18 January 2012

British Heavy Assault Tank: A39 Tortoise

Commissioned mid war for maximum protection, deliberately sacrificing mobility and speed, this beast had no less than 17 designs. Massive tanks weren't just on the Eastern Front...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tortoise_heavy_assault_tank
http://chrisshillito.tripod.com/a39/a39txt.htm

And yes they have one at Bovington!
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9 comments:

  1. David CrookWednesday, 18 January, 2012

    Hi Paul,

    And yes I got up close and personal with it last year - it is a beast and a half!

    All the best,

    DC

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  2. Ray RousellWednesday, 18 January, 2012

    Always thought this is one of the ugliest tanks of WW2!!

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  3. Dux HomunculorumWednesday, 18 January, 2012

    Total beast! I saw this at Bovington a couple years back.

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  4. Weird WWIIWednesday, 18 January, 2012

    Another colossal waste of metal, money and time.

    I love it!
    Brian

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  5. BroedersWednesday, 18 January, 2012

    That is a monster! Did it ever get used? I'm sure that could have made a dent in a Tiger!

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  6. Paul´s BodsWednesday, 18 January, 2012

    Tortoise eh? I had one once..very quiet..they can live for years..and..oh!..The tank!! In the same way that all nations AFV´s look as though they belong to that country this one looks typically british. I can picture it being used to sell cheddar cheese or advertise holidays in the norfolk broads. Ok, maybe not the last one. The top photo..at the end of the barrel it says "blo..." Hopefully it´s not missing the "W" and it´s an instruction.:-/
    Cheers
    paul

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  7. The Angry LurkerWednesday, 18 January, 2012

    A true monster, called a tortoise due to how slow it was maybe....

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  8. AnonymousSaturday, 07 April, 2012

    More likely named after the Roman tactic. Suggest viewing the movie Cleopatra again to see Rex Harrison, as Julius Ceasar order one formed.

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  9. Jim ReynoldsTuesday, 15 May, 2012

    @ Weird War II - yeah, it was big and slow, and in the end, unnecessary ; but it was meant to waddle up to the Siegfried Line and kick the pluperfect h*ell out of it. almost a shame, that it never got it's chance.

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