T17E1 Staghound
Chevrolet armoured car used by Allied armies and later by the 19th Alberta Dragoons.
History and Service Notes
The T17E1 Staghound was a Chevrolet-built armoured car used by Allied forces during the Second World War and retained in Canadian service after the war.
The turret had power traverse and featured a turret basket, which improved turret operation but limited the amount of internal crew storage. The 37 mm gun was gyroscopically stabilized.
This variant had a crew of five: commander, loader, gunner, driver, and hull machine gunner. It saw combat with British, Free Polish, Canadian, New Zealand, Indian, and Belgian armies in Italy, Greece, and Northwest Europe.
Following the Second World War, the Staghound saw service in Canada and was employed by the 19th Alberta Dragoons to patrol the Alaska Highway.
Armament
- 37 mm M6 gun
- Coaxial .30 cal Browning 1919A4 machine gun
- 2-inch smoke mortar in a rotating turret
- Hull-mounted .30 cal Browning 1919A4 machine gun
- Some vehicles carried an additional .30 cal Browning 1919A4 machine gun for anti-aircraft defence
Technical Specifications
- Crew: 5 (commander, gunner, loader, driver, hull machine gunner)
- Combat weight: approx. 14 tonnes
- Length: 5.49 m; width: 2.69 m; height: 2.36 m
- Engine: twin GMC 270 inline-6 engines, approx. 97 hp each (194 hp combined), either engine could run alone
- Max speed: 89 km/h (55 mph)
- Range: approx. 724 km
- Armor: welded steel, ranging from approx. 9 mm to 45 mm depending on location
- Production: 2,844 T17E1 (turreted) built by Chevrolet