FV107 Scimitar British Amphibious Armored Reconnaissance Vehicle

The FV107 Scimitar is an armored reconnaissance vehicle (sometimes classed as a light tank) used by the British Army. It was manufactured by Alvis in Coventry. It is very similar to the FV101 Scorpion but mounts a high velocity 30 mm L21 RARDEN cannon instead of a 76 mm gun. It was issued to Royal Armoured Corps armored regiments in the reconnaissance role. Each regiment originally had a close reconnaissance squadron of five troops, each containing eight FV107 Scimitars. The FV107 Scimitar is one of the CVR(T) series of vehicles. It entered service in 1971. Initially, the engine was the Jaguar J60 4.2-liter 6-cylinder petrol engine, the same as used by several Jaguar cars. This has now been replaced by a Cummins BTA 5.9 diesel engine in British Army Scimitars, under the CVR(T) Life Extension Program (LEP). The Scimitar lifespan has once again (as of mid-2009) been extended to accommodate the shift in the timeframe of the Future Rapid Effect System program, which would have seen new armored vehicles introduced to replace the aging CVR(T) range of vehicles. With new modifications, air filtration units and gearbox upgrades (late 2009), as well as hull alterations (late 2009) and the creation of a CVR(T) Spartan & CVR(T) Scimitar hybrid the CVR(T) range (early 2010) is expected to continue well beyond 2017.