Aviation Naval Warfare Land Systems Small Arms Space By Flag By Year By Tag

ARL 44

1949 COLD WAR

ARL 44 History

Before World War II, France was the second largest producer of main battle tanks in the world after the Soviet Union. However, the German invasion of France and the years of war that followed destroyed all kinds of French pride, infrastructure and armored vehicle production.

It was not until the liberation of Paris in 1944 that attention quickly turned to resuming mass production of tanks to once again propel France into a viable military power.

Such an initiative of the French Armour Doctrine faced enormous obstacles, which lacked a lot compared to contemporary designs. Even before the war, the available French tanks rarely matched the German offensive doctrine.

Many of them were designed based on the experience of the First World War, and the French rules of tank warfare meant that many of these designs failed at the hands of the Germans - even the legendary Char B1 series of heavy tanks, its most powerful one of the tanks. Time and is riddled with tactical liabilities.

Now that Germany has been cleared from the French capital, under the leadership of APX and AMX specialists, attention has been paid to the formation of new heavy tank designs, and production will be taken over by ARL. Therefore, the tank will be named "ARL 44" to indicate the manufacturer and year.

New concepts proven during the war would be incorporated into the tank's design to produce a more modern end product.

In February 1945, the design was fleshed out, specifying a 48 ton heavy armour system, heavy sloping armour approximately 120 mm thick and a large caliber main gun in a proven moveable turret. By May 1945, the war in Europe was over, the Japanese Empire collapsed in August, and World War II was over.

Regardless of the world situation, the French heavy tank program continues to utilize all available resources. The French government ordered 60 ARL 44 heavy tanks and began work on a pilot vehicle that needed to demonstrate the sound of ARL products. The turrets produced by ACL were originally mounted with an American 76mm main gun - there were many available in the then post-war world. While this main gun option was adequate by the standards of the time, it lacked the penetration of other guns used by Germany, the Soviet Union and the United Kingdom.

Therefore, a new turret based on the Schneider Char F1 turret was installed to house the more powerful 90mm DCA45 main gun. The main 90mm DCA gun is actually based on the naval anti-aircraft gun and has greater penetration than the US 75mm gun. The choice of the 90mm weapon delayed the development of the required turret and therefore delayed the ARL 44 program in general. The key to the success of the ARL 44 is the choice of powerplant.

With war-torn France - and its sluggish military industry - still under German occupation, the decision was made to use captured German Maybach gasoline engines. Armored at a maximum thickness of 120mm, the tank will consist of a crew of five - driver, commander, gunner, loader and gunner/radio operator - with point defense provided by a pair of MAC31 Chatellerault machine guns.

In March 1946, with the completion of the main armament, the first pilot vehicle began its formal evaluation. The French concern FAMH and Renault were also equipped with a 1946 hull production.

Visually, the design of the ARL 44 resembles the tank designs of the 1920s and 1930s, rather than a modern postwar initiative. The design is notable for its multi-wheeled long-tube track system running on both sides of the sharp hull. The turret is located amidships and is equipped with a long-barreled 90mm main gun system, limited by the baffle muzzle brake.

The sides of the turret are slightly sloped and there is an overhang at the rear to improve interior space. When complete, the vehicle weighs 55 tons and has a barrel that is 35.5 feet long, 11.6 feet wide and 10.5 feet high. Power is provided by a 575 hp Maybach HL 230 series petrol engine with a top speed of 35 km/h and a range of approximately 350 km.

The vehicle uses a vertical coil spring suspension system that limits top speed and off-road capability.

Delays in turret design and development led to delays in actual turret production, although many ARL 44 hulls were completed in time (these ended up in temporary storage). The first ARL 44 hulls did not have a turret until 1949, by which time the French ARL 44 concept was becoming increasingly obsolete by world standards. Therefore, despite the need for capable domestic tanks, mass production of this type was severely limited. The ARL 44 had a brief but quiet existence in the history of tank warfare, appearing in the 1951 Bastille Day celebration parade. By 1953, all 60 ARL 44 heavy tanks had been phased out of the French army and replaced directly by the American M47 Patton series of American medium tanks, which were provided free of charge to the Allied Pattons in Europe with the arrival of the M48.

Nonetheless, both French engineers and heavy industry have learned valuable lessons from their design, development and construction - setting a new direction for French Cold War tank design for decades to come.