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Britain's Vickers 6 Ton Light Tank

Vickers 6 Ton Type A light tank: Royal Armored Corps Tank Museum

Vickers 6 Ton Type B light tank:

Design

The Vickers 6 Ton tanks were built as a private venture.^3,5 The British Army did confiscate the ones that had been ordered by overseas customers and couldn't be delivered because of the events in the war.¹

The suspension was double bogies with leaf springs.¹ Had a firewall between the crew and engine compartments.¹ Designed with an internal communication system (Laryngophone) for communication between the crew.¹

Engine was at rear with drive sprocket in front with the steering being by clutch and brake.⁵

Variants

• Vickers 6 Ton Type A: Had 2 turrets with MGs.³
• Vickers 6 Ton Type B: Had 1 turret.³ Used as training vehicle only.
  Appeared in 1930.⁵
  Had same armor and armament as the Medium Mark III then being produced by the British Army, but was cheaper and lighter.⁵
• Vickers 6 Ton Type F:
  Like the Type B but with a new turret with an extension that contained a Marconi Type G2A radio.⁴

Usage

In 1930s these were purchased by Bolivia³, Bulgaria³, China³, Estonia, Finland³, Greece³, Japan, Poland³, Portugal, Russia³, and Thailand³.⁵ Ones that were in the United Kingdom were used for training.¹

Purchased by Finland

Finland bought Type Bs with 37 mm Bofors and a 7.92 MG.⁴

Purchased by China

China was supplied in 1935-1936 with the 6 Ton Mk F.⁴

Sources:

1. The Encyclopedia of Tanks and Armored Fighting Vehicles - The Comprehensive Guide to Over 900 Armored Fighting Vehicles From 1915 to the Present Day, General Editor: Christopher F. Foss, 2002
2. British and American Tanks of World War Two, The Complete Illustrated History of British, American, and Commonwealth Tanks 1933-1945, Peter Chamberlain and Chris Ellis, 1969
3. World War Two Tanks, George Forty, 1995
4. Tanks of the World, 1915-1945, Peter Chamberlain, Chris Ellis, 1972
5. Tanks of World War II, Duncan Crow, 1979