
A beach armoured recovery vehicle (BARV) is an
armoured recovery vehicle
An armoured recovery vehicle (ARV) is typically a powerful tank or armoured personnel carrier (APC) chassis modified for use during combat for military vehicle recovery (towing) or repair of battle-damaged, stuck, and/or inoperable armoured f ...
used for
amphibious landings
Amphibious warfare is a type of Offensive (military), offensive military operation that today uses naval ships to project ground and air power onto a hostile or potentially hostile shore at a designated landing beach. Through history the opera ...
.
There have been three different BARVs in
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
* British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
service since their introduction during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. They have also been used by Dutch and Australian forces.
Sherman BARV

The original BARV was a
Sherman M4A2 tank
A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...
which had been waterproofed and had the turret replaced by a tall armoured superstructure. Around 60 were deployed on the invasion beaches during the
Battle of Normandy
Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful liberation of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the N ...
. Able to operate in deep water, the BARV was used to remove vehicles that had become broken-down or swamped in the surf and were blocking access to the beaches. They were also used to re-float small
landing craft
Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force (infantry and vehicles) from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are larger. ...
that had become stuck on the beach. Unusually for a tank, the crew included a
diver whose job was to attach towing chains to stuck vehicles.
The vehicles were developed and operated by the
Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
The Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME ) is the maintenance arm of the British Army that maintains the equipment that the Army uses. The corps is described as the "British Army's professional engineers".
History
Prior t ...
. The Sherman M4A2 model was chosen as a basis for the BARV as it was thought that the Sherman's welded hull would be easier to waterproof than other tanks. Unlike other Sherman models, the M4A2 was powered by a
diesel engine
The diesel engine, named after the German engineer Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which Combustion, ignition of diesel fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to Mechanics, mechanical Compr ...
because it was believed the tank would be less affected by the sudden temperature changes caused by the regular plunges into cold water. A few Sherman BARVs continued to be used until 1963, when they were replaced by a vehicle based on the
Centurion tank
The FV4007 Centurion was the primary main battle tank of the British Army during the post-World War II period. Introduced in 1945, it is one of the most successful post-war tank designs, remaining in production into the 1960s, and seeing comba ...
.
M3 BARV

A single
M3A5 Grant tank was converted into a BARV in 1950 by the
Australian Army
The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia. It is a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army ...
. This remained in service until 1970.
Centurion BARV

By the late 1950s, Sherman BARVs were becoming less useful as they were unable to recover the heavier armoured vehicles that were being introduced. The ''Centurion BARV FV 4018'' was developed as a replacement. A mild-steel prototype was followed in 1960 by 12 production vehicles. These were based on the hulls of Mark 1, 2, and 3
Centurion tanks that by this time were redundant. Although initially assigned to the Army, they were passed to the
Royal Marines
The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...
when the Army's amphibious assault role was given to the marines.
The BARV was basically a Centurion body with built up sides to accommodate wading in water up to 11 feet. The design was functional yet crude with sloped armour built above the tank hull. The tracks for the BARV were reversed so they had better grip biting in reverse.
The Centurion BARV retained the gun-tank's
Rolls-Royce Meteor
The Rolls-Royce Meteor later renamed the Rover Meteor is a British tank engine that was developed during the Second World War. It was used in British tanks up to 1964. It was a result of co-operation between Leyland Motors and Rolls-Royce who bet ...
petrol engine.
Centurion BARVs had a crew of four; two of the crew were members of the
Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
The Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME ) is the maintenance arm of the British Army that maintains the equipment that the Army uses. The corps is described as the "British Army's professional engineers".
History
Prior t ...
, one of whom was a qualified diver.
The Centurion BARVs were built to provide the essential role for the
LPD's
HMS ''Fearless'' and
HMS ''Intrepid'' as part of the beach assault squadrons.
The assault squadrons were initially a mix of Royal Marines and
Army
An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...
serving aboard the ships. The transition to this being all Royal Marines was seen to be essential.
The crew for the BARVs would be handed to the Royal Marines with a sergeant, two corporals and a marine, all qualified vehicle mechanics, responsible for driving and maintaining the tank, and also providing full mechanical breakdown services for all embarked vehicles.
The training for the crew would take place at
Bovington Camp
Bovington Camp () is a British Army military base in Dorset, South West England. Together with Lulworth Camp it forms part of Bovington Garrison.
The garrison is home to The Armour Centre and contains two barracks complexes and two forest and ...
for driver training and at the home of the BARV,
RM Instow in North Devon, the Royal Marines' amphibious testing centre.
There were many occasions when the BARV would break down or get stuck. In 1981 the BARV from ''Fearless'' was to be lost at sea off
Browndown beach to end up fully submerged. The following year both BARVs would see service during the
Falklands War
The Falklands War () was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British Overseas Territories, British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and Falkland Islands Dependenci ...
, being the largest land vehicles ashore, with the BARV from ''Fearless'' becoming stuck in deep mud whilst pushing an LCU
Blue Beach. The vehicle was stuck in the mud for a few days, while a quillshaft (driveshaft between transmission and final drive unit) snapped during the recovery. The BARV from HMS ''Intrepid'' also became stuck in deep mud and suffered the same quillshaft failure and remained static for the duration of the war.
All the Centurion-derived BARVs have now left service and have been sold to collectors or museums around the world. BARV registration number 00ZR21 can be seen at the RAC Tank Museum, Bovington England.
Hippo BRV

In 2003, the Centurion BARV's replacement was introduced. This is the ''Hippo BRV'', which had been in development under the project name of "Future Beach Recovery Vehicle" (FBRV). The name change reflects the fact that, unlike previous generations of vehicle used in this role, ''Hippos'' are not fully armored.
The ''Hippo'' is a conversion by
Alvis Moelv of a
Leopard 1A5 tank. The incorporation of Alvis Vickers into
BAE Systems
BAE Systems plc is a British Multinational corporation, multinational Aerospace industry, aerospace, military technology, military and information security company, based in London. It is the largest manufacturer in Britain as of 2017. It is ...
meant that elements of the work moved to
BAE Land Systems, Sweden, formerly known as "Hägglunds", another ex-Alvis company. As with earlier generations of BARV, the main alteration has been the replacement of the turret with a raised superstructure which, in this case, resembles the bridge or wheelhouse of a small ship. The original diesel engine has been retained but the gearing of the transmission had been lowered; this has reduced the vehicle's road speed from , but its tractive force has been increased to . Other modifications include the addition of working platforms, a nosing block, raised air intakes and an
auxiliary power unit
An auxiliary power unit (APU) is a device on a vehicle that provides energy for functions other than propulsion. They are commonly found on large aircraft and naval ships as well as some large land vehicles. Aircraft APUs generally produce 115&n ...
; this has raised the weight of the vehicle from 42.5 tonnes to 50 tonnes. The Hippo has a fording depth of and can pull vehicles up to 50 tonnes weight or push off from the beach a 240 tonne
displacement
Displacement may refer to:
Physical sciences
Mathematics and physics
*Displacement (geometry), is the difference between the final and initial position of a point trajectory (for instance, the center of mass of a moving object). The actual path ...
landing craft
Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force (infantry and vehicles) from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are larger. ...
.
Currently, four Hippos are in British service, one each on
HMS ''Albion'' and
''Bulwark'', with two used by 11 Amphibious Trials and Training Unit Royal Marines. The vehicle is reportedly well liked by its users, but its lack of commonality with the other armoured vehicles used by the UK has caused spares support problems, exacerbated by the poor nature of the Initial Spares Support package procured from Alvis Moelv by the UK's
Defence Procurement Agency
The Defence Procurement Agency (DPA), was an Executive Agency of the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence responsible for the acquisition of materiel, equipment and services, for the British armed forces.
Led by the Chief of Defence Procurement ...
. This area is being tackled by the MoD's
Defence Logistics Organisation
The Defence Logistics Organisation (DLO) was a key element of the UK Ministry of Defence, responsible for supporting the armed forces
throughout the various stages of an operation or exercise; from training, deployment, in-theatre training and ...
.
The
Netherlands Marine Corps
The Royal Netherlands Marine Corps () is the elite naval infantry corps of the Royal Netherlands Navy, one of the four Netherlands Armed Forces, Armed Forces of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The marines trace their origins to the establishme ...
operates four similar Dutch Leopard 1V-based BRV vehicles known as ''Hercules'', ''Samson'', ''Goliath'' and ''Titan'' which operate out of the
Royal Netherlands Navy
The Royal Netherlands Navy (, ) is the Navy, maritime service branch of the Netherlands Armed Forces. It traces its history to 8 January 1488, making it the List of navies, third-oldest navy in the world.
During the 17th and early 18th centurie ...
assault ships of the
''Rotterdam'' class. The vehicles have a similar specification but a different cabin appearance.
Survivors
In England, the
REME Museum
The REME Museum, also known as the Corps of Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers Museum, is a military museum of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) – the corps of the British Army responsible for the maintenance, servici ...
in
Lyneham and the
D-Day Story in Portsmouth both have Sherman BARVs on display. Another, in running condition, is held by the ''War and Peace Collection'', a private military collection in the UK. The wrecked hulk of another is at
The Tank Museum
The Tank Museum (previously the Bovington Tank Museum) is a collection of armoured fighting vehicles at Bovington Camp in Dorset, South West England. It is about north of the village of Wool and west of the major port of Poole. The collectio ...
, after being used as a firing range target. Another Sherman BARV is a museum-piece in India, at the
Cavalry Tank Museum,
Ahmednagar
Ahmednagar, officially Ahilyanagar, is a city in, and the headquarters of, the Ahmednagar district, Maharashtra, India. Ahmednagar has several dozen buildings and sites from the Nizam Shahi period. Ahmednagar Fort, once considered almost impre ...
. The Australian M3 BARV is preserved at the Royal Australian Armoured Corps Tank Museum at
Puckapunyal
Puckapunyal (more formally the Puckapunyal Military Area, but also known as the Puckapunyal Camp or Puckapunyal Army Base, and colloquially as "Pucka") is an Australian Army training facility and base 10 km west of Seymour, Victoria, Seym ...
, Australia. The museum also has a second BARV that was based on a bulldozer.
Centurion BARVs are on display at
The Tank Museum
The Tank Museum (previously the Bovington Tank Museum) is a collection of armoured fighting vehicles at Bovington Camp in Dorset, South West England. It is about north of the village of Wool and west of the major port of Poole. The collectio ...
(UK), at
Yad La-Shiryon
Yad La-Shiryon (officially: The Armored Corps Memorial Site and Museum at Latrun; ) is Israel's official memorial site for fallen soldiers from the Israeli Armor Corps, armored corps, as well as one of the most diverse tank museums in the world. ...
in
Latrun - the
IDF tank museum - and at the
Israel Defense Forces History Museum (''Batey ha-Osef'') in
Tel-Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...
. A Centurion BARV, in private hands, is parked and able to be viewed at the entrance of a farm on Colne Road,
Bures Hamlet, Essex, England.
AeroVenture in Doncaster, UK has a Centurion BARV ''02 ZR 77'' on display as part of its Falklands War Collection. This was originally one of the first Centurions built as part of the first contract between 1944 and 1946 (the exact date of build is unknown). It was one of the two BARVs that took part in
Operation Sutton
Operation Sutton was the code name for the British landings on the shores of San Carlos Water, at Ajax Bay and Port San Carlos, near San Carlos on East Falkland.
Landings
During the night, 3 Commando Brigade along with attached units of ...
, the British landings at San Carlos with one from HMS ''Fearless'' supporting the landings on Blue Beach and one from HMS ''Intrepid'' supporting the landings on Red Beach and remains the longest-serving armoured vehicle in the British forces, leaving service in 2005 after taking part in both Gulf conflicts.
References
External links
Sherman BARV at REME Museum of Technology
{{ModernUKNonAFVNav, style= wide
Tracked armoured recovery vehicles
Armoured fighting vehicles of the United Kingdom
Amphibious military vehicles
Royal Marines
Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
Military vehicles introduced from 1940 to 1944