Eight Wheeled Armored Car Is Equipped With Wireless (Jun, 1931)
Eight Wheeled Armored Car Is Equipped With Wireless
THE Tank Corps of the British army has recently adopted an armored car which is equipped with eight wheels and a long distance wireless sending and receiving set. The car will be used principally for patrolling the rough semi-desert country in Mesopotamia and in India along the Afganistan frontier in conjunction with the present aerial patrol.
Although only a six – wheel drive car, it is so equipped that two spare wheels may be brought into service, giving caterpillar traction over rough ground. The car is heavily armored and is fitted with machine guns and small cannon.
But what they don’t tell you is how much they’ll charge you for the connection, do they? It sounds like a great idea until you realize that $8/day is a pretty big rip off if you just want to check your e-mail and read some blogs.
Comment by Johnny Q — May 5, 2010 @ 10:54 am
I am certain this new battlefield technology will bring peace to that region of the world that will last for centuries to come!
Comment by StanFlouride — May 5, 2010 @ 11:16 am
I for one welcome our new 8 wheeled Overlords.
Comment by Firebrand38 — May 5, 2010 @ 12:01 pm
Stan: I have to point out that the area known then as “India along the Afghanistan frontier” is now Pakistan. Still troubled of course…
Comment by Firebrand38 — May 5, 2010 @ 12:04 pm
Is that thing really 8-wheeled or is that simply the spare tire back one from the front?
Comment by Sean — May 6, 2010 @ 9:54 am
Sean; if you actually read the article it says, “Although only a six – wheel drive car, it is so equipped that two spare wheels may be brought into service”.
Comment by Firebrand38 — May 6, 2010 @ 10:12 am
Sean: OK, I think I’ve identified the vehicle as a Crossley Armored Car.
The following link takes you to a better picture of the vehicle. The wheels at the sides behind the front fenders aren’t spares but they aren’t driven either. They’re described as “freely hung” and apparently keep the vehicle from getting stuck on the crest of steep climbs.
http://mailer.fsu.edu/~akirk/t.....ossley.jpg
Comment by Firebrand38 — May 6, 2010 @ 10:42 am
FB:
My point exactly. It is the burial ground of empires.
Comment by StanFlouride — May 6, 2010 @ 11:22 am
And the semi-desert of Mesopotamia, now known as Iraq. So, yes, it is rather an uncomfortable parallel. At least today our tanks have smaller radio antennas, harder for attackers to disable.
Comment by John Savard — May 6, 2010 @ 11:50 am
Interestingly enough, some other models of the Vickers-Crossley armored car were sold to Japan, presumably in the 1920s, and they ended up being used against China in the years that led to the Second World War.
Comment by John Savard — May 6, 2010 @ 11:55 am