- Yes
- No
A line of Crusader and Sherman tanks move up the line during Battle of El Alamein 1942. - IWM (E 18881)
History
As the designation implies, Close Support tanks were a separate variant intended to provide support to the standard gun tanks through the use of HE by targeting emplacements and smoke by screening advances and isolating enemy units by creating thick smoke screens.
In terms of the Crusader, both the Mk. I and II had CS variants produced and, of the roughly 2000 Mk. Is and IIs built overall, I’d estimate somewhere between 2-300 were CS tanks with a smaller number of these being Mk Is compared to the II.
In order to carry out the CS role, they were armed with the Ordnance QF 3-inch Tank Howitzer Mk. I firing both HE and smoke. The 3-inch was an improvement over the older 3.7-inch Mortar mounted in the A9 and A10s as it was designed to be capable of being mounted in place of the 2pdr and didn’t require a redesign to the gun mounting and mantlet as had to be done with the 3.7-in.
The CS tanks were not placed in the tank Troops but were instead assigned to the Squadron HQ (consisting of four tanks with two being CS) which gave them a good overall view of operations and allowed them to more effectively carry out their role. Two CS tanks per Squadron and three Squadrons per Regiment meant there were six CS tanks to support thirty-six standard tanks.
Compared to the early war CS tanks, the 3" tanks carried a larger amount of HE but the majority of the ammunition carried was still smoke as evidenced by the Crusader Instruction Book which states an intended loadout of 24 HE and 40 smoke shells. This may seem silly but there are reports stating how useful these tanks were with the various ways they could deploy and use smoke screens.
In order for the 3" to be viable in-game, a semi-ahistorical HEAT shell would need to be made available for it. Documentation shows that one was designed and tested, achieving similar penetration figures to the 2pdr.
As this document shows, it used 1lb. (453.6g) of TNT and was capable of penetrating 75mm of armour at 30° from normal. At 0° it would be capable of penetrating roughly 87mm of armour. In ‘WWII Ballistics: Armor and Gunnery’ by Lorrin Rexford Bird and Robert D. Livingston, a muzzle velocity of 1066 ft/sec (325 m/sec) is given which is about what I’d expect based on the HE shell’s velocity and when comparing it to the velocities of the QF 95mm HE and HEAT shells.
Though this shell doesn’t seem to have ever been issued before the 3" started being phased out, I’ve no reason to believe the Crusader wouldn’t have been capable of using it.
In-game
The Mk. II CS would best fit at a BR of 2.7 alongside the standard Mk. II. Its HEAT would suffer from the usual problems of the shell type but would have better ranged damage capability providing it can hit with the low velocity. A big selling point over the 2pdr would be the HE shell for use against lightly armoured and open-topped vehicles.
A potential modification could be the addition of 14mm applique plates as an add-on armour modification. These plates were applied to the lower and upper portions of the nose, the sides of the driver’s hood, and the upper plate behind the auxiliary turret’s position (if it wasn’t fitted).
These plates were either attached by bolts (as seen on the header image) or were welded in place (as seen on ‘Scrap’).
Specifications
Crew - 4
Weight - 19.1t
Engine - Nuffield Liberty 27L V12 (340hp)
Max speed - 27mph
Armament
QF 3-inch Tank Howitzer Mk. I - (Ammo: 64)
1x Besa 7.92mm MG - (Ammo: 4275)
2-inch Bomb Thrower - Smoke - (Ammo: 29 bombs)
Max elevation/depression - +20/-15
Magnification - 1.9x-3.5x
Ammunition
3-inch Mk. II - High Explosive - 689 ft/sec (210 m/sec)
Shell SE Mk. I - Smoke - 689 ft/sec (210 m/sec)
Ahistorical HEAT - 1066 ft/sec (325 m/sec)
I don’t know the designation of this currently but it’s likely similar to that of the 95mm H.E./A.T. Mk. I.
Armour
Upper Hull Nose - 20mm
Hull Nose - 20mm + 12.7mm backing plate
Lower Hull Nose - 20mm
Driver’s Hood Front - 18mm + 22.22mm backing plate (viewports 50mm castings)
Driver’s Hood Sides - 14mm + 14.27mm backing plates
Upper Hull - 20mm + 9.525mm and 4.75mm backing plates
Hull Sides - 14mm + 14.27mm backing plates
Hull Rear - 14mm
Hull Roof - 7mm
Engine Deck - 7mm
Mantlet - 50mm / 63.5mm (Besa/gunner’s sight apertures) / 76.2mm (main gun aperture)
Turret Front - 31.75mm + 19.05mm backing plate
Turret Sides - 14mm + 9.525mm backing plates
Turret Rear - 17mm + 12.7mm backing plate
Turret Roof - 12.7mm
Thanks to @Jarms and @Bring_TheBigGun for putting in the research into the Crusader’s correct armour thicknesses. You both made what would’ve been a painful process much easier.
Images
Crusader and Valentine tanks negotiate boggy ground on a training course at Linney Head in Wales, 17 December 1942. - IWM (H 26379)
A Scammell Pioneer recovery lorry tows a disabled Crusader tank into a REME workshop, 12 February 1943. - IWM (NA 781)
A repaired Crusader tank leaves a REME workshop, 12 February 1943. - IWM (NA 782)
Newly-arrived Crusader tanks being driven from the docks in Tripoli to the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers port workshops, 15 March 1943. - IWM (E 22964)
Sources
AFV-049D Crusader Mk. I-III Instruction Book Chilwell Catalogue No. 62/438
Crusader Tank A Technical History - P.M. Knight
British Battle Tanks - David Fletcher
WWII Ballistics: Armor and Gunnery - Lorrin Rexford Bird and Robert D. Livingston
AFV Profile 8 Crusader Cruiser Mk. VI - Maj. James Bingham
