Humber Hornet

The FV1620 Humber Hornet (FV1620, truck 1-ton, air portable, armoured launcher, Hornet launcher) was a specialised air-deployable armoured fighting vehicle designed to carry the Malkara, an anti-tank guided missile developed by Australia and the United Kingdom.

Humber Hornet
Humber Hornet at Bovington Tank Museum
TypeTank Destroyer
Place of originAustralia / United Kingdom
Service history
Used byAustralia, United Kingdom
WarsCold War
Production history
ManufacturerHumber
Produced1958-1961
Specifications
Mass5.70 tonnes
Length5.05 m
Width2.22 m
Height2.43 m
Crew3; Commander, Driver, Gunner
Armor8-16 mm
Main
armament
Two Hornet Malkara anti-tank missiles
EngineRolls-Royce B60 Mk 5A six cylinder petrol engine.
120 hp
SuspensionWheel 4x4
Operational
range
402km
Maximum speed 64 km/h on-road.

History

The Hornet was developed in the 1950s to provide British and Australian airborne units with an air-dropped long-range anti-tank capability.[1] Based on the British Army's FV1611 Humber Pig one-tonne (0.98 tons) 4X4 armoured truck, it carried two Malkara, missiles on a retractable boom at the rear, as well as two reloads. It could be transported by air in a Blackburn Beverley and air-dropped on a cluster of 6 special parachutes.

Operation
Hornet with the boom lowered

The gunner fired the missiles from inside the cab and controlled them by means of a joystick attached to a wire which unreeled from the rear of the missile and connected to the sights.[1] Electronic signals controlling the missile's flight were transmitted through the wire.

With a 27 kg warhead, the Malkara missiles carried the largest warhead ever fitted to an anti-tank weapon and could destroy any tank in service at the time.

The vehicle remained in service with British units until being replaced in the 1970s by the Ferret armoured car Mk 5 equipped with Swingfire missiles. It was also operated by a squadron of the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment.

gollark: Possibly more when you consider the APocalypse hitting the AP around tomorrow.
gollark: At current AP times, it'll take about two and a half days to show up.
gollark: "Oh, I just got this great dragon... but its lineage is {olives/brimstones/something else which people don't like}... I'll need some of those to continue it..."
gollark: Yes. It's a great way to mildly infuriate people, like causing APocalypses.
gollark: Best use of CB prizes: only pair them with dragons people don't like, but then give out offspring very cheaply.

See also
  • List of armoured fighting vehicles
  • Malkara anti-tank missile
Comparable vehicles

References
  1. Tanks and armored fighting vehicles : visual encyclopedia. New York, N.Y.: Chartwell Books. 2012. p. 286. ISBN 9780785829263. OCLC 785874088.

Bibliography
  • Trewhitt, Philip (1999). Armored Fighting Vehicles. New York, NY: Amber Books. p. 147. ISBN 0-7607-1260-3.
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