BARV

A beach armoured recovery vehicle (BARV) is an armoured recovery vehicle used for amphibious landings.

There have been three different BARVs in British service since their introduction during World War II. They have also been used by Dutch and Australian forces.

The original BARV was a Sherman M4A2 tank 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. 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 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 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 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 BARV's continued to be used until 1963, when they were replaced by a vehicle based on the Centurion tank.

A single M3A5 Grant tank was converted into a BARV in 1950 by the Australian Army. This remained in service until 1970

By the late 1950s, Sherman BARVs were becoming less useful as they were unable to recover the heavier armoured vehicles then 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 that by this time were redundant. Although initially assigned to the Army, they were passed to the Royal Marines 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.

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Wikipedia