Bravia Chaimite V-400 Mk. I

ChieftainWarrior · September 21, 2024, 7:56am

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Chaimite V-400 Mk. I

TL;DR: Portuguese unlicensed Cadillac Gage V-150 with turret housing a 90mm Mecar cannon

History
In the early 1960s, Portugal felt a growing need for a modern wheeled APC, to be used to in Africa. At the time, Portugal was in a period called the Estado Novo (New State), led by dictator António de Oliveira Salazar. A number of independence movements in Portugal’s African colonies began, culminating in the Portuguese Colonial War (1961-1974).

Portugal reached out to America, seeking the license for the Cadillac Gage Commando V-100. America did not authorise the license, as Portugal intended to use them outside the scope of NATO, of which it was a founding member. In March 1967, the company “BRAVIA SARL, Sociedade Luso-Brasileira de Viaturas e Equipamentos” was founded and plans were soon drawn up for the ‘Chaimite’. As Cadillac Gage did not provide Portugal with the license, Portugal resorted to using information from two American engineers who illegally provided technical data to Bravia.

The first prototype was produced soon after, and later that year, the Portuguese Army ordered 27 vehicles. By 1971, only 18 had been produced. The first Chaimites were sent to Guinea for testing at the end of 1970 – in two forms. Four were in the APC form (V-200), and one was in a light tank form, with a 90mm Mecar gun in a two-man turret designed by Bravia. Named the V-400 (and later V-400 Mk. I), this vehicle saw testing, and later was returned to Portugal, where it remained in Bravia’s storage until its closure.

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Left: V-200 during testing in Guinea; Right: Brochure for V-400 Mk. I, photo taken during testing in Guinea

While the V-400 never saw service, the V-200 saw active service in a number of countries, like Portugal, the Philippines, Lebanon, Libya and Peru. Bravia modified the V-200s with a number of different armaments, like the V-400 Mk. II with the French H-90 turret, the V-300 with various SPAA turrets, and V-200s with ATGMs and rocket launchers.

In 1989, Portugal received 15 V-150 Commando’s equipped with a 90mm Cockerill cannon. These are often mistaken online for Chaimite V-400s, but Portugal never appears to have mounted this same turret on the Chaimite. While the Chaimite and V-150 are almost identical, one key external difference is that the Chaimite has three side windows, whereas the V-150 only has two.

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V-150 in Portuguese service, NOT a Chaimite

Interesting note: America also separately mounted the 90mm Mecar gun on their V-150s, albeit with a different turret design:

Characteristics
The turret of the V-400 Mk. I is a domestic design, and details about it are incredibly scarce. It houses a Mecar 90mm cannon. This cannon functions similarly to other 90mm cannons like the Cockerill Mk. 3 and DEFA F1, but has a lower muzzle velocity than both, and as such has a limited range for anti-tank combat. The cannon can only fire HEAT, HE and smoke rounds, and has a rate of fire in the Bravia turret of 8-10 rpm. The HEAT rounds have 350mm penetration but a muzzle velocity of 633 m/s. The HE rounds have a muzzle velocity of 338 m/s. Jane’s suggests the V-400 carried 61 90mm rounds total (21 in a ready rack, 40 others).This seems too excessive, but if the troop compartment was filled with ammunition instead this might work. In the Bravia turret, the gun can traverse 360° horizontally, and elevate +25°/-8°.

MECAR 90mm Brochure

The V-400 Mk. I has two 7.62mm machine guns, one mounted coaxially and one on the turret roof. These have 3000 rounds total (500 rounds ready-to-use).

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V-400 Mk. I

The hull of the Chaimite is all-welded steel, with the driver and normally the commander at the front. Its armour is very thin – the hull front has 6.35mm at 75° on the upper section, and 7.94mm at 40° on the lower section. The thickest section of armour is the hull floor, at 9.35mm. The vehicle has a Chrysler 361 M75 V-8 petrol engine, delivering 210hp (or 191hp, sources differ) at 4000rpm. The V-200 APC variant has a weight of 7.3t, and as such, a power-to-weight ratio of 28.76 hp/t. Along with a manual transmission with 5 forward gears and 1 reverse gear, this allows the Chaimite to have a maximum speed of 99km/h, a reverse speed of 13.7km/h, and 7km/h in water. The V-400 has 4 crew – commander, gunner, driver and radio operator.

V-400 Mk. I remains

Conclusion
The Chaimite V-400 Mk. I would be a great light tank for a future e.g. Iberian tree, or potentially added to the US (Cadillac Gage copy) or French (Belgian gun) trees as a premium. It is a Portuguese analogue to vehicles in-game like the AUBL/74 and AML-90, and would likely sit around 6.7.

Specifications
Armament

90mm Mecar
- 8-10 RPM, 61 rounds (21 ready-to-fire)
- Ammunition:
  - HEAT-FS, HEAT-CAN-90
    - 350mm at 0° at 10m
  - HE, HE-CAN-90
  - Smoke, SMK-CAN-90
2x 7.62mm
- 3000 rounds total (500 ready-to-fire)
Vertical guidance
- +25°/-8°

Armour

Hull front upper – 6.35mm at 75°
Hull front lower – 7.94mm at 40°
Hull sides upper – 6.35mm at 30°
Hull sides lower – 7.94mm at 10°
Hull top – 6.35mm
Hull floor – 9.35mm
Hull rear – 6.35mm at 30°
Turret – Unknown

Mobility

Maximum speed
- 99km/h off-road
  - 1st gear, 13.7km/h
  - 2nd gear, 22.6km/h
  - 3rd gear, 37.9km/h
  - 4th gear, 62km/h
  - 5th gear, 99km/h
  - Reverse gear, 13.7km/h
- 7km/h in water
Weight
- 7.3t (V-200 APC)
Engine power
- 210hp at 4000rpm, Chrysler 361 M75 V-8
- 28.76hp/t (V-200 APC)