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• History:
After the first thirty medium Mark I tanks were build, they’re where quickly followed by fifty Mark IAs. Externally there was little difference between the two. The Mark IA had slightly thicker armour, using both 6,35mm (0.25 in.) and 8,5mm (approximately 0.33 in.) plates, and the driver’s hood was split vertically down the centre allowing each half to swing back: the top plate folded back on to the super-structure in contrast to the Mark I where the driver’s hood was hinged to fold back as a complete unit.
The back plate of the turret was bevelled in the Mark IA which gave the Hotchkiss a better chance in its AA role and an opening (accessible via a hatch) was provided in the front plate to allow the engine to be started from the outside. Inside the tank, brow and chin pads for the gunners were of improved pattern and a primitive locking plunger in the hand traversing gear for the 3-pdr. which had never been satisfactory was abandoned.
The difficulties witch the side VMG gunners faced in handling their weapons were paralleled by the problems confronting the 3-pdr. gunner. No seat was provided for him and he had to crouch over his handles, his right hand working in the horizontal plane controlling the traversing wheel, and his left in the vertical plane operating the elevating gear which also carried the firing handle. A telescope of 1/1 magnification carried cross wires and elevation was put on the sighting drum to alter the angle of sight relative to the bore. Co-ordination of hands was particularly difficult owing to the wide spacing of the handles and before the annual gunnery camp Vickers Medium tank commanders and gunners were to be seen stalking about barracks waving their hands in mystic circles to achieve automatic co-ordination of hand and eye.
• Characteristics:
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The tank had a total of 5 crew members, commander, driver, gunner, loader and a machine gunner, the Driver would sit at the front, next to the engine compartment, the commander, gunner and loader would “stand” in the turret, and the machine gunner was responsible of operating the hull machine guns located on the sides of the tank.
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The tank was 5,33m Long 2,42m high and 2,72m wide, it had a total weight of 11,9 tons, the tank was powered by a Armstrong Siddeley V8 engine producing 90B.H.P. (around 88HP) giving it a top speed of 15mph or 24mph.
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The armor on the Medium Mk. IA was improved over the Vickers Medium Mk. I, the armor was 6,35mm to 8,5mm thick, (instead of just 6,35mm), although not particularly thick, the frontal armor is angled, the driver’s plate has additional horizontal ribbing, for extra protection, and in war thunder, the engine and massive radiator being located in a compartment at the front gives the vehicle some artificial survivability, the engine is sectioned in two compartments separated from the crew compartment by a 6.35mm thick plate made of asbestos and steel. The machine guns on the sides of the hull are also protected by armored jackets.
Click here for additional informations and images:
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The 100 gallons fuel tank was located in a armored compartment at the rear, but it was encased in only 8mm of armor, and the machine guns were mounted into ball mountings, ammunition for the main gun was kept in armored lockers and very similarly to later british designs, the armor of the Mk. IA was riveted into a frame to make repairs and maintenance easier.
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Curiously, the floor of the tank is double layered, the outer layer (the one that can been seen in the outside) is 6.35mm thick, and the inner layer (the one that the crew stands on) is also 6.35mm thick, in between these two layers, is where the transmission and oil pump are located, in-between these two floor plates, there were steel and asbestos partitions.
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Another unexpected surprise i discovered while researching this tank is that the chassis of the tank itself is also quite thick, (the lower part of the hull), 7 plates on each side and 6 on the floor, made from homogeneous armor 0.25 in. thick were attached to the chassis, for a respectable total of 44,4mm and 38,1mm of protection, in the lower hull.
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So not too much, when the upper armor on the rest of the vehicle is only 6,35mm to 8,5mm thick, but it’s certainly something, from what i’ve read this is the same on all the Medium Mk. I tanks. But i don’t know about Mk. II’s
Additional Images:
- 1: To the right, the driver’s position, and to the left, the engine compartment wall, the little aperture that can be seen in the plate, was to allow the engine to be started from inside the tank. 2: A look at one of the ball mounted machine guns, from inside the tank, as well as one of the side doors.
• Armaments:
The armaments of this tank are four .303 Vickers machine guns and a Ordnance QF 3 pounder gun (47mm), this gun is already in war thunder, it’s the same gun as the Independent heavy tank, capable of going through up to 49mm of armor with APHE shells. The machine guns also have a interesting configuration, one is a coaxial machine gun, the other two are in armored jackets in ball mountings either side of the hull, and the last one is in a ball mounting on the back of the turret in a anti-air configuration.
• Conclusion:
- In conclusion the Vickers Medium Mark IA would be a pretty decent tank to be added to the British tech tree, it’s a slow tank, but not extremely slow, it has a decent gun, and the armor is pretty unconventional, not very thick but the frontal armor has a lot of angles and different compartments, and the lower hull has a surprisingly amount of protection that could caught players off-guard, particularly if not aiming their shots carefully. This would also give Britain a very important tank, historically.
• Sources:
