- Yes
- No
Cheers to @Tim_TeaDrinker for finding the images for this one
Introduction
The Vickers Valkyr was a private venture by the British Vickers Defence Systems, in partnership with Belgium’s Beherman-Demoen, drawing from the design of the earlier BDX 4×4 armoured vehicle, itself a license built/lightly modified version of the Irish Timoney. The Valkyr was designed as a flexible, all-purpose platform that could be adapted for a range of battlefield roles, from APC to internal security. It was demonstrated at several British Army Equipment Exhibitions during the 1980s and underwent testing in the UK, Belgium, Brunei, and Oman. Built with an all-welded steel hull with a large crew compartment and sizeable turret ring, it offered a moderate amount of protection and was even fully amphibious, requiring no preparation to enter water.
It was powered by a GM 4-53T diesel engine paired with an Allison automatic gearbox, and featured fully independent suspension, power-assisted steering, and an advanced braking system cooled via a remote oil-circulating setup. It could carry eight troops in its APC configuration, along with the driver and commander, and was designed to accommodate a range of turret-mounted weapons—from twin machine guns to a 90 mm cannon. A wide range of variants were envisioned, including command, ambulance, mortar carrier, and anti-tank roles, and the vehicle was declared ready for production in the early 1980s.
The H.20 turret, also referred to as the TA-20, was a joint project between the French Panhard and Electronique Serge Dassault, with sub-systems supplied by Hispano-Suiza, Oerlikon, and Galileo. Development began in the early 1970s, and after a successful round of trials, production started in 1975. The system featured twin 20 mm Hispano HS.820 autocannons mounted on a turret fitted with a RA-20 Radar. This allowed either radar-directed or manual targeting, depending on the situation. The turret could be adapted to fit a range of tracked, 4x4, or 6x6 platforms. The system saw modest export success, notably with the UAE and Ivory Coast.
For trials and marketing, during the 1980s the H.20 turret was fitted to the Vickers Valkyr Prototype 001. As a private venture by Vickers Defence Systems, the Valkyr was somewhat faltering by this point, with little interest shown domestically or abroad, so in order for to at least try and recoup some of their development costs, they fitted a huge variety of turrets to the chassis in order to prove its versatility and make it as appealing as possible on the export market. These include several different 90mm turrets, a 60mm mortar turret, command cupolas, and, as discussed in this suggestion, the twin 20mm H.20 anti-air turret.
In game, being notably less capable than the twin-35 Marksman-style systems at 8.3, this would be perfect to somewhat help out Britain’s current 5.3 - 8.3 gap in the SPAA line, belonging at a BR of around 7.3 - 8.0
Specifications
Spoiler
Chassis
Turret
The Vickers Valkyr appears to have been fitted with the H.20 R turret
Images
Spoiler
The same Chassis with a 60mm mortar turret, showing the Valkyr 001 branding.
Sources
Spoiler
Jane’s Armour and Artillery 1985-86
Jane’s Armour and Artillery 1987-88
Jane’s Land Based Air Defence 1987-88
Jane’s AFV Systems 1988-89
Vickers Valkyr Brochure - available here
Vickers Valkyr прототип 001 на испытаниях: andrei_bt — LiveJournal - Images only
