Scorpion CVRT FV101 light tracked armored reconnaissance vehicle

: 07 January 2019

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Scorpion CVRT FV101 Light tracked armoured reconnaissance vehicle

Description

Technical Data

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Description

The FV101 Scorpion CVRT is a British light tracked armoured reconnaissance vehicle. It was the lead vehicle and the fire support type in the Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance (Tracked), CVR(T), family of seven armoured vehicles. Manufactured by the British Company Alvis it was introduced into service with the British Army in 1973 and served until 1994. In the late 1950s, the British Army issued a requirement for an Armoured Vehicle, Reconnaissance (AVR) to undertake the roles of reconnaissance, fire support and anti-tank. In September 1967, the company Alvis Limited of Coventry to United Kingdom, which was at that time building the FV600 range of 6 × 6 armoured vehicles, was awarded a contract to build 17 prototypes. The first prototype was completed in January 1969 and the first official announcement of the vehicle was made in September the same year. In October 1970, the Belgian Army placed an order for 701 Scorpions and variants, which were assembled at a British Leyland facility at Malines in Belgium. The first production Scorpions were delivered to the British Army in January 1972 with first deliveries being made to the Belgian Army in February 1973.

Variants CVRT vehicles:

- Striker FV102: chassis of Scorpion with anti-tank missile launcher in place of the turret
- Spartan FV103: no turret, armoured vehicle personnel carrier version
- Samaritan FV104: ambulance version
- Sultan FV105: Command post vehicle
- Samson FV106: recover armoured vehicle
- Scimitar FV107: same as the Scorpion but armed with one 30 mm gun
- Sabre : Scorpion chasis fitted with Fox Ferret turret

Technical data

Armament

The Scorpion CVRT FV 101 is armed with a BAE Systems RO Defense 76 mm L23 gun which is a lighter version of the L5 used in the Saladin armored car. This weapon has a vertical sliding breech and is loaded with fixed ammunition. It has a recoil of approximately 280 mm and is returned to the firing position by a hydro pneumatic recuperator. During run out, the breech is opened by a semi-automatic cam, the empty cartridge case is ejected and the breech then remains open, ready for reloading. The 76 mm gun has an elevation of +35º and a depression of -10º, turret traverse being 360º. Elevation and traverse are both manual but if required the vehicle can be delivered with powered traverse. The following types of ammunition can be fired: canister, HESH, HE, HE/PRAC, SH/P, smoke/BE and illuminating. A 7.62 mm machine gun mounted coaxially to the left of the main armament can be used as a ranging machine gun. Mounted each side of the turret is a four-barreled electrically operated 66 mm (British Army, 76 mm export vehicles) smoke grenade discharger.

Protection

The hull of the Scorpion CVRT FV101 is made of all-welded aluminum armor and provides the crew with protection against attack over its frontal area from 14.5 mm projectiles and against 7.62 mm armor-piercing rounds over the remainder of the vehicle. The aluminum armor is also particularly effective against shell splinters. The hull is divided into three compartments: driver's at the front on the left, power pack at the front on the right and the fighting compartment at the rear. The driver has a single-piece hatch cover that swings to the left, in front of which is a single wide-angle day periscope which can be replaced by a Thales Optronics passive periscope for night driving. The other two crew members are seated in the all-welded aluminum armor turret with the commander on the left and the gunner on the right, both with a one-piece hatch cover that opens to the rear. The commander has seven day periscopes and a roof-mounted day sight in front of his hatch cover with magnifications of ×1 and ×10. The roof-mounted sight is capable of limited rotation allowing approximately 85º of horizontal field of view. The gunner has two day periscopes and a roof-mounted day sight with magnifications of ×1 and ×10. Mounted to the right of the main armament is a now BAE Systems passive night sight with a magnification of ×5.8 (8º field of view) and a low magnification of ×1.6 (28º field of view).

Propulsion

The original version of the Scorpion CVRT FV101 was powered by a derated (from 265 to 190 bhp) and militarized Jaguar 4.2 liter engine with a Marcus carburetor and a compression ratio reduced from 9:1 to 7.75:1, which permits the use of military fuels. The David Brown Engineering TN15 transmission, which is at the front of the vehicle, was developed on the same principles as that used for the Chieftain MBT. It is a hot-shift, foot-operated, seven-speed gearbox with a controlled differential steering system. The torsion bar suspension either side consists of five rubber-tired aluminum road wheels with the drive sprocket at the front and the idler at the rear. There are no track-return rollers. Hydraulic lever-type shock-absorbers are provided for the first and last road wheel stations either side. The tracks are of light steel with rubber bushes and pads, and have a life of over 5,000 km of mixed road and cross-country running.

Accessories

British Army Scorpions CVRT FV 101 have an NBC system at the rear of the hull, but if it is not installed an additional five rounds of 76 mm ammunition can be carried. Optional equipment includes an NBC detector kit, a vehicle navigation system and a Galley air conditioning system which has already been fitted on the vehicles supplied to the United Arab Emirates. The Scorpion can ford to a depth of 1 m without preparation. A flotation screen carried collapsed around the top of the hull can be erected by the crew in 5 minutes and the vehicle is then propelled and steered across the stream or river by its tracks at a speed of 6.5 km/h. A propeller kit has also been developed and when fitted the Scorpion has a maximum water speed of 9.5 km/h. of vehicles

Specifications

Armament

One 76 mm gun, one 7.62 mm machine gun, two banks of three grenades launcher

Country users

Botswana, Brunei, Chile, Honduras, Iran, Indonesia, Ireland, Jordan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Oman, Philippines, Spain, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, United Arab Emirates, Venezuela.

Designer Country

United Kingdom

Accessories

Fire control system, NBC system, night vision system

Crew

Armor

All-welded aluminum armor, protection against 14.5 mm calibre at the front, 7.62 mm hull 360°

Weight

8.073 kg
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Speed

80.5 km/hr maximum on road

Range