Tank Chats

David Fletcher is back! Join him as he discusses the FV601 Saladin - a six wheeled armoured car developed by Crossley Motors and later produced by Alvis. The Saladin has had a long service life and despite its dated design, is still in service with some countries.
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[@richieb7692]

The Tank Lord has returned. All Hail his mighty mustache.!!!

[@Boric78]

The Armoured Walrus.

[@white0devil0]

Hail!

[@stanleygeorge7781]

WE'RE NOT WORTHY TO BE IN THE PRESENCE OF HIS GLORIOUS MUSTACHE!!!!

[@yank-tc8bz]

Give him a Knighthood for his services to Military History of Armour.

[@stanleygeorge7781]

@@yank-tc8bz exactly!!!!!!

[@nonamesplease6288]

I nearly fell over. Tank Chats with David Fletcher is back! The world is righting itself!

[@bsolutions525]

Surprised he is still around!

[@KraziEyevin]

Nature is returning

[@SlavicCelery]

Complete with his pronunciation of words. Salad...IN.

[@tallandhandsome29]

Yay!!

[@rayjfroehlich84]

Ur ittiwsaayyy

[@markgroothuis8569]

Really happy to see Mr. Fletcher again. Really missed him and his knowledge- humour. And that with the Saladin; build the Tamiya model and really loved it!

[@getcancer1542]

It was good well good by British standards witch isn’t saying much -David fletcher

[@bayupriyawaskita2222]

We still have Saladins and Saracens in full running order here in Indonesia used by reserve army units 🙈

[@Starfireaw11]

Can you get me a new set of tyres for mine?

[@hadrianbuiltawall9531]

In a strategic sense they make sense. They're cheap to run and light enough to be carried on civilian ferry's.

[@GannicusMisteriosdeHonduras]

Same here in Honduras, main armor of cavalry units. I've been inside one

[@senddeee1451]

Gannicus-Cuentos Y Leyendas love Honduras 👌🏽

[@bayupriyawaskita2222]

Starfireaw11 you need to inquire the Army quartermaster i think they went for a local producer for the spare tires 😬

[@aujay]

So sad to hear David is no longer making videos, and i can't see how he can be replaced to be completely honest, as he has a wonderful way he presents and his knowledge is top shelf and mixed with his unique humour makes for one of my favourite youtube presenters of any genre! ....I know he may not be interested in the idea, but he would be a great podcaster on the subject of Tanks !!

[@charlieyerrell9146]

2nd royal tank regiment on exercise crescent moon .circa 1960. I drove a Saladin from the coast of lybya south to the border with Chad to the Tibesti mountains. And back again. A long hot journey.It performed very well. I still have some old black and white photos of that journey. The Saladin Saracen and ferret's did their job in the lybyian desert. Plug the kettle in under the commanders seat and make the tea.

[@kenbrown2808]

"they said it could drive on any four wheels after blowing any two off, and that's not true. you had to choose which two you got blown off" words to live by.

[@WalkaCrookedLine]

I think it would work with any two non-adjacent wheels blown off, counting the two front or two rear as adjacent. With two adjacent wheels gone though you're going to get out and walk.

[@kenbrown2808]

@@WalkaCrookedLine exactly.

[@Feiora]

@@WalkaCrookedLine Or you take one wheel off from elsewhere to balance the vehicle out?

[@mattrickard3716]

"what a load of rubbish" LOL

[@karlbrundage7472]

One of my most vivid memories of the footage coming out of Kuwait during the invasion was that of a Kuwaiti Saladin valiantly battling Iraqi forces, it's main gun firing and turret swinging to engage targets in the city center. Though I don't know the fate of the vehicle or its crew, it seemed to me, at the time, to be symbolic of the spirit of the Kuwaiti people...............................

[@martinwarner1178]

Kuwait is part of Iraq, it was only divided off because that area contained a great deal of oil. Please fill who did the dividing. Peace be unto you.

[@karlbrundage7472]

@@martinwarner1178 I'm well-aware of the geopolitical chicanery that made the modern middle-east, but don't try to use past political decisions as an excuse for blatant land-grabs. Saddam was an imperialist bent on "reintegrating" a Mesopotamian Empire. He would not have stopped at the borders of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia had his gambit succeeded. Mesopotamia, like all of the world- with NO EXCEPTIONS is a land dominated by tribes and tribal customs, mores and laws. Regions are dominated by tribes and sub-sects and typically want to be left to rule themselves. Friction develops when a "government" that purports to have rule over those lands tries to impose its will. In the case of Saddam's Iraq, that led to the gassing of whole villages and tribes. So, martin warner, How far are you willing to go to make Kuwait an official part of Iraq?

[@TeddyBear-ii4yc]

​@@karlbrundage7472So the CIA enabled a local thug to take control and become a ruthless leader. That suited the Americans as he was their guy! America are currently fighting the Russians with Ukrainian Labour... that's a win/win in Langley. P. S. If I "commit suicide" tonight, tell me mum I love her... 🙂

[@gastonbell108]

Dear Tank Museum: Please make sure the Davids know how glad we are for their continued service. Mr. Fletcher in particular has a regular cheering section on every new video.

[@sammni]

Heaven forbid if anything happened to David Fletcher a statue should be erected in the tank museum. KZbin + David Fletcher = the man that's brought tanks to the masses

[@TheXLink]

How about a tank named after him? With a stylish moustache on it.

[@Paciat]

Stalin did it first.

[@PibrochPonder]

Lol I thought it was Hitler that brought tanks to the masses.

[@dougjb7848]

What do you mean, they should erect a statue? He *is* the statue. Just before the shutdown, they stood him up next to that Saladin with a couple tins of biscuits and a BV, and he just waited for things to quieten.

[@SMlFFY85]

Well, it would be more like a statuette.

[@rpwood934]

Well that makes me feel old! I worked on the Saracen, the Armoured Personnel Carrier variant back in the '70s. I guess I'm a museum piece too now ... or so my grandkids tell me.💀💀💀

[@AndyTernay]

@Robert Wood; no sir. That makes you a Classic, just like the awesome vehicle!

[@rpwood934]

@@AndyTernay Thanks Andy, that's made my day 😎

[@paganphil100]

Robert Wood: Me too.....I drove both of them in the 70s. I loved the Saracen but hated the Saladin because it always felt like it was top-heavy and about to overturn if you went around a corner at high speed :-)

[@gunraptor]

I'm not even kidding when I say that my girlfriend and I just discussed visiting the UK (a destination we've never much entertained for a vacation) explicitly to visit the Tank Museum and possibly meet Mr. Fletcher. This man is just such a glorious mix of knowledge and sincere dry wit that it's a small wonder that he's so loved for his tank chats. David Fletcher: Making tanks and museums as awesome as they should be.

[@brinx8634]

I wonder how many other boys had a Dinky Toy Saladin in the '50s. It looked just right and was beautiful to this ten year old. I'm very happy to see you back, David.

[@mojoden]

I had the Saracen, Saladin, numerous trucks, 25 pounders etc. .. but my pride and joy was a Centurion tank complete with Scammel tank transporter. Oh the joy.

[@papaaaaaaa2625]

MR. FLETCHER, the true treasure of the Tankmuseum! Forget the last running Tiger 1, just a ordinary prop compared to this Sir. Best wishes Mr Fletcher, stay healthy!

[@LazyLifeIFreak]

He explain. He expand. but most importantly The moustache is back!

[@Andrew-yl7lm]

Isn't this meme supposed to rhyme?

[@LazyLifeIFreak]

@@Andrew-yl7lm It was but I suck at ryhme's. You do it.

[@c.j.zographos3713]

David Fletcher -- the Man, the Legend, accept no substitute. Welcome back David!!

[@magecraft2]

You missed a bit :) the Man, the Legend, the Moustache, accept no substitute.

[@28pbtkh23]

One of these passed me one day on the way to school, in the seventies I think. It made a hell of a noise: a big, deep rumble accompanied by a whine from the engine. And it seemed huge next to the cars of the era. Really impressive.

[@user-fe2nk3qz2j]

Growing up in postwar Germany, I never saw one of these bad boys IRL. But I do still recall when I first saw one in The Avengers (Ep. 4.22 "What The Butler Saw") when John Steed arrived at the scene in an Alvis Saladin Series II FV601. As a young boy, I was thoroughly impressed by the design and therefor decided on the spot that this was exactly what my future self should have as a car. It got even better when an Alvis Saracen FV603 APC appeared in Ep. 5.24 ("Mission-Highly Improbable"). I still remember that the poor thing was hit with some kind of shrinking ray weapon and reduced to Matchbox size with Steed inside. Suffice to say, I was more concerned for the well-being of the Saracen.

[@Mishima505]

If you lived close to the border with the GDR you might have seen the BGS using these for border patrol.

[@roganmuldoon3357]

The only thing he said that didn't compute was when he mentioned Swingfire missiles and needing luck for them to hit the target. I was a Swingfire controller. They were as effective at maximum range, which would be the same regardless of the vehicle platform, as they were up close. Accuracy wise, they were as accurate as the controller who guided them onto the target. Fire and forget missiles inevitably took over from the Vigilant and Swingfire et al, but on their day they were state of the art.

[@dogsnads5634]

Swingfire was easily the best of the early generation ATGM. The thought that went into its survivability in real world conditions was in a different league to other systems. In its SACLOS upgraded version it was superior to the TOW, at least until the TOW2 and its variants arrived, at that time Swingfire was in its last years of service.

[@Jacob-th1vv]

Bro david fletcher is the realest man I've ever seen with that mustache... Its crazy how all that knowledge is stored in there

[@salfox1820]

David Fletcher MBE, For The Win!

[@Andy-ub3ub]

Had this as a 1/32 Taimiya model when i was a kid Was always a favourite. happy days

[@Jayneflakes]

Great to see the man back, awesome as always.

[@georgebizos944]

The tank museum should sell audiobook CDs of David Fletcher reading from his books...

[@NotoriusMaximus]

and on vinyl :p

[@georgebizos944]

I would also settle for him reading a phone book

[@gunraptor]

I would potentially shell out some USDs for this....

[@commanderbastard1993]

If he did a audiobook of just his rants and complaints, I would buy it in seconds.

[@halfcantan1208]

This is the sort of chap you'd love to meet in a country pub on a winters night , listening to the stories no one would ever dare print ,

[@sreser111]

fell asleep...ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[@martentrudeau6948]

There is no substitute for David Fletcher, it's good to see him. Saladin is a very handsome vehicle, it seems David likes the Saladin, so I like them. It's a shame Crossley Motors has ceased to exist.

[@CrusaderSports250]

My name unfortunately is the only connection that I have to the once great company, Crossleys also made quality carpets, but once again that is my only connection, a totally irrelevant post but it's been raining constantly all day and my keyboard finger was looking for something to do🌧️☔😊😊.

[@martentrudeau6948]

@@CrusaderSports250 ~ It's a shame the Studebaker Car Company is no more as well, but they could compete with Chrysler, Ford and GM. -- Post WW2 some many companies couldn't make it, and that's interesting to me.

[@landgod2001]

See the picture with this young man in it you immediately know it's going to be an amazing road of a story 😂 I could listen to him talk about paint drying

[@hoogmonster]

I didn't know Salvador Dali drove Saladins... How surreal...

[@lewisirwin5363]

"Salvador Dali in a Saladin," try saying that five times fast!

[@F4Wildcat]

"Thats gotta be the cutest wheeled AFV i have ever seen" -So it would seem

[@ArtrexisLives]

*BASS BOOSTED HANS ZIMMER INTENSIFIES*

[@Starfireaw11]

I own a Ferret Mk 2. Most women call it cute.

[@dillonpierce7599]

Cutest armored car I'd have to say it the late model beaverette they got over there is the winner. That I know about anyways.

[@gusgone4527]

I agree F4W. If something looks right it generally is, certainly from that post WWII era. The gun was excellent giving good fire support for "B" regiments. However, being a recce vehicle it's most potent weapon was the radio. Which is probably why the Ferret being smaller and easier to conceal but with the same radios, outlived it in service. I still want one. Seriously, I do.

[@donbeary6394]

well, it's little brother the Ferret is more cute, but there's no disliking a super ferret ;)

[@johnstevens1575]

I've always thought the Saladin was a great example of British light armor. The Scimitar and Scorpion tracked AFV's were other impressive examples developed during the Cold War.

[@eagle_and_the_dragon]

I recently visited The Tank Museum, and it was a dream come true. Glad to support the Tank Museum, and i hope to visit again soon.

[@tommyfred6180]

a tank museum = a good day a fletcher vid = a very good day :)

[@BA-gn3qb]

My car has a rear driver when my mother in law is in the back seat.

[@istvansipos9940]

no. Then it has a commander. And/or a dragon engine

[@tharos]

David Fletcher back and in top form! Great video.

[@darwinpurnomo1843]

Good to see Mr. Flatcher, by the way, this Tank still used by the Indonesian Army, along with the other product from Alvis such as APC Saracen and Ferret scout panzer.

[@leeboy26]

Two dislikes are from Richard The Lionheart.

[@kristofferjohansson3768]

Lee or from wargaming...

[@Peter1986C]

@@kristofferjohansson3768 He makes a wordplay with historical reference, but I guess it wooshed you.

[@kristofferjohansson3768]

Peter Conen hehe, didn’t even reflect on the tank name...

[@bravo45]

Richard the Barbarian you mean

[@Musketeer009]

Welcome back Mr Fletcher.

[@MikaelKKarlsson]

I had a figurative day in the mud and Mr Fletcher was just the motivational speaker I needed.

[@antonrudenham3259]

The tankies had these when I was infantry in Cyprus in late 80's. I know because we painted one of them pink when they weren't looking! I also think the Kuwaitis used them in action when Iraq invaded, I'm sure I saw footage of them fighting in Kuwait City..

[@steve1315]

Great to see Mr Tank back where he belongs.

[@petercomb8635]

Thank You Mr David Fletcher MBE for your intelagent ,informative leactures

[@georgebottarini1788]

Thanks David. Great to see you back in action.

[@kelleysimonds5945]

Excellent to see you doing these again.

[@daimlerferretscoutcar]

Very happy to see the Saladin featured in the awesome tank chats!

[@ModellingforAdvantage]

Great to see this series back.

[@uha6477]

AT LAST! The one I've been waiting for from the very beginning, and it was totally worth the wait!

[@mattjenkins7216]

Great to see Mr Fletcher alive and well.

[@Handles-Suck-YouTube]

Always good to see you museum folks! Hope you're all doing well over there.

[@petethebastard]

Australia put that turret on M113's to make a Fire Support Vehicle.

[@fiasco348]

'They use to make claims like that.. a load of rubbish' - he's back..

[@russwoodward8251]

Thank you. Good to see David Fletcher!

[@theapostatejack8648]

Yes! Perfect for a Friday afternoon!

[@Sturminfantrist]

Thx, Finally the Saladin and plz more Sixxer the Saracen or the four wheel Ferret, i was 2 years old when a 7 year old boy played in the backyard with Matchbox Saladin , Saracen and ferret cars i tried to play with him like the days before when we played with Cars but this time he told me no Michael your are too young thats nothing for you, i was really upset and it ignited my love for british sixxers, when i came into school i buyed all sixxer from Matchbox incl the stalwart and then we moved downtown near the street and every autumn during BAOR manvoures i had the oppurtunitiy to play in Tanks and arm. Cars and had much fun with the Tommys incl. Choclate and engl drop in a golden Can. Last time i saw a Saladin was in 72 or 73 but it was not a BOAR Vehicle it was a BGS germ. Borderguard unit driving thru my Village.

[@colbeausabre8842]

Like you, I had a Matchbox Saladin, Saracen and Ferret (could never figure which end was front) and a Stalwart tow truck but also a 20 pounder Centurion and a 5.5 inch gun/howitzer. Where my aunt and uncle found them in the US (they were Christmas presents) remains a mystery.

[@wot1fan885]

Glad to see your ok . Thanks for more tanks.

[@justinreilly6619]

Great to see David once again. 👌

[@Kettenhund31]

Glad to see you back, David.

[@06colkurtz]

Sadly can only hit like once. Welcome back Sir. Great to see you again

[@swwy5]

Fletch returns!! Welcome back Mr Fletcher

[@thomashambly3718]

THE KING HAS RETURNED

[@peregrineflow7354]

Well done. This design has always been a favorite.

[@NickHey]

Would love one of these for my morning commute!

[@miklostoth7084]

Hail to the King! Delighted to see Mr. Fletcher again, brilliant chat as always.

[@davidhanson8826]

Mr Fletcher. Thank you.

[@ignaciasd1198]

To know that David Fletcher is fine and cheerful as always is a great relief in this trying times

[@Masada1911]

Truly marvelous to see Mr. Fletcher back in the saddle again:-) excellent morale booster!

[@MARKSFINCHES]

Another fascinating video with our very own Sir David !!!!!!!

[@richpurslow3283]

Another great presentation by Mr Fletcher. Always enjoyable and worth every second spent watching. The Attenborough of Armour.

[@charlesemerson6763]

Excellent presentation. Welcome back David.

[@Kingfisherk26]

Went back to work this week... just got home knackered to a new David Fletcher tank chat ....HOORAY

[@khammar6081]

Welcome back Mr. Fletcher... Nice you see you again!!

[@philmiles6480]

Good to see you back Sir.

[@chrissilsby4312]

Welcome back to Mr David Fletcher. I do enjoy what you bring to this Channel because it is always informative post

[@sigurdivar4227]

Always had a soft spot for Saladin, a very interesting car. Thank you for the video!👍

[@kriztov265]

As always Thank You Mr Fletcher.

[@shredjoe1]

It's easily clobbered!! Brilliant, Glad to see you back Mr Fletcher ... a national treasure & so's the moustache!

[@andrewwmacfadyen6958]

Best looking armoured car ever, all the early post war British FV series looked the part from the Champ to the Antar, Ferret to Centurion.

[@paulkelly7896]

Missed this boyo, his commentary is brilliant. Loving the red trousers :-)

[@tombakabones274]

I'm really glad to see that David Fletcher is back and the channel is back up and running I've learned so much from this channel and look forward to learning more

[@charlieyerrell9146]

Happy to see you putting photos of the 2 RTR on your program. All taken in lybya.

[@rogerbond7811]

Good to see David Fletcher back.

[@Sebiesia]

Great to see mister Einstein of Tanks againn👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻🥳🥳🥳🥳

[@VosperCDN]

2020 gets a bit better, thanks for another Tank Chat!

[@davidprice875]

Fascinating article by an engaging presenter, thank you.

[@loupiscanis9449]

Thank you , Mr Fletcher .

[@HRHtheDude]

Good to see you back sir!

[@martingardener90]

I regularly drove Stalwarts around workshops with the center wheels removed - drove OK but increased the turning circle by about three times! ( when suspended towing Stollies Saracens and Saladins you had to remove the center wheels and the sun gears from the rear hubs - the Bundeswehr took a dim view of towing with the front wheels flailing around in mid-air ! )

[@andrewdrabble8939]

Great to see the Legend back

[@DocTommy1972]

Well hello sailor! Lovely to see you, Mr Fletcher.

[@timbo66]

Wonderful to see mr Fletcher back. Let the Fletcherisms commence!

[@Electronzap]

The storage bins wedged between the wheels are really cool :)

[@MrHws5mp]

Nice one gents! One of my favorite vehicles. I did spot a minor mistake however. David describes the turret crew as "commander and loader". This is incorrect. The turret crew were a commander and a gunner: the commander (right) loaded the gun, and the gunner (left) doubled up as radio operator. This seems counter-intuitive and is different to most two-man turrets where the commander is also the gunner, however wartime experience had shown that it was quite difficult for the commander to maintain all-round situational awareness while spending quite a lot of his time peering through the narrow field of view of the gunnery optics. On the other hand, loading (at least in a recce vehicle) was an intermittent activity and he could spend a lot more time looking out of his periscopes as a result. This novel arrangment proved so successful in practice that it was carried over into the Scorpion and Scimitar vehicles, although the positions were reversed in those, with the gunner/radio-operator on the right and the commander/loader on the left.

[@jerrymacklow1452]

Good to see Mr Fletcher back.

[@glennvogt1194]

Welcome back to David Fletcher and Tank Chats. You were truly missed.

[@vanvan-oc4nj]

Ahh, David Fletcher is back again !!! Great ! Love your explanation on the wheelded vehicle !! Great !! Fletcher back is museum back !!!

[@RDEnduro]

Great video glad to see you! Tanks!

[@vikingwarlord2453]

I love to have one off them to drive about. thanks for the great information

[@Skorpychan]

Nice to see David Fletcher back and rambling to camera again. And about a vehicle I have an interest in, to boot!

[@ritchie799]

Again David does us proud with his brand of presentation and excellent knowledge of the Saladin. I never fail to just zone out and relax with these tank chats providing us with a little oasis of sanity during stressful times. Hat doffed to you David.

[@lordllewellynofdarkdelight2613]

This was a very enjoyable video. Thank you.

[@indyrock8148]

Mr Fletcher's tank chats are a rock in these times