Two new additions to the running fleet

Over the Summer, two new vehicles arrived at the Museum – and will soon join our running collection of vehicles.

Chieftain Marksman

The Marksman Self Propelled Anti-Aircraft Gun was developed by Marconi Command and Control Systems (now part of BAE Systems) in the late 1980s. It was designed to be able to fit on any tank chassis, and has the ability to traverse a full 360 degrees. The main armament is a pair of 35mm Swiss Oerlikon KDA anti-aircraft guns which have a rate of fire of 18 rounds per second, and have an effective range of around 4,000m. They are aimed with a radar with a range of around 12,000m.

Marksman’s only sale was to Finland, who purchased seven – which they fitted to T-55 chassis, then later moved to the Leopard 2.

Marconi had originally developed the system for the British Army, and demonstrated the system to them on a Chieftain, although it was never taken forward. Our vehicle is that Chieftain, and is the only one of its kind.

T-34/85

By 1943, the T-34/76 was outmatched by newer German tanks.

Up to that point, the Soviets had refused to make any improvements that would mean interrupting production and reducing the flow of tanks to the front. This was no longer an option, and thus the Soviets developed the T-34/85 as an upgrade.

The new, larger turret on the T-34/85 had a far more powerful gun, thicker armour on the turret front and space for three men, making for more efficient operations, but the rest of the tank was essentially unchanged. It led the Soviet drive through Eastern Europe and into Germany. After the war T-34/85s continued in service around the world with over 40 nations for many decades.

Adding a running T-34/85s to our running fleet fills a gap, and will prove popular at events, we’re sure.