A17 Tetrarch Tank A Technical History

The A17 Tetrarch tank incorporated a revolutionary suspension system designed by Leslie Little, the chief engineer at Vickers-Armstrongs' tank development facility at Chertsey in Surrey. Its evolution occurred just at the time that the Light tank role was being supplanted by armoured cars, and only a hundred examples were built. Nevertheless, the advanced features of the Tetrarch rendered it ideal for a number of experimental roles, and it would pioneer the use of armoured fighting vehicles in both amphibious and airborne warfare. Despite its limited production, the Tetrarch would have one of the most unusual and varied careers of any tank of the Second World War.