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AEC B-Type Armored Truck (War Office Pattern)

Specifications

Country of Origin/Used by:	Great Britain
First Produced/Service Dates:	1915
Manufactured by:	Chassis: *Associated Equipment Company Ltd. (AEC); Design/Armor: Royal Woolwich Arsenal
Crew:
Armament:	None. Although, it appears transported troops could use personal weapons from rear of vehicles.
Engine:	4-Cylinder Gasoline (36 hp)
Miscellaneous Info:	In early 1915 right before the British Army was to take over command and operation of the armored cars from the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS), the British War Office (BWO) decided to design its first purpose-built armored car design of the war; referred to as the *AEC B-type Armored Truck (War Office Pattern). Finding inspiration from the RNAS's B-Type Armored Truck (RNAS Pattern), the new vehicle also used the chassis of the 3-ton 4x2 AEC B-Type double-decker buses originally operated by the London General Omnibus Company (LGOC). In fact, the BWO formally requested input from the RNAS, who nominated Flight Commander T.G. Hetherington. Hetherington was an officer experienced with the use and design of the RNAS armored cars up until that point.  One (1) armored truck was built and shown to Hetherington, who gave a less-than positive review, specifically concerning the vehicle's poor armor.  Based upon that input and also information about the RNAS' difficulty in using their AEC vehicles, production was immediately halted.  Although the BWO's truck never went overseas, it apparently was used in Great Britain for patrolling the Southern coastline for a time. It was later seen operating with much of its armor removed, but ultimately no additional information is available as to its ultimate fate. *The manufacturer of the truck chassis is often cited as the LGOC as the vehicles were converted from buses originally sourced from that company.  Additionally, LGOC was the parent company of AEC, which it had created as a subsidiary earlier to build and service their buses.  However, we are citing the manufacturer as AEC as that company actually built the chassis on behalf of LGOC.
Data Sheet Available:	None Available

Photos

Reference	Source/Provider
AEC B-Type Omnibus Photo	"Danie DVM" via Wikipedia Commons
AEC B-Type Armored Truck (War Office Pattern) Photo	The David Haugh Collection

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