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French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC

FROM 1950 year military department of France, and several leading defense companies have been working on a promising light armored vehicles for airborne units. The plan was to develop a machine weighing less than 6-8 t, suitable for the transportation of military transport aircraft and is able to deal with enemy tanks.

By mid-decade were presented several projects of this kind, including a very bold design. So, one of the participants in the program has developed a whole line of armored vehicles for several years under the title EVEN ELC.

Project development

on the subject of fire-support machines work started for the landing in 1950 year, and during the first few years basically we do not go beyond theory. We joined the program the leading manufacturers of military equipment, and the first real proposal soon began to appear.

By the end 1954 year army engineers and we studied a number of technical proposals and chose the most interesting. It is possible to move to a new stage of work, which issued as a separate program.

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC Prototype EVEN ELC four recoilless guns

program launched in December 1954, Engin Léger de Combat ("The light combat vehicle") and started an official competition for the development of advanced equipment. One of the participants of the program has become an enterprise Brunon-Valette (also known as EVEN). It offered a highly original approach to building armored vehicles for landing. Introduced universal military tracked armored chassis, which can be mounted combat units with different weapons.

Given the limitation of mass, EVEN designers abandoned the powerful booking. The hull and turret had only protect from bullets and shrapnel. Home Remedies such armored cars were to be speed, and maneuverability. Customer successively proposed several complex embodiments arms, includes both automatic guns, and recoilless guns. This "modular" could give the project a competitive advantage.

"Modular" combat squads had similar architecture - they were built under the scheme TN. swinging tower. The design of the upper mobile part of the tower was dependent on the type of weapons. For this reason, various samples from ELC EVEN had to look different from each other. In total, the company has offered EVEN army and experienced at the site four variants of its light armored vehicles.

Total chassis

Uniform chassis for EVEN ELC was welded body from the steel sheets not thicker 25-30 mm, able to withstand bullets and shrapnel. The frontal view of a pair of inclined plates were covered. On the upper part of the right - in violation of French traditions Layout - Provides low cabin for the driver. The horizontal roof had shoulder straps to the tower, on the vertical sides are suspension elements.

The housing has a classic layout: front compartment contains the control post and of the stowage of ammunition, placed in the center of the fighting compartment, in the stern - the power unit.

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC The prototype on the range

The aft compartment placed brand engine power SOFAM 150 HP. and a mechanical transmission. Chassis comprised of five rollers on each side. Used suspension with rocker and vertical springs. Drive wheels placed at the stern. The upper branch of the tracks lay on four casters.

In all cases, the machine ELC crew consisted of two people. The driver was inside the body, under its own logging. Before felling placed flap hatch with inspection devices. Commander, also serves as the gunner and / or charging, located in the fighting compartment, divided between the hull and turret. All variants of the tower equipped with its own door and periscopes for commander.

Length armored EVEN ELC on the case in all cases was 5,3 m, width - 2,15 m. The height and weight of combat, depending on the type of tower, – 1,8 m 7,4 t respectively. The chassis was to reach speeds of up to 65-68 km / h and have a power reserve 350 km.

modular tower

The main feature of the project from the ELC EVEN had the opportunity to use the four towers with different weapons, capable of solving different combat missions. At the end of February 1954 the company-developer has received an order to build an experimental armored vehicles with the most powerful weapons against tanks and enemy fortifications. Construction of the prototype was completed in the summer of 1955, and the next few months were tested.

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC Different ways of loading bezotkatok

In pursuit of the housing was set rotation base turret cylindrical shape; it was oscillating part with a central hatch and lateral bindings for weapons. This variant of the tower carrying four caliber recoilless guns 120 mm - two on each side. There were also two AA-52 machine gun caliber normal. Aiming weapons carried out by turning the tower and its inclination rocker unit. Weapon ran commander-gunner.

Initially charging function fulfilled driver. It proposed to expand the tower guns back, making them the breech appeared on the driver's hatch, and he could carry overcharging. Then there was a modification of the gun with detachable chamber. Two cannon breech fastened to the movable block with a vertical axis of rotation. Commander from his position could deploy such a unit and put the new shells in it. To increase the rate of the commander-charging could work outside the machine, but it excluded the fire on the move.

Developed version of the tower with automatic loading. In this case, one on each side bezotkatka replaced on the store 5 shells. The project was abandoned, as it turned out, that this design gives the initial firepower, but surpasses it in size and weight.

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC Experienced light tank with 90 mm gun and a machine gun

Tests light armored vehicles set ELC with recoilless guns lasted until spring 1956 of the year. Then the war came to a conclusion about the futility of such equipment and required to focus on creating light tanks with conventional artillery. In April 1956 there was an order for the construction of two light tank variants with different departments and different combat arms.

For light tank was created fighting module with 90 mm smoothbore gun from the Belgian company Mecar. Such a lower part of the tower maintained precursor, but received a new oscillating unit increased in size. The latter had the shape and different unusual arrangement of rectangular. 90-mm gun installed directly from the starboard side of the tower. AA-52 machine gun is on the left, and in the center was the commander-gunner. A feed was given to the niche installation for unitary shots.

Since 1956 by 1959 EVEN the years the company has built and handed over to the test five cars with 90-mm cannon. Prototypes built successively, and in the design of each new machine took into account the experience of previous tests, which resulted in some differences.

The known data, the main problems were related to the balancing of the swinging and load distribution. Asymmetric installation tools unsuccessfully transmitted pulse return, which negatively affected the mechanisms tower.

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC One of the surviving prototypes with a 90 mm cannon

In the same 1956 We developed by the third embodiment with a pair of towers 30 mm automatic cannon. The swinging of the tower repeated the design of the previous fighting module, but now installed on the sides of small-caliber cannon Hispano-Suiza HS-825. Under curved frontal sheet was once two gun. Workplace gunner commander left in the center of the tower, between the arms. Feed housed ammunition and their means of delivery to the arming.

several experimental machines were built with a 30-mm cannon. test, conducted in the late fifties, show, that such equipment has enough firepower and can fight with armored vehicles and some buildings. However, ammunition was not sufficient for long-term fire bursts. To solve this problem, we developed a variant of the tower with two cannons 20 mm, but he remained on paper.

Chassis from Brunon-Valette could become the bearer of the anti-missile system. In this case, the shoulder straps installed larger rotary tower Nord-Aviation Na2 without swinging unit. On its front part there was a large area of ​​glazing for missile guidance equipment. On the boards positioned launchers for missiles.

Offers two options installations. One provides transportation and launch of two missiles SS.11, other - one missile SS.11 and a pair of smaller SS.12. In all cases of ammunition were located on the rails open and had no protection.

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC ELC tank with two 30 mm cannons. On the background — machine with a 90 mm gun

According to some reports, ATGM carrier in a converted only one chassis ELC, and it was a combat module prototypes. Na2 product have been run on the existing chassis, test fired but have not been conducted. For several reasons, from further testing and refining complex in the present form refused. However, SS.11 SS.12 missiles and were not without self-propelled vehicles, which became other armored vehicles.

Tests and conclusions

EVEN company built the first prototype armored promising his family Engin Léger de Combat in 1955-56 years. Over the next few years, new models with different models were built, and their total number reached a dozen. various types of test equipment were performed both sequentially, and in parallel. The military failed to consider the proposed models and draw conclusions.

As noted, all EVEN ELC machines modifications have certain disadvantages. A self-propelled plant with a 120 mm recoilless guns was inconvenient to use and would not produce acceptable recharging means. Light tank with 90 mm gun did not show the required precision and accuracy. Spark 30 mm cannon ammunition was spending too quickly, and missile system was inferior to alternative development.

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC museum specimen

Customer criticized not only the towers and weapons, but the base unit. Armor only protects against bullets, but in general the design is not always cope with the load when firing, especially when using large-caliber guns. In all cases the observed problems with the powerplant and chassis.

In this way, it was a whole family of cars, uniting in itself is not the best chassis and the problem of the crew compartment with a specific weapons. This technique, expected, not of interest to the potential customer and its prospects were in question.

AT 1961 , this issue was finally settled. Program Engin Léger de Combat has not solved the assigned tasks and did not justify the effort. For this reason, the Defense Ministry decided to stop her. This decision led to the closure of the company's projects EVEN, as well as to stop work on a competing project from AMX. Soon, a new terms of reference for the development of light armored vehicles for the army, and another program started.

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC

French family of light armored vehicles EVEN ELC Two variants of the self-propelled anti-tank missile system

In the second half of the 50 to Brunon-Valette enterprise was built about a dozen experienced ELC family of samples. Some of these machines were dismantled as unnecessary, but others remained. Light machine with a set of 120-mm anti-tank missiles and bezotkatok, Unfortunately, They have been disposed of.

Preserved two light tank with a 90mm cannon; one of them (Museum of g. Saumur) on the go, and regularly participates in military and historical events. Also stored in Saumur EVEN ELC with a pair of 30 mm automatic cannon.

The aim of the project from the ELC EVEN company was to create a forward-looking armored combat vehicles light class, capable of defending the assault units from enemy tanks. Engineers were able to develop and bring to the test quite interesting options such armored vehicles, but they have different disadvantages, and therefore of no interest for the army. The entire line EVEN ELC did not go into series. This fact, as well as the failure of the competing project led to the abandonment of the ELC program and to launch new works.

/Kirill Ryabov, topwar.ru/

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