A beach armoured recovery vehicle (BARV) is an
armoured recovery vehicle
An armoured recovery vehicle (ARV) is typically a powerful tank or armoured personnel carrier (APC) chassis modified for use during combat for military vehicle recovery (towing) or repair of battle-damaged, stuck, and/or inoperable armoured f ...
used for
amphibious landings
Amphibious warfare is a type of offensive military operation that today uses naval ships to project ground and air power onto a hostile or potentially hostile shore at a designated landing beach. Through history the operations were conducte ...
.
There have been three different BARVs in
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
service since their introduction during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. They have also been used by Dutch and Australian forces.
Sherman BARV
The original BARV was a
Sherman M4A2 tank
A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engin ...
which had been waterproofed and had the turret replaced by a tall armoured superstructure. Around 60 were deployed on the invasion beaches during the
Battle of Normandy
Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norma ...
. Able to operate in 9-foot (2.7 metre) deep water, the BARV was used to remove vehicles that had become broken-down or swamped in the surf and were blocking access to the beaches. They were also used to re-float small
landing craft
Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force (infantry and vehicles) from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are larger. Pr ...
that had become stuck on the beach. Unusually for a tank, the crew included a
diver whose job was to attach towing chains to stuck vehicles.
The vehicles were developed and operated by the
Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
The Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME ) is a corps of the British Army that maintains the equipment that the Army uses. The corps is described as the "British Army's Professional Engineers".
History
Prior to REME's for ...
. The Sherman M4A2 model was chosen as a basis for the BARV as it was thought that the Sherman's welded hull would be easier to waterproof than other tanks. Unlike other Sherman models, the M4A2 was powered by a
diesel engine
The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-call ...
because it was believed the tank would be less affected by the sudden temperature changes caused by the regular plunges into cold water. A few Sherman BARVs continued to be used until 1963, when they were replaced by a vehicle based on the
Centurion tank
The Centurion was the primary British Army main battle tank of the post-World War II period. Introduced in 1945, it is widely considered to be one of the most successful post-war tank designs, remaining in production into the 1960s, and seeing ...
.
M3 BARV
A single
M3A5 Grant tank was converted into a BARV in 1950 by the
Australian Army
The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...
. This remained in service until 1970
Centurion BARV
By the late 1950s, Sherman BARVs were becoming less useful as they were unable to recover the heavier armoured vehicles that were being introduced. The Centurion BARV FV 4018 was developed as a replacement. A mild-steel prototype was followed in 1960 by 12 production vehicles. These were based on the hulls of Mark 1, 2, and 3
Centurion tanks
The Centurion was the primary British Army main battle tank of the post- World War II period. Introduced in 1945, it is widely considered to be one of the most successful post-war tank designs, remaining in production into the 1960s, and seei ...
that by this time were redundant. Although initially assigned to the Army, they were passed to the
Royal Marines
The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious light infantry and also one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. The Corps of Royal Marine ...
when the Army's amphibious assault role was given to the Marines.
The BARV was basically a Centurion body with built up sides to accommodate wading in water up to 11 feet. The design was functional yet crude with sloped armour built above the tank hull. The tracks for the BARV were reversed so they had better grip biting in reverse.
The Centurion BARV retained the gun-tank's
Rolls-Royce Meteor
The Rolls-Royce Meteor later renamed the Rover Meteor is a British tank engine that was developed during the Second World War. It was used in British tanks up to 1964. It was a result of co-operation between Leyland Motors and Rolls-Royce who betw ...
petrol engine.
Centurion BARVs had a crew of four; two of the crew were members of the
Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
The Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME ) is a corps of the British Army that maintains the equipment that the Army uses. The corps is described as the "British Army's Professional Engineers".
History
Prior to REME's for ...
, one of whom was a qualified diver.
The Centurion BARVs were built to provide the essential role for the
LPD's
HMS ''Fearless'' &
HMS ''Intrepid'' as part of the Beach Assault Squadrons.
The Assault Squadrons were initially a mix of Royal Marines and
Army
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
serving aboard the ships. The transition to this being all Royal Marines was seen to be essential.
The crew for the BARVs would be handed to the Royal Marines with a sergeant, two corporals and a marine, all qualified vehicle mechanics, responsible for driving and maintaining the tank, and also providing full mechanical breakdown services for all embarked vehicles.
The training for the crew would take place at
Bovington Camp
Bovington Camp () is a British Army military base in Dorset, England. Together with Lulworth Camp it forms part of Bovington Garrison.
The garrison is home to The Armour Centre and contains two barracks complexes and two forest and heathland tr ...
for driver training and at the home of the BARV,
RM Instow
RM Instow, also known as Arromanches Camp, is a military installation operated by the Royal Marines at Instow in North Devon located south west of Barnstaple, Devon, and north east of Bideford, Devon, England.
History
The site, which was estab ...
in North Devon, the Royal Marines amphibious testing centre.
There were many occasions when the BARV would break down or get stuck. In 1981 the BARV from ''Fearless'' was to be lost at sea off
Browndown
Browndown is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gosport in Hampshire.
This is a shingle beach owned by the Ministry of Defence, which has areas of heather, grass heath and gorse. There are a range of invertebrates specialising ...
beach to end up fully submerged. The following year both BARVs would see service during the
Falklands War
The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial de ...
, being the largest land vehicles ashore, with the BARV from ''Fearless'' breaking its
drivetrain
A drivetrain (also frequently spelled as drive train or sometimes drive-train) is the group of components that deliver mechanical power from the prime mover to the driven components. In automotive engineering, the drivetrain is the components o ...
whilst working
Blue Beach
Blue Beach is a stretch of cliff-bordered coastline at Avonport, Nova Scotia near the mouth of the along the Avon River in the southern bight of Minas Basin, Kings County, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is best known as a globally significant fossil lo ...
.
All the Centurion-derived BARVs have now left service and have been sold to collectors and museums around the world.
Hippo BRV
In 2003, the Centurion BARV's replacement was introduced. This is the ''Hippo BRV'', which had been in development under the project name of "Future Beach Recovery Vehicle" (FBRV). The name change reflects the fact that, unlike previous generations of vehicle used in this role, ''Hippos'' are not fully armored.
The ''Hippo'' is a conversion by
Alvis Moelv of a
Leopard 1A5
The Leopard 1 (also styled Leopard I, before the Leopard 2 simply known as Leopard) is a main battle tank designed and produced by Porsche in West Germany that first entered service in 1965. Developed in an era when HEAT warheads were thought ...
tank. The incorporation of Alvis Vickers into
BAE Systems
BAE Systems plc (BAE) is a British multinational arms, security, and aerospace company based in London, England. It is the largest defence contractor in Europe, and ranked the seventh-largest in the world based on applicable 2021 revenues. ...
meant that elements of the work moved to
BAE Land Systems, Sweden, formerly known as "Hägglunds", another ex-Alvis company. As with earlier generations of BARV, the main alteration has been the replacement of the turret with a raised superstructure which, in this case, resembles the bridge or wheelhouse of a small ship. The original diesel engine has been retained but the gearing of the transmission had been lowered; this has reduced the vehicle's road speed from , but its tractive force has been increased to . Other modifications include the addition of working platforms, a nosing block, raised air intakes and an
auxiliary power unit
An auxiliary power unit (APU) is a device on a vehicle that provides energy for functions other than propulsion. They are commonly found on large aircraft and naval ships as well as some large land vehicles. Aircraft APUs generally produce 115&n ...
; this has raised the weight of the vehicle from 42.5 tonnes to 50 tonnes. The Hippo has a fording depth of and can pull vehicles up to 50 tonnes weight or push off from the beach a 240 tonne
displacement
Displacement may refer to:
Physical sciences
Mathematics and Physics
*Displacement (geometry), is the difference between the final and initial position of a point trajectory (for instance, the center of mass of a moving object). The actual path ...
landing craft
Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force (infantry and vehicles) from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are larger. Pr ...
.
Currently, four Hippos are in British service, one each on
HMS ''Albion'' and
''Bulwark'', with two used by 11 Amphibious Trials and Training Unit Royal Marines. The vehicle is reportedly well liked by its users, but its lack of commonality with the other armoured vehicles used by the UK has caused spares support problems, exacerbated by the poor nature of the Initial Spares Support package procured from Alvis Moelv by the UK's
Defence Procurement Agency
The Defence Procurement Agency (DPA), was an Executive Agency of the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence responsible for the acquisition of materiel, equipment and services, for the British armed forces.
Led by the Chief of Defence Procurement, t ...
. This area is being tackled by the MoD's
Defence Logistics Organisation
The Defence Logistics Organisation (DLO) was a key element of the UK Ministry of Defence, responsible for supporting the armed forces
throughout the various stages of an operation or exercise; from training, deployment, in-theatre training and ...
.
The
Netherlands Marine Corps
The Netherlands Marine Corps ( nl, Korps Mariniers) is the elite naval infantry corps of the Royal Netherlands Navy. The marines trace their origins back to the establishment of the on 10 December 1665, by the then grand pensionary of the Dut ...
operates four similar Dutch Leopard 1V-based BRV vehicles known as ''Hercules'', ''Samson'', ''Goliath'' and ''Titan'' which operate out of the
Royal Netherlands Navy
The Royal Netherlands Navy ( nl, Koninklijke Marine, links=no) is the naval force of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
During the 17th century, the navy of the Dutch Republic (1581–1795) was one of the most powerful naval forces in the world an ...
assault ships of the
''Rotterdam'' class. The vehicles have a similar specification but a different cabin appearance.
Survivors
In England, the
REME Museum of Technology
The REME Museum is within the MoD Lyneham site, in Wiltshire, England, about southwest of Swindon. The museum holds collections of technological and historical artifacts associated with the work of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers ...
in Arborfield and the
D-Day Story
The D-Day Story (formerly the D-Day Museum) is a visitor attraction located in Southsea, Portsmouth in Hampshire, England. It tells the story of Operation Overlord during the Normandy D-Day landings. Originally opened as the D-Day Museum in 198 ...
in Portsmouth both have Sherman BARVs on display. Another, in running condition, is held by the ''War and Peace Collection'', a private military collection in the UK. The wrecked hulk of another is at
The Tank Museum
The Tank Museum (previously The Bovington Tank Museum) is a collection of armoured fighting vehicles at Bovington Camp in Dorset, South West England. It is about north of the village of Wool and west of the major port of Poole. The collection ...
, after being used as a firing range target. Another Sherman BARV is a museum-piece in India, at the
Cavalry Tank Museum,
Ahmednagar
Ahmednagar (), is a city located in the Ahmednagar district in the state of Maharashtra, India, about 120 km northeast of Pune and 114 km from Aurangabad. Ahmednagar takes its name from Ahmad Nizam Shah I, who founded the town in 1494 ...
. The Australian M3 BARV is preserved at the Royal Australian Armoured Corps Tank Museum at
Puckapunyal
Puckapunyal (more formally the Puckapunyal Military Area, but also known as the Puckapunyal Camp or Puckapunyal Army Base, and colloquially as "Pucka") is an Australian Army training facility and base 10 km west of Seymour, in central Vi ...
, Australia. The museum also has a second BARV that was based on a bulldozer.
Centurion BARVs are on display at
The Tank Museum
The Tank Museum (previously The Bovington Tank Museum) is a collection of armoured fighting vehicles at Bovington Camp in Dorset, South West England. It is about north of the village of Wool and west of the major port of Poole. The collection ...
(UK), at
Yad La-Shiryon
Yad La-Shiryon (officially: The Armored Corps Memorial Site and Museum at Latrun; he, יד לשריון) is Israel's official memorial site for fallen soldiers from the Israeli Armor Corps, armored corps, as well as one of the most diverse tank ...
in
Latrun
Latrun ( he, לטרון, ''Latrun''; ar, اللطرون, ''al-Latrun'') is a strategic hilltop in the Latrun salient in the Ayalon Valley, and a depopulated Palestinian village. It overlooks the road between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, 25 kilometers ...
- the
IDF
IDF or idf may refer to:
Defence forces
* Irish Defence Forces
* Israel Defense Forces
*Iceland Defense Force, of the US Armed Forces, 1951-2006
* Indian Defence Force, a part-time force, 1917
Organizations
* Israeli Diving Federation
* Interac ...
tank museum - and at the
Israel Defense Forces History Museum
The Israel Defense Forces History Museum ( he, בתי האוסף, Batei HaOsef, ''lit.'' The Collection Houses) is a museum dedicated to the history of Israel's military, from the underground organizations active during the British Mandate for Pa ...
(''Batey ha-Osef'') in
Tel-Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
. A Centurion BARV, in private hands, is parked and able to be viewed at the entrance of a farm on Colne Road,
Bures Hamlet, Essex, England.
AeroVenture
The South Yorkshire Aircraft Museum (SYAM) is a Volunteer led museum located at Lakeside in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. It occupies the former site of the Royal Air Force Station, RAF Doncaster. The museum occupies the last remaining o ...
in Doncaster, UK has a Centurion BARV ''02 ZR 77'' on display as part of its Falklands War Collection. This was originally one of the first Centurions built as part of the first contract between 1944 and 1946 (the exact date of build is unknown). It was one of the two BARVs that took part in
Operation Sutton
Operation Sutton was the code name for the British landings on the shores of San Carlos Water, at Ajax Bay and Port San Carlos, near San Carlos on East Falkland.
Landings
During the night, 3 Commando Brigade along with attached units of the ...
, the British landings at San Carlos with one from HMS ''Fearless'' supporting the landings on Blue Beach and one from HMS ''Intrepid'' supporting the landings on Red Beach and remains the longest-serving armoured vehicle in the British forces, leaving service in 2005 after taking part in both Gulf conflicts
BARV on display in Doncaster UK
References
External links
*
ttps://web.archive.org/web/20080921052710/http://www.aeroventure.org.uk/falklands-hms-fearless-barv.php Falklands BARV at Aeroventure in Doncaster
{{ModernUKNonAFVNav, style= wide
Tracked armoured recovery vehicles
Armoured fighting vehicles of the United Kingdom
Amphibious military vehicles
Royal Marines
Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
Military vehicles introduced from 1940 to 1944