men can be Hacked comfortably into the new tank. Fifteen was the limit for the old tank. This moans that battalions can be carried forward, a platoon to each tank, in a fleet of the new machines, and released for battle in the enemy’s lines, without the heavy casualties in “ no man’s land.” Tests of the new machine have been carried out in lonely spots under conditions of secrecy, and are said to have proved successful in all respects. The improvements are the result of four years of extensive experiments and tests.