Centurion Mark 5/1 ARN 169090

Location: Melbourne Tank Museum, Narre Warren North, VIC, Australia

Date: January 1996

This series of images was taken in April 2006 at the Melbourne Tank Museum Auction, Melbourne Australia.

This auction is covered in our article Melbourne Tank Museum Auction – Sale of a Lifetime.

According to Shane Lovell’s “Military Briefs 3: Australian Centurions in Vietnam”, this vehicle served in Vietnam with 1 Armoured Regiment, C Squadron April to December 1968, B Squadron January 1969 to November 1969 and again with C Squadron from March to September 1971. It was received by the RAAC in the second batch of 51 Mark 5 tanks delivered in 1955/56.

Care should be taken if using these images with the new AFV Club Vietnam Centurion kit. Very few Australian Centurions left service with the full set of Vietnam modifications intact.

We understand that Shane’s valuable reference has been reprinted, and a series of Vietnam Centurion decals (two sets) has been released, by the publishers Mouse House Enterprises.

We’ll be posting more Centurion reference in our Reference Feature “Heaven Cent” over the next few weeks. Stay tuned!