Sho't
Sho't is the Israeli designation of the British Centurion tank in IDF service from 1959 to 2002.
Versions
Sho't Meteor
Sho't Meteors are made up of Mark 3, Mark 5, and Mark 8 Centurion tanks with the original Rolls-Royce Meteor engine upgunned to the 105mm Royal Ordnance L7 cannon. These tanks received minor additional upgrades and modifications by the Israel Defense Forces in earlier improvement programs for the tank. Bearing many original similarities to the British Centurions, they were not as heavily modified as the later Sho't Kal would be. Two main significant modifications were installed during Israeli Centurions' service that would make the Sho't Meteor: the replacement of the 84mm 20-pounder cannon with the 105mm L7 cannon, and the addition of an exterior rear fuel tank which greatly improved the range of the Sho't. The Sho't Meteor would be distinct for these two main modifications. Sho't Meteors only started to be referred to as Meteors when the Sho't Kal was introduced in order to differentiate the tanks. Before that, the normal name, "Sho't" would simply apply to the tanks. "Sho't" is still used as a standard common nickname when referring to any type of Sho't variant. The Sho't Meteor was not limited to, but was used extensively in the Six-Day War, and as well saw partial combat in the Yom Kippur War.Sho't Kal series
The Sho't Kal variants consist of modernized Centurion Mark, 3, 5, and 8 tanks with all the variants including significant mechanical upgrades, such as the new engines, and a new Allison CD-850-6 transmission. The addition "Kal" refers to the abbreviation of the engine manufacturer Continental, originally notated in Hebrew as "שוטקל" and transliterated as "sho'tqal". Kal in Hebrew as well means, "easy", since the modifications of the Sho't Kals made day-to-day life easier for the crew members serving in them. The names for the four main Sho't Kal variants are derivative from the Hebrew alphabet, with the four variants being the first four letters of the alphabet: Alef, Bet, Gimel, and Dalet. All the Sho't Kal variants are an upgrade and advancement of the previous version before them; keeping all previous components, with the only exception of them being replaced, or removed for a specific reason.The Sho't Kal entered service in 1970 with Alef, and by 1974 all Israeli Centurions and Sho't Meteors were upgraded to Sho't Kal standard. Subvariants indicate upgrades received by Sho't Kal tanks during their operational life, including a new turret rotating mechanism, a new gun stabilization system, a new fire-control system, preparations for the installation of the Blazer reactive armor, and more.
Sho't Kal Alef
Being the first version of the Sho't Kal series introduced in 1969, the tank only started to be referred as the Alef when the Sho't Kal Bet was introduced in 1975, with the Sho't Kal series annexing more variants. The Alef was a major upgrade from the Sho't Meteor, which was factored mostly by the new Continental AVDS1790-2AC engine and Allison CD-850-6A transmission. File:Yom Kippur War. MV.jpg|alt=|thumb|Battalion commander Kahalani's Sho't Kal Alef of the 7th Armored Brigade in the Golan Heights during the Yom Kippur War at Nafach Base after the first cease fire announcement. This tank has its side skirt plates not yet put back on, and has received a new xenon searchlight, covered by a canvas to protect it from heavy rain. An additional armor plate is seen attached to the frontal glacis, visible due to the indented slope on the driver's side, and along with a change of armor thickness around the tank's front-right tow hook.|left|259x259pxThe Sho't Kal Alef was used reputably in the 1973 Yom Kippur War along with Israeli Magachs and Sho't Meteors. Alefs were commonly equipped above the main gun mantlet with a captured Soviet Luna L-2 infrared searchlight taken from enemy tanks or a fixed-mounted.50 caliber M2HB machine gun; Alefs could also be equipped with a regular western searchlight. The.50 caliber machine gun on the previous Meteor variants were removed from the mount attached to the commander's cupola in favor of a.30 caliber machine gun, this was decided to more effectively deal with anti-tank and infantry teams. An additional 44mm thick frontal glacis armor plate was common to older Centurion Mark 3's upgraded to Sho't Kal standard, however, not all Alefs were equipped with this plate, as some can be seen in photos without the additional glacis plate. The additional plate mainly originates from Britain's Centurion Mark 5/1, which was an upgrade kit for Mark 5's that included the addition of the 44mm plate—these upgraded Mark 5's were mainly seen used by Australia during the Vietnam War but did see service with other countries. The armor was originally innovated to ensure protection against Soviet 100mm cannons.The smoke grenade launchers from the base Centurion tanks were removed with the transition to the Alef, which would later prove to be an unfortunate mistake. Smoke launcher mounts were still attached to the turrets of some tanks, for not all of the mounts on the tanks had been entirely removed. It was decided smoke was no longer needed to mask tanks in battle; this was greatly regretted in the Yom Kippur War as there were many opportunities in combat where smoke could have been used to mask against ATGMs. Sho't Kals were later equipped with modern smoke grenade dischargers in future variants.
Sho't Kal Bet
Introduced in 1975, the Sho't Kal Bet was the second variant of the Sho't Kal series and saw extensive usage in Operation Litani which occurred in 1978. The Sho't Kal Bet was a temporary solution to mechanical issues caused by the old British electric turret control system. Because the original mechanism gave unfavorable limited performance and tired the tank's batteries, it was replaced with a new hydro-electric turret traverse mechanism based on the Cadillac Gage mechanism in the M48 Patton tank. The new traverse system had been proven reliable and eased logistics however worries such as the flammability of the hydraulic fluids creating a risk in combat and the new lack of a gun stabilization system prevented the Bet from being fully implemented in the IDF.The era of the Sho't Kal Bet introduced and standardized the presence of the loader's.30 caliber Browning machine gun to increase effectiveness against anti-infantry teams which was mounted closely to the loader's hatch. Most Bets came with mounting point preparations/bracket slots for ERA; by the end of its service, most Bets were equipped with Blazer Explosive Reactive Armor. Also towards the latter part of the tank's service, some Bets had received a thermal sleeve for the 105mm L7 cannon.
File:Operation Litani XXI.jpg|thumb|271x271px|The rear of a Sho't Kal tank during Operation Litani. The raised engine deck is visible, to accommodate the bigger American Continental engine. Minor Sho't Kal additions are visible, such as the infantry telephone box, spare track links, and stowage baskets on the rear of the turret.
Sho't Kal Gimel
The Sho't Kal Gimel was manufactured in 1979 and used in service by the early 1980's, being equipped with Blazer Explosive Reactive Armor and two IS-10 smoke grenade launchers on each side of the turret front. The Sho't Kal Gimel received an improved version of the Cadillac Gage-based turret traverse mechanism previously installed in the Bet. Alongside the new turret traverse mechanism, the Gimel obtained a new modern stabilizer, easing the process of the main gun staying on target while engaging—ensuring solid stability for aiming the cannon while traveling at high speeds on rough terrain, and giving high accuracy on the move without needing to stop the tank. The entrance of newer American M60A1 tanks with modern technology had made more upgrades available to Sho't Kal tanks. A cheap and simple new fire-control system called Nir David was installed with a portable DVS-5 laser rangefinder. Due to original IDF Ordnance Corps plans being too expensive, Nir David was created as a more cost-effective FCS.The Gimel featured an upgraded engine, the Continental AVDS1790-2AG; the old 350-amp dynamo electric generator was replaced with an oil-cooled 650-amp alternator, being the cause of the engine model name change from 2AC to 2AG, G standing for generator. Two additional exhausts were added to the engine deck, which is a notable external difference between Sho't Kal variants—allowing for ease to determine if a certain variant is the Gimel or beyond. A system was added which allowed for the tank to emit smoke from the newly added exhausts, this would allow for a smoke screen to be created for the purpose of masking against ATGMs, masking and hiding allies, and withdrawing out of a combat area.
Protection against HEAT projectiles was greatly increased due to the installation of Blazer explosive reactive armor. ERA was placed numerously around the tank in order to provide immediate protection against infantry; urban warfare lessons learned from the 1973 Yom Kippur War greatly increased an emphasis on protection from infantry weapons. Orthodox placement of Blazer consisted of being on the frontal glacis plate, hull roof, turret mantlet, frontal turret roof, turret sides, and upper hull sides on the trackguards. Reactive armor was not seen mounted on the side skirts or rear of the tank. The loader's machine gun from the Bet as well transitioned into the Gimel. The tank was able to test its combat effectiveness in Operation Peace for Galilee, more famously known as the 1982 Lebanon War.