WW 2 Flamethrower Tank - The Churchill Crocodile

[MVScalper]

lovely piece of kit

[MrPaniagua49]

that thing looks like hell on wheels

[iAREanthonyyy]

It seems so brutal shooting flames at a human being... But then I remember that they were fighting Nazis. So I feel no sympathy at all lol.

[TheFlyingPineapple]

@iAREanthonyyy You are incredibly ignorant.

[iAREanthonyyy]

@TheFlyingPineapple You are incredibly ignorant for making such a broad statement on the internet about someone you know absolutely nothing about.

[TecZero1000]

i wonder what would happen if it was used in the vietnam war with the trees and grass and bushes? O.o

[HerrXxVorragend]

@TecZero1000 They used Napalm Bombs, nearly the same..

[badgerattoadhall]

@HerrXxVorragend there was flame thrower river boats

[romanlegions]

I wonder, do they use the flamethrower in conjunction with its main gun? Was its 75mm armed with anti-tank or ant-infantry rounds? Would they have tried to suppress the enemy with its main gun and coax before unleashing the flamethrower?

[romanlegions]

@UnsungHero64 We have phosphorus grenades and other long range incendiary missiles. Contrary to what popular culture has taught us, flamethrowers are not useful in dense jungles like in the Pacific or Vietnam Dry bushes and forests are ideal locations where it is easily spread. As for mountains regions, it is ideal for cave clearing but the fuel tanks are heavy for mountain combat. This is where conventional grenades and small unit tactics work best.

[xBloodXGusherx]

Rape on tracks...

[wfvhhfhjf123456789]

it sucks cause about 2015 or 2020 every one from WWII will die.

[Splitskirts]

Great clip / subject matter. Interestingly I've been reading a Osprey series book on German Flamethrower Tanks / Half-Tracks and they didn't use the " trailer " system as they thought it would limit the mobility of the Tank; instead the flame oil " tanks " were inside. Of course some tanks caught on fire from within if hit. Regards.

[romanlegions]

@Splitskirts Could it because the flamethrower was armed as a main gun rather then mounted on the hull like the Churchill? Space will be more available if munitions for the main cannon be removed for fuel tank. An example will be flame variants of the Sherman tank.

[MrStemkilla]

if you are about to be captured turn the turret around and shoot he tank now that sends a messige

[SvenTviking]

The General asked the vet where he served during the war. When the vet told him, Horrocks said "I don't know how you could use that terrible weapon" "Well sir", said the vet, "I had to, because YOU ordered me to!"

[SvenTviking]

I talked to a crocodile veteran. He worked after the war for a company that had General Sir Brian Horrocks as its chairman. This vet spent a day driving Horrocks about until the went to a pub for lunch.

[SweStuff94]

if u got hit by that strem of napalm u would die/pass out under 30 sek huuh?

[MrStemkilla]

@SweStuff94 if you are covered yes you will be dead in 30 seconds but you will feel every second! that or maby 18 seconds i forgot and yes your body cant react fast enuf to go into shock so you cant feel it so i wold bet on 30 seconds max and its not cod where if you only get a little you can still fight becouse just a little will make you not be able to stay in control and if you dont burn to death you will be in sutch pain you would hope your buddy shoots you

[SweStuff94]

@MrStemkilla yeah but one thing i have talk to one dude that had 50% 3degree burns by gas and he sayed that he lost the pain after 10 sek of being burn and dident feel pain by the massamount of haveing adraline and the will to surevive. but anny way i dont thing burning to death is a good way but still war is war

[MrStemkilla]

@SweStuff94 yea he must have been really lucky i know some people who has 3rd degree burns over 90% of there body it wasn't fire but it was a steem line braking on a work sight and the rutene in the hospital was peeling off bandiges going in the showers having the nurses scrup you whole body with metal brushes like for grilling to get the dead skin out then putting the bandages back on only to repeat the next day

[MrStemkilla]

but yes finallly someone who realises that war is war and what you do and what happens to you dosnt matter after the war because you were just doing as your country called of you and what happens in war should stay in war and never reach the cort rooms or persecution after thr people who fight in them are only tools the country needs and they will be used with little say over there oun actions. war is a trible thing but humanity # 1 pass time and that will never change

[SweStuff94]

@MrStemkilla true true

[h00rj]

Teamkillers.

It's always the retard with the flamethrower.  Always.

[romanlegions]

@h00rj Or the idiot sod with the missile launchers.

[firdaus125]

I think if I ever saw one of that I would just start praying

[TheCockroach126]

Dear Santa i know its late to ask for things but PLEASE!!!!!!!!!

[IownYourFinger]

i'm on fire!!!!!!

gimme water please...

*burn burn*

awwwwww

[jimboson888]

thats a nasty peice of kit that

[stevimated]

this is how chuck norris takes a leak...

[lordxiphias]

@stevimated This comment just made my day! Thank you, funny man!

[diangoman]

@stevimated No.. this is how Chuck Norris cooks his bacon.

[SweStuff94]

if u got hit by a jaet of that u die fast?

[BigAndTall666]

@SweStuff94 scream for a some (presumably loooong) seconds then die from the chock to the body and burn wounds! - How do you like your eggs "scrambled" or "over easy"? -Look at some japanese invasion or vietnam pics if you got the stomach for it.......Barf!

[SweStuff94]

@BigAndTall666 yeah...but i talkt to a dude that was burind by gas and he had 3th degre burns over 40%of hes body and i askt him when you burn did u feel pain? he anserd me like this: yeah fore like 3-5sek then my nervs was damegde and i was so full of andralin so i dident feel mutch. so maby they dident feel so mutch pain :)

[Darbyjack]

These things could easily kills tigers.

[romanlegions]

@Darbyjack And where have you heard that?

[Darbyjack]

@romanlegions

I've heard it a few times. The napalm would get inside the tank and easily burn the crew alive. In North Africa, apparently Churchill tanks were doing a good enough job taking out Tigers. Look it up, I can't remember now.

[romanlegions]

@Darbyjack I doubt it, Churchills had a weak gun against heavy tanks. The flamethrowers potentially can do something if the Tigers were caught unawares. Early and mid-war Allied tanks were fitted with mostly anti-infantry weapons. But there are cases of Shermans knocking off Panthers and Tigers in excellent ambush situations so the idea of Churchills killing Tigers are not too far-fetched.

[cfs3000]

@romanlegions indeed, Micheal Wittmann's Tiger was blasted by a cromwell at point blank range, it was sitting behind a wall when the Tiger passed

[romanlegions]

@cfs3000 Thought it was an airstrike, main causes of tank deaths were due to airstrikes on the WF.

[bengacris]

@cfs3000 I think it was a Canadian firefly that destroyed Wittman's Tiger, or an airstrike with rockets

[tomijojo]

it realy throws the flames!

[anteracmacash]

sutch a stupid fucking name for a killing machine

[605Scorpion]

@anteracmacash sorry would BlAcKHaRbiNgErOfDeAtH666 be more to your liking?

[anteracmacash]

@605Scorpion flametank would have done it for me, but yes BlAcKHaRbiNgErOfDeAtH666 sounds nice

[unnamednewbie13]

Which documentary?

[9394JP731]

Despite the fearful flamethrower, it was slow to escape or respond to enemy from sides. Both the driver's & machinegunner's vision was poor,& limited by setting back lowly between raised protruding fenders, blind to discover concealed booby traps, foxholes, paks & tank hunters. The turret was small, undergunned & w/o all around seconary arms to defend, it could only work in open areas with escort.

[Gytax0]

@9394JP731 Who cares?

[F4Wildcat]

@9394JP731 true, but the crocodile was the MKVII variant, wich sported 154MM Frontal armor. Even the tiger tank's 88MM gun couldnt penetrate it. Only the Panther's 75MM gun with special ammo, or the King tiger's 88MM(it is diffrent then the Tiger 1) could penetrate it.

Armament was always the issue with British infantery tanks. They where better of retaining the 6PDR, because APDS rounds became more accessible, wich could penetrate 120MM armor, enough for most german tanks

[Mcplkelly]

@9394JP731 Think you are wrong on most accounts. Driver had periscopes above the tracks which provided good view, the hull gunners vision was limited but hull guns never had very good FOV. The Croc had a vision cupola (one of the few on allied tanks) which gave it good all round vision, plus its turret was roomy for 3 men and had better armor protection than any German tank but a King Tiger. It had a 75mm gun and a coax which was adequate, and by all accounts a very effective weapon.

[88pie88]

@9394JP731 be aware that they were often supported by matilda's, shermans and Bren gun Kangaroos.

[pantonez]

The best invention English after the railway, the Nazis burning tank.

god bless the Churchill Crocodile.

[Marinermandrone]

fire in the hole ment actual use of flame thrower

[dutchfett]

@Marinermandrone

Thanks, that's something if been asking myself a lot.

[Marinermandrone]

@dutchfett Yeah they yelled that when they would shoot flames, but they also yell it for grenades instead of explosion in the hole

[mrloganthinks]

0:57 is really scary

[shamrock118]

@mrloganthinks

why?

[Crossbowshootr]

Is the turret gun a regular tank gun or is it another flamethrower?

[MokomaSusi]

It's regular tank gun. That flamethrower replaced hull machine gun.

[ilovewarships]

That is the scariest tank I ever seen. I would've surrendered if I ever saw a churchill, crocodile or not.

[lynnflower688]

hey, does anyone know what video/show this is from?

[iamninjamafia]

yeah its a 1 hour special on d-day and that clip is from the part they mention flamethrower tanks

and the special that showed that clip is from "normandy the great crusade"mostly shown on the military channel

[lynnflower688]

Thank you!

[zamorakgod66]

can't u just shoot the gas tank?

[lilbeezy4utoo]

Its heavily armored!

[andrewdude1]

bad ass

[xekul]

only problem i see with using these flame tanks against entrenched german infantry is that the wermacht (unlike the japanese) had pretty good hand-held anti-tank weapons (panzerfaus and panzerschreck) and with the limited range of the flame tanks weapon, it would have to get pretty close to the infantry position and well within range of an anti-tank rocket. they dont mention this in the vid so maybe it wasnt as much of a problem.

[DaFeasher]

long story short... BIG BOOM GOES TANK  lol

[agrigoras]

It's no more a problem for the Crocodile than any other tank. You'd have to be one hell of a shot to disable a tank shooting it from over 100 yards, in the heavily armored front end. Incase you didn't notice this tank still has a turret and MG.

[DaFeasher]

these things help alot in call of duty 5 lol

[agentolshki]

i dont see the problem, how many tankers burnt in their tanks or piolts in their planes...

[robosnsyrians]

this has been taken from killer tanks

[socomsgh]

... and as if all that wasn't enough, you can barely destroy it. It's basically a giant "Fuck you!" tank.

[SnAKeoMan]

i thinkh a flamethrower in/on a tank must be the effectivst thinkh on near fighter xD omg that must be a heat whne you are nearer then 2 meters then it ii soooo hot !! your cloths will burn but the flames never touched you so ...... OUCH

[codzilla12]

It's more of a pychological weapon, meant to spread fear into the hearts of the enemy.

[fellerrow]

A truly gruesome weapon but he is right, war is a nasty business and flame is very effective against infantry.

[burberrybedroom]

inhumane or not

thats fucking awesome!!!!!!!!

[LJD5]

what a horrid death

[warhammerd94]

where both of the experts are not the veteran they are in dorset tank museum and i have been there :D

[S3CT10NE1GHT]

ironic how it actually saved lives, surely surrenderring made less loss of life?

[perselor2]

are you kiding me surrendering would have cost even more becuase it hitler had a spesific rule on who he let live plus your pritty mutch a coward if your not going to stand up for whats right

[S3CT10NE1GHT]

no, if the germans surrender we dont kill them. if they didnt surrender we would kil them, therefore lives would have been saved if they surrendered which they did when they saw this monstrosity.

[perselor2]

i meant if britian surrendered

[st0ned666]

I want one of these for x-mas =)

[mahbrocigarettes]

this baby can take temperatures up to 9000 degrees!

[sovietspyguy]

I doubt that somehow.

[dynaflow74]

maybe in some funny computer game ...

[mahbrocigarettes]

star fox 64 anyone? ...anyone?

[spumniffler]

i hear ya!

no one else does

[chewmypud]

we will need these.

[Adamtron530]

Better to be behind one of those instead of in front of it o.O

[goodfellas63]

@Adamtron530 Well, dont forget that the crocodile has a hanger. And if theye shoot on that one the whole tank explodes. So i think you better stay out of his sight

[hollander133]

@goodfellas63

The petrol is mixed in a way that it doesn't ignite when shot at. It just pours out.

[whowantsabighug]

@goodfellas63 No, the fuel needs magnesium to ignite it, all shooting it would do is produce a stream of high-pressure petroleum to fly out. The same with infantry flamethrowers, the user would just be knocked down by the force.

[goodfellas63]

@whowantsabighug Ohw. Yes, well. Im not the smartest one. But it would be logical.

[warmadscot]

my grandfather was in the division that used those, the 79th armoured

[lynnflower688]

warmadscot, I'm doing my senior thesis on the usage of these tanks during WWII for my history degree. I hope you don't mind me asking, and I don't mean to intrude on anything that is personal to you and your family, but do you have any copies of some letters, journals, or photos from your grandfather or his devision that mention their attitude towards its usage or where and when it was implimented. It would be a huge help. Again I'm sorry if I'm intruding in anyway or fashion.

[warmadscot]

unfortunately no, my grandfather never really talked about the war and was in a unit that used bulldozers, however I do know that the weapon was generally disliked, one of my friends grandfathers who operated a crocodile did not like it, considered it inhuman and was always aware of the fact that if the fuel line was ruptured the tank would easily 'brew up'

[lynnflower688]

Thanks for letting me know. I thought that might've been the situation. My great-grandfathers fought in WWII, one died when my grandfather was very young so the war was still to fresh for him to talk about, the other never talked about it, but we did find pictures in the attic after he died. Apparently he was stationed in Asia. I can understand the sediment that your grandfather and his friends had though, from what I've been able to find, nobody liked the tanks and none want to talk about it

[stewp33d]

gross