Humber Hornet

The FV1620 Humber Hornet (FV1620, truck 1-ton, air portable, armoured launcher, Hornet launcher) was a specialised air-deployable armoured fighting vehicle designed to carry the Malkara, an anti-tank guided missile developed by Australia and the United Kingdom.

Humber Hornet
Humber Hornet at Bovington Tank Museum
Type	Anti-tank missile carrier
Place of origin	Australia / United Kingdom
Service history
Used by	Australia, United Kingdom
Wars	Cold War
Production history
Manufacturer	Humber (Rootes Limited)/Wharton Engineering
Produced	1958-1961
Specifications
Mass	5.70 tonnes
Length	5.05 m (16 ft 7 in)
Width	2.22 m (7 ft 3 in)
Height	2.43 m (8 ft 0 in)
Crew	3; commander, driver, gunner
Armor	8–16 mm (0.31–0.63 in)
Main armament	2x Malkara anti-tank missile
Engine	Rolls-Royce B60 Mk 5A six cylinder petrol engine. 120 hp (89 kW)
Suspension	Wheels 4x4
Operational range	402 km (250 mi)
Maximum speed	64 km/h (40 mph) on-road.

History

British units used the Hornet.^[1] Based on the British Army's FV1611 Humber "Pig" one-ton four-wheel drive armoured truck, it carried two Malkara, missiles on a retractable boom at the rear, as well as two reloads. It could be transported by air in a Blackburn Beverley and air-dropped on a cluster of 6 special parachutes.

Operation

Hornet with the boom lowered

It was also operated by a squadron of the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment.

See also

• List of armoured fighting vehicles
• Malkara anti-tank missile

Comparable vehicles

• M551 Sheridan