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Ordnance QF 17-pounder

1943 COLD WAR KOREAN WAR MODERN WORLD WAR 2

History of the Ordnance QF 17lb

With wars in full swing across Europe, the main battle tank is the pinnacle of any offensive armored spearhead. As the war progressed, weapon development for such systems proceeded at a dizzying pace. The Germans learned a lot from their first Panzer I and Panzer II light tanks, and the subsequent Panzer III and Panzer IV series proved to be capable to a certain extent.

However, advances in armor will not stop there, as heavy tanks such as the Leopard and Tiger are in development. The British authorities did not turn a blind eye to the development of tanks, they recognized that their QF 6-pdr anti-tank guns would soon - if not soon - become obsolete on the modern battlefield, just like the previous QF 2-pdr series Good .

Thus, as early as 1941, the development of a larger caliber anti-tank gun system was already underway to supply the British Army Artillery, which was in dire need of a more powerful tank interceptor. The next logical development of the anti-tank gun fell into the 76.2mm caliber, which for the British would be armed with a new 17-pounder shell capable of defeating all known enemy armor at the time.

As requirements were established, the design progressed rapidly, culminating in a larger and heavier line of ordnance, the Q.F., 17-pound anti-tank gun.

The Ordnance QF 17-pdr anti-tank gun is a huge improvement over the previous QF 2-pdr and QF 6-pdr gun designs (each system is named after the weight of its respective projectile). The QF-17 relies primarily on a new Armor Piercing Disposable Case (APDS) cartridge that improves the basic penetration of British ammunition, first introduced with the arrival of the QF 6-pdr.

Of course, the QF 17-pdr uses a heavier projectile due to its larger design and size. The QF 17-pdr design features a traditional long barrel, mount and carriage arrangement. The long barrel with double baffles is mounted on an adjustable base with a large breech block for loading.

The rifle crew section is protected by a flat, thick, angled armor shield. A pair of rubber tire steel wheels on either side of the gun mount and a separate trailer serve as towing arms and recoil legs. A special recoil system is attached to the cylinder system under the barrel base. The barrel is officially classified as "L/60" and has a length of 180 inches. The altitude caps are -6 and +16.

5 degrees on a 60 degree wire. Muzzle velocity varies with different types of ammunition, but ranges from 3,000 to 4,000 feet per second. Overall, the QF 17-pdr weighs 4,619 pounds and requires a crew of at least seven people.

Once the correct QF 17-pdr mounts are available, these guns will end up in their intended and final production form. However, these new carriages proved to be quite heavy, requiring a large number of personnel to relocate and a hauler to transport over long terrain, making them unusable as infantry-grade weapons. Instead, these same weapons have a lower profile that's great for ambush, and they have a good amount of penetrating spokes.

With the completion of the North African campaign and the departure of Germany from the continent, the completed QF-17 production model was in time for operational use in the 1943 Italian campaign, which followed the road to Rome and eventually Berlin.

In 1945, the QF 17-pdr was officially deployed as the main anti-tank gun of the British Army, serving mainly with the Royal Artillery Company. The weapon proved so valuable to the Allied industry that it could be used by Commonwealth forces that needed it.

For the British Army itself, the QF 17-pdr will go down in military history as the latest push in the development of dedicated anti-tank guns, ending a rather successful but sometimes overlooked contribution to the artillery field. The use of the QF 17-pdr by the British Army was discontinued in the 1950s, and further combat operations welcomed the type in the upcoming Korean War.

However, this weapon survived for a long time in other armies.

The QF 17-pdr gun was further mounted on the mobile chassis of the British Valentine cruiser tank, producing the "Archer" self-propelled artillery vehicle. Unique to this vehicle is that the cannon is actually fired backwards, allowing the vehicle to wait for enemy tanks, complete an ambush, and switch to favorable terrain without having to use the entire vehicle for retreat.

The 17-pdr QF gun is also part of the foremost M10 Wolverine/Achilles tank destroyer, Sherman VC Firefly armoured medium tank, Challenger and Comet cruiser tanks and the upcoming Centurion Mk 1 series of main battle tanks.