Armourgeddon Review

Last week, I went on a tank driving experience at Armourgeddon in Leicestershire, UK.

The tank driving part was in a turreted FV432, of the type used in Berlin during the 1980s. The British Army converted about thirteen of these vehicles, mounting the turret from a Fox armoured car above the passenger compartment. Armourgeddon has since converted more vehicles, which they use for tank paintball battles. The one I drove was one of the originals that served in Berlin.

I've ridden in a tracked AFV before, but this was my first time driving one. There were three of us driving our vehicle, each doing two circuits of the track. I was the last one to drive, so I was in the turret for the first four circuits, with the other two driving.

Our instructor, Alex, was excellent, friendly, and very knowledgeable about the vehicle. I drove one circuit with the driver's hatch open and my head out, then a second circuit with the hatch down. My visibility on this second circuit was extremely limited, so I was dependent on instructions from Alex, delivered over the intercom. As I completed my second circuit, he asked me how good I was at parking. As the last driver, I had to reverse park the FV432. Still buttoned up, I had no visibility whatsoever of what was behind us. I was completely reliant on Alex's instructions. Happily, I managed to park between two other vehicles without hitting either of them.

The tickets for the tank driving day included entry to the attached military museum, so I spent some time in there. Compared to a site like Bovington, the display is small. Alex told me that, since they can't compete on size, they focus on acquiring interesting items. I can certainly confirm that they have do this well. The display included items that I've not seen anywhere else, including things like Pak 36 and Pak 38 anti-tank guns, plus an M4 Sherman equipped with a 105mm howitzer.

It's worth noting that they also restore vehicles and weapons. I know that their 88mm flak gun, Sexton, and Chieftain were all restorations. Photos of the original state of the 88 and the Sexton show that they were in a terrible state when Armourgeddon acquired them. Both are now in excellent condition.

I only have one small complaint. The displays were somewhat cramped, which made taking photos difficult. But it was an excellent day, and I can highly recommend a visit.