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Type 60 ATM

2022-03-17T14:19:11Z

U9115888: /* Pros and cons */ No longer blue.

{{Specs-Card
|code=jp_type_60_atm
|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|ArtImage_{{PAGENAME}}.png}}
}}

== Description ==

The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} Japanese tank destroyer {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update 1.67 "Assault"]].

Alongside its tank-destroying role, the {{PAGENAME}} can also function as a "light tank" being able to scout enemies and assist in repairing teammates, just like [[Type 60 SPRG (C)]].

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Tank-Armour}}


While the armour of the {{PAGENAME}}'s hull is immune small-calibre MG fire, heavy machine gun fire will penetrate from up close (under 500 m).Its roof armour is nonexistent: with only 10 mm thickness, every fighter in the game will succeed to strafe the {{PAGENAME}}.

The armour of the Type 60 is too weak to sustain the blast damage from tanks exploding next to it. It is advisable to avoid close proximity to other tanks when possible to limit exposure from explosion shockwaves.

The hull is just exactly low enough to use every other hull-down position, that any normal tank would fail to use. As an example, one can use solid concrete roadblocks, building leftovers, solid construction details, random sized rocks, destroyed gas cisterns, destroyed tank hulls and so on as a protective cover. Here, only the launchers will be exposed. In some spots, the 12.7 mm machine gun will also be exposed.

Launchers themselves can be "broken" by machine guns, but they will still reload. Loaded ATGMs are also resistant to attempts of setting them off and will merely briefly malfunction. Manual repair time for the launcher is about 5 seconds with untrained crew, which is faster than a field repair, so most of the times it is not a concern for the tank. Damage to the launchers only really matters if type 60 ATM is also set on fire, then it can be done to prevent counterattack.

It is worth noting that Soviets can still load HE shells and just explode an entire tank by hitting the launcher, but not every one of them carries these shells. Some high calibre HESH shells are also able to send spall down from the launcher into the Type 60 or cause overpressure damage on a good hit.

Being hit to the hull or the MG shield is strictly forbidden, as the compartment is not made with damage control in mind. Enemy attack planes diving down and blasting away with their autocannons and rockets can also penetrate the Type 60 frontally, so be wary of enemy aerial support. In AB, the Type 60 can sustain a hit to the upper part of the hull, but once it is penetrated, it goes down very easily regardless.

If hull must be exposed due to poor cover, only expose the left side, as it has less critical crew members and increases likelihood of back crew surviving and replacing the tank commander afterwards. Sometimes the Type 60 ATM can survive up to 4 snap shots per battle, just because enemy doesn't take it seriously or panic.

'''Armour type:'''

* Rolled homogeneous armour
* Cast homogeneous armour (Machine gun port, Cupola)

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front (Slope angle) !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || 20 mm (35-43°) ''Front glacis'' 20 mm (30°) ''Lower glacis'' 20 mm (spherical) ''MG port'' 10 mm (1°) ''Driver viewport'' || 12.7 mm || 20 mm (1°) || 10 mm 20 mm ''Driver hatch''
|-
| Missile platform || N/A || 10 mm || N/A || 10 mm
|-
| Cupola || colspan="3" style="text-align:center" | 20 mm (conical) ''Base'' 10 mm (spherical) ''Dome'' || 20 mm ''Outer ring'' 10 mm (spherical) ''Centre''
|-
|}
'''Notes:'''

* Suspension wheels and tracks are both 15 mm thick, while torsion bar chassis is 12 mm thick.
* Belly armour is 10 mm thick.

=== Mobility ===
{{Specs-Tank-Mobility}}


{{tankMobility|abMinHp= 312|rbMinHp= 195}}

The {{PAGENAME}} can only move about as fast as an average medium tank. Acceleration is above average, especially when mobility upgrades are researched, but racing against enemy tanks is only recommended if any other option means certain doom.

The issue is the turning ability, as it is slow. It will be problematic to turn around in the middle of a warzone, so a decent hull-down or hiding position is almost always required for comfortable sniping, due to a very limited optics vision arc. It is still possible to turn around even when hiding behind medium tank hull remains, but there will be a high risk of getting sniped, if not extra careful.

The {{PAGENAME}} has poor resistance to ramming attempts - it may stand its ground against light tanks, but any medium tank should be able to move it, and heavier tanks can literally drive over it if {{PAGENAME}} is stuck against something.

Getting stuck on rocks is very bad for this tank, similar to [[Type 60 SPRG (C)]], so if trying to take over mountain position, make sure there is nothing below you, in case if tank will slide off it.

=== Modifications and economy ===
{{Specs-Economy}}

== Armaments ==
{{Specs-Tank-Armaments}}
=== Main armament ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|1}}

{{main|Type 64 MAT}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="4" | [[Type 64 MAT|120 mm Type 64 MAT ATGM]] (x2) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
| 6 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 13.00 || 11.50 || 10.60 || 10.00
|-
|}

As the slowest ATGM in the game mounted on an APC chassis, Type 64 MAT gives the Type 60 APC a bad taste to War Thunder players and so it is revered as the worst possible vehicle in-game. Though in weakness there's strength, because the Type 60 is considered very weak and most opponents will not fire upon the "harmless" APC once there are other targets in sight. The slow velocity of the missile helps to readjust it easier and allows user to hover it just above the ground to clearly see its current position and have it peak up or drop down just before the target if there's a small incline in between the target and the launcher system. Use these weaknesses to your advantage.

In arcade mode, the missile has a tendency to "flutter" whenever it gets too close to the LOS control threshold. This results in missile starting to literally fly sideways without turning, which can be good or bad, depending on situation.

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
| Type 64 || ATGM || 500 || 500 || 500 || 500 || 500 || 500
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="11" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Range (m)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
| Type 64 || ATGM || 85 || 1,800 || 15.7 || 0 || 0.1 || 4,550 || 80° || 82° || 90°
|-
|}
'''Notes:'''

* Flight characteristics heavily depend on the mode you play in. For example, in RB starting ATGM speed is 40 km/h, in AB it's 85.
* While stat card states the max range is 1,800 m, in reality, it is less due to the missile losing fuel making course corrections. The resulting effective range is closer to 1,600 m.
* In AB, rearming takes about 40 seconds once the launcher is empty and no partial rearming can be done on the capture point. Rearm only happens for one launcher at once, which means fully restocking will take you 80 seconds. Launcher still reloads during rearming, so you can fire away immediately after it's done.

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====
[[File:Ammoracks_{{PAGENAME}}.png|right|thumb|x250px|[[Ammo racks]] of the {{PAGENAME}}]]

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''6''' || No
|-
|}
Notes:

* It is not possible to select how many missiles to bring into battle.

=== Machine guns ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|2}}
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|3}}

{{main|M2HB (12.7 mm)|M1919A4 (7.62 mm)}}

The Type 60 ATM comes equipped with a 12.7 mm M2HB Browning machine gun and a smaller 7.62 mm Browning machine gun.

The 7.62 mm, while useless against conventional tanks, can sometimes come in handy for clearing some debris and can convince some unarmored SPGs like [[M56]] to leave you alone. The 12.7 mm machine gun serves a similar purpose, but it also can destroy some light tanks, though something like [[AMX-13]] will resist its fire from the front.

Both types of MGs are only able to fire at planes that try to strafe the vehicle directly, which is not very likely, so in case if an attacker is present on the field, the vehicle should just hide behind some hills or trees and hope the pilot isn't after it.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[M2HB (12.7 mm)|12.7 mm M2HB]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Pintle || 800 (200) || 577 || -5°/+25° || ±45°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[M1919A4 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm M1919A4]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 1,500 (250) || 500 || ±22° || ±22°
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==


;Firing procedure

The vehicle has two Type 64 ATGMs loaded at once, with four others being stored in the hull. These ATGMs can be launched from about a 30-degree arc in front of the hull. Only one missile can be controlled at a time.

You have the main camera leading indicator, which directs initial launch and guides missiles in arcade battles. Sniper optics are only directed forward, so if you want to look at something in the distance while you guide the missile in RB, you have to first turn the entire hull towards them.

Type 64 missiles are on the same trigger, the vehicle always attempts to fire the right missile first. The only way to fire left missile first is in Close Quarters Combat (CQC) by turning your main aiming reticle to the left just enough for right launcher to go offline, but not in the dead zone of left launcher yet. The left-to-right shot, however convenient, is impossible to make if the right launcher is loaded. This makes CQC firing training extremely complex and unforgiving.

Missiles have about 500 mm of penetration at flat angle, which is enough to penetrate anything at its battle rating. While it's penetration numbers are nothing to be amazed of, it has 4.5 kilograms of explosive mass, which compensates for its low projectile "health" and allows it to do fatal damage even with 30 mm penetration left and causes extremely high overpressure damage if it is triggered. It's technically possible to even destroy [[T-64B]] with a good hit, because it can obliterate its fuel tanks and thus make the entire tank explode or hit it from an angle it is not built to deflect.

The missiles act differently in either game mode, and so the vehicle cannot be treated same in AB as in RB, which further increases training difficulty.

Due to extremely limited firing arc, if one wants to forcefully launch missile behind enemy cover it is recommended to stand with hull towards the enemy behind cover and use left launcher to fire right (L-R) or right launcher to fire left (R-L), but since L-R shot is by default overridden by R-R shot, it is also recommended to practice it a lot, or to not attack enemy from the left, if possible. As for vertical attacks, it depends on game mode a lot.

It is also possible to sidestep the missile, which most of BR ~8.0 light tanks will try do, unless they do not notice ATGM somehow, or are too busy fighting something else.

'''In realistic battle''', the missile has about 40 km/h initial speed and missile won't respond to your commands until it flies at least 50-80 meters away, and should be treated as a rocket until that point. Missile prefers to keep its initial course, so it's better to launch it properly to avoid further inconveniences. To steer it around, the user must press buttons assigned for tank movements (the vertical controls are inverted with W being "down" and S being "up"). It's vertical mobility is higher than horizontal and it is easier to control from sniper seat in RB.

Ironically, lower speed allows it to be launched onto tanks which are almost ramming Type 60, with the dead zone being just 6 meters, if operator aims at the ground below the vehicle. Basically, this means it can one-shot [[T-64 (Family)|T64]] or tanks with an even lower profile, like [[IT-1]], while being at a gunpoint. On '''flat ground''', to hit targets at ~40 meters one should aim about 1/3 the range between tanks. To hit targets at ~80 meters one should aim 1/2 the range between tanks, as ATGM accelerates by that point.

'''Examples of aiming at close range in RB:''' (do note, that targeting applications for each launcher are no longer present in current version of the game)
<gallery mode="packed-hover">
File:Type 60 atm point blank shot RB.jpg|Dead zone shot for RB. Note how low all of targeting reticles are aimed. Remember, some tanks will explode so hard, they might destroy yours as well, so try to deal with them before this kind of attack becomes necessary.
File:Type 60 ATM dead zone range RB.jpg|The exact minimal range for ATGM when fighting low-profile tanks.
File:Type 60 atm melee left-left shot RB.jpg|This is the closest range shot you can pull off without using [[Media:CameraAdjustment_Settings_for_ATGM.jpg|camera manipulation]]. The range is about 30 m.
File:Type 60 atm 50 m shot RB.jpg|50 m straight shot. Check how both main and launcher's targeting reticle is aimed.
File:Type 60 atm 50m shot RB angling showcase.jpg|While it's possible to calculate exact missile deviation on side shots, it's easier to just use your 12 mm MG to guess angle and launcher's reticle to guess range.
</gallery>

To hit targets in cover far away, the operator must be very good at judging distances or guide missile close to the ground and use light emanations off it as a guide, then turn missile into enemy cover as it approaches them. As for tanks which stand in the open or with minimal cover, this brings no problems, as you just have to make it follow them. Try to keep some lead on the missile by moving it to the side a bit in case enemy tries to dodge the missile, as suddenly turning it horizontally might be difficult from your perspective. It also helps if hostiles fire machine guns at it, as it is easier for them to hit missiles that fly directly towards them, rather than missile that approaches them at an angle.

'''In arcade battle''', Missile has full 89 km/h initial speed (also max speed) and responds to SACLOS manual input (mouse movements, not the targeting reticle itself) almost immediately (with real dead zone being unclear), so it can be somewhat curved around even during launch sequence, which allows the operator to push it even further behind houses. But due to its speed, the launch dead zone is extended to 11 m, so one cannot let enemy too close to themselves.

{{Notice| Be aware, that while arcade mode allows Type 60 ATM to guide missiles with the mouse, it also restricts control of missiles if its optics can't look towards it or towards target and makes them vulnerable to IRCM jamming. When sight towards target is lost (target pointer is located behind missile), the missile obeys mouse movements directly, allowing manual aim. When sight towards missile is also lost, it will stop responding and fly forward until it hit something. While manual aim is very powerful, it can be hard to pull off at times. If you do not want to deal with manual controls, to snipe above cover pull tank optics out of cover, so it does not block the space in between camera and target (sniper sight itself is irrelevant for this particular tank and in AB its "camera" can see and aim in full sphere around it).|!}}

At 30-120 m range, past initial launch dead zone, the operator should always aim about 1\2 toward the enemy tank and correct the course of missile manually by moving the mouse. Past that range, it's possible to use SACLOS system reliably, as long as the enemy tank isn't moving towards ATGM carrier, so you can just aim straight at the enemy.

'''Examples of aiming at close range in AB''':
<gallery mode="packed-hover">
File:Type 60 atm dead zone range AB.jpg|Dead zone range for type 60 ATM in AB. Remember that you have to aim exactly at the bottom of your tank to make it work.
File:Type 60 atm forward 50 m shot AB.jpg|You should remember that in AB guidance system activates earlier, and aim accordingly. Though, it's less of an issue, since missile obeys your commands almost immediately in AB.
File:AB indirect melee range L-R shot setup.jpg|30 m indirect shot at T-64. Missiles in AB are obeying manual input from the get-go, but you still have to launch them carefully to not make them hit a wall, so even hull placement is important. It's also best to use the further launcher, if possible.
File:AB indirect melee range L-R shot correction.jpg|Since in AB missile obeys manual input immediately, type 60 ATM operator drags missile to the right to avoid hitting T-64s fuel tank, and the result is tank annihilation. It is worth noting, that such shots require an immense amount of practice to reliably hit, though they are still less risky than going out of cover and trying to duke it out with other tanks directly.
</gallery>

Long range sniping isn't much different from RB, you just have to aim at the enemy with your mouse instead of manually curving missile. You also can move while guiding it, though it is still hard to do on a move, so you might want to rely on other ways of aiming.

To attack an enemy on move you have to use aim assist, a sniper scope is locked to launcher's firing arc and vehicle lacks stabilizer, so your missile may go anywhere it wants to otherwise. Due to missile overall low speed (currently the lowest one in the game) and "aim assist" option (right mouse button) as long as the enemy is in tank's sights, one can treat the missile as a sort of dumb third-generation missile. The point is, missile is so slow, that tank is almost unable to hit the ground or a wall with it on accident, which means that you can even launch it forward and follow it, and if anyone dares to drive in the open near to you, you can just hold right mouse button to make missile destroy them on its own, while you focus on driving and dodging enemy shots. It's still best to not drive around recklessly and rely on a missile that much, as it is still '''very''' slow and it still requires you to see enemy tank (which means, they also can see you) and it will not avoid any obstacles on away, so you still have to correct it sometimes.

Overall, if one uses aim assist, you should keep in mind how it works - it always aims for the centre of the tank, and it lags behind the moving vehicle. To avoid hitting fuel tanks or missing moving tank, you can adjust it without breaking the tracking. After holding down the aim assist button, move your mouse a bit up, to let missile hit enemy just below the gun barrel, but high enough to not hit their tracks, and, if target moves to the left or right, move the mouse to the left or right to make missile track them properly. After that, wait for about 10 to 13 seconds for it to hit enemy, unless they realize what's coming for them and sidestep the missile, or to hit a random obstacle on a way towards them. Having maxed out "keen vision" and "improved optics" allows you to do this at any range indefinitely, as it's impossible to avoid being detected by you at missile's effective range.

;Combat tactics

The Type 60 ATM struggles in close quarters and is unsuited for direct urban combat. When playing the Type 60 ATGM consider all your flanking routes and hull-down positions as your high damage potential can be most effectively harnessed in these environments. Avoid all major sight-lines, and pick your targets carefully. The cover is your best friend, finding positions, where you can scout enemy vehicles for your team, can often be more beneficial than attempting to destroy enemy tanks yourself.

To get most out of the tank, one should find a hull-down position with a sight onto capture point, to scout everyone, who is open for allied snipers, and then pick off pinned down opponents, forcing them to choose between being destroyed by ATGM or your allies.

As one example, on [[Alaska]] map Type 60 ATM can use concrete blocks and rubbish to the east of B point to become resistant to enemy fire while being able to fire clean shots at both A and B points with little fear of being directly attacked back.

The Type 60 ATM often plays out as a support vehicle instead of a tank destroyer, simply scouting enemy tanks and repairing damaged allies. Keep in mind, that enemy often likes to call artillery upon huge tank groups, and your tank can be destroyed on accident. It is safer to assist heavy hull-down tanks, as it's generally pointless to use artillery on them, and many may not even notice the Type 60 next to them. After you repaired the allied tank, immediately move away from them, as if they get destroyed, the shockwave will annihilate the Type 60 hull.

In AB it can also do some moral damage, as its presence alone forces the enemy to change plans, as soon as they realize it can destroy them without even showing up on a field or doing elaborate artillery tricks, unlike [[Type 60 SPRG (C)]]. You shouldn't let this to get to your head, though, as you are most likely '''unable''' to stop massive coordinated push alone. Still, the fear alone may stall enemy long enough for a vehicle to rearm, and damage done to the launcher is completely irrelevant in arcade mode.

As example, experienced type 60 ATM user can entrench it on river of [[Berlin (Ground Forces)|Berlin]] map, making people who see ATGM for the first time to lose any will to attack B point at all, and seriously stalling the rest, although this requires meticulous training in close range launch techniques, as combat range there can quickly reach 20 meters, and ground isn't exactly even, often resulting in misses.

Examples of urban combat in arcade mode (In realistic mode, only try this at your own discretion):

<gallery mode="packed-hover" heights="200px">
Normandy AB Type 60 ATM hulldown.jpg|Type 60 can hull down in some open spot, where friendly snipers can assist it, and antagonize enemy assault group. Make sure, that the hulldown spot is at least 150-200m away from the enemy entry point, and enemy still can see the launchers. On contact, demonstrate them your firepower by one-shotting one of them, then stall them by fact that you have two launchers. Destroy ones, who actually saw through your ruse and rush towards you.
Normandy AB Type 60 ATM last stand.jpg|If enemy got too close and snipers failed to stop them, or launchers are out of ammo and are rearming, call in a bomber to spend rearm time and to finish the enemy off. Sometimes, you might need to even bomb yourself, but with the perfect mind game, your opponents will be too afraid to leave the cover, being unsure of your missile count. With enough luck, you will take out all of them.
Type 60 ATM american desert AB improvised hulldown.jpg|On maps with destructible environment you can destroy a part of a house to create a firing position for yourself. Your launcher fires upwards, allowing you to attack enemy with no fear of retaliation - only very few 8.0 tanks have APFSDS which can shoot through such cover. Remember - only house remains count as a good enough cover, the house itself does not.
</gallery>

In one-on-one situations, it is often better to fire only one launcher at the enemy, unless they try to push you, just to keep enemy guessing if it's even worth attacking you, instead of firing both missiles at once or doing nothing and letting them know, that you are harmless now. In arcade mode, while your launcher rearms, you can also join allied bombers as secondary attacker or bomber as a scout, to spend points earned by scouting and to cut off enemy reinforcement.

The Type 60 ATM's biggest threats in battle are many. Avoid directly fighting all vehicles at all costs to prevent being destroyed - almost every shell at your battle rating will destroy Type 60 with ease. The vehicle will often face enemy frontally when you fire missiles, and that's where the three out of five of your crew are crammed together, two of which are the gunner and driver.

As soon as the enemy tries to drop artillery on you, it's best to leave the position and move to a safer place. As such, always keep plan B in your head.

Try to use scouting to know the very moment your opponent drives out to attack your tank and try to blast them away with ATGM. If the direct confrontation with a light tank is inevitable - fire 12.7 MG at its sides as well and hope it penetrates them.

;Counter-tactics

The biggest threat from this tank comes in form of its abilities to hide behind almost anything, retaliate despite heavy ammo rack damage and to fire over cover. In realistic battles, and even in arcade battles, if a player pays no attention, their tank can be suddenly hit by a gigantic HEAT bomb with the Type 60 as its sender. Being aware of its presence is the key to avoiding this.

For example, the Type 60's ATGM is very loud, so unless it was fired from 1.5 km away (almost maximum range for this tank), the sound of the missile launch will likely be audible. '''Do not ignore them''', check if there is a missile coming for you, and if not - remember where the noise came from.

The only comfortable way to destroy hull-down Type 60 ATM relies on using 105 mm HE and HESH. HEAT is not effective against it, so carry at least 2 of those in the battle. Whenever a Type 60 ATM is spotted standing behind low cover, try to not focus on its launchers and instead try to spot machine gun shield on its right (left for an opposing player) and fire explosives at the shield itself. It is very likely that HE shock-wave will hit poor roof armour and either annihilate tank crew or break the hull entirely. In the case of HESH, hitting the machine gun shield and part of the roof will transform into shrapnel and tear the tank apart - this generally doesn't happen if the launchers are hit. If the attack only took out the crew in the front, repeat the attack after the back crew moved forward to replace driver and commander (gunner). If only the launchers are visible, generally only HE can destroy the opponent easily.

Do note, that Type 60 ATM has '''two''' missiles at once and is rarely truly alone due to "scouting" ability. Scouting also allows it to track tanks, even behind smoke screens and walls, for better missile accuracy.

Type 60 ATM has a rather long reload sequence and only 3 missiles for each rack. The ammo pool is not shared between them and it is clearly visible which rack is currently loaded, so a quick blitz during reload or rearm can put an end to it. To avoid being suddenly crushed by fatal "roof shot", do not ram the tank frontally, or at least push it around without stopping. Do note that while the exposed MG is a weakness of Type 60 ATM, it is still of 12.7 mm calibre and it can shred some light tanks and SPG at close range before they can even get a direct shot. If the rushing tanks have less than 29 mm of effective armour, they shouldn't approach Type 60 ATM directly.

If missiles were already launched, there are a few ways to protect the tank:

:'''A)''' Attack active missiles with machine guns. Attacking dormant missile in the rack with machine gun is less effective (In Arcade Mode it does nothing at all). If laying down suppressive fire - the Type 60's right missile rack (left if facing the Type 60) almost always fires first.

:As soon as missile fires off, try to fire in front of the missile path, as bullets ''do not teleport'' and may overshoot it. If missile is hit a few times it explodes.

:Missile interception is often hard to do, if missile is guided at an angle and doesn't just fly straight towards the tank. It is generally useful for heavy tanks, which can't outrun it anyway, and medium tanks with high fire rate machine guns.

:'''B)''' Run away from it, as it is very slow. To quickly change direction, the player's tank have to be mobile or at least to have great acceleration, thus this option is more suitable for light tanks and light tank destroyers. It is recommended to also fire machine guns at it as you go, since ATGM will now have to go after you in a straight line, increasing your chances of hitting it. Do note that if the Type 60 ATM operator is set on destroying a tank, they will try very hard to steer the missile into a moving target, so only stop after the missile passed the vehicle's position entirely. This tactic is more feasible in RB, as it is harder to control the missile there and it might miss.

:'''C)''' Sacrifice cannon barrel or pull the engine forward to block missile. This will greatly reduce overall damage taken by tank and likely prevent the loss of entire crew in single hit. If lightly armoured tank takes ATGM hit into heavily armoured part, there is a chance it wont take overpressure damage. Avoid pulling fuel tanks forward, as type 64 MAT can cause entire tank to explode by destroying all of them in one hit.

=== Pros and cons ===


'''Pros:'''

* Type 60 APC Hull:
** Has scouting and can repair any allied tank as a support vehicle
** Spaded version can reach maximum speed almost instantly in some cases, can compete with average medium tanks in terms of forward speed and hill climbing
** With its very weak side armour, it fails to detonate APHE shells
* Type 64 MAT Missile:
** Good missile manoeuvrability - closely resembles superior [[BAe Swingfire]]
** Provides exceptional firepower compared to HEAT, due to increased payload and heavily reduced angle of impact
** Upwards facing launchers can allow the vehicle to fire at enemy behind cover, although the setup is often required
*** In arcade mode, can hull down and be combat effective almost anywhere. By extent, it has some of the safest hull down setups compared to almost any tank in the game
* There are 2 launchers mounted on the Type 60 APC, allowing for a follow-up shot being made as the previous missile hits

'''Cons:'''

* Type 60 APC Hull:
** Highly visible with a very distinct profile, topped off by obvious launchers
** Little to no armour, most shells immediately destroy this vehicle, although its engine can allow for some unexpected survival and retaliation, not taking this tank seriously can sometimes backfire
*** Even though its side armour is too thin to detonate APHE shells, the compact APC will almost always lose critical components such as:
**** Front: gunner, commander, driver
**** Middle: engine
**** Back: two loaders and/or ammo rack
*** Front and back armour are thick enough to detonate APHE rounds even though it will only withhold machine gun fire
** Larger opponents may attempt to use their weight to crush this tank against a wall and drive over it, resulting in destruction
** Limited turning ability, which sometimes forces it to expose itself to sniper fire
* Type 64 MAT Missile:
** Slow missile speed, to a point they can be easily shot mid-air or sidestepped by many tanks
** Need a certain range for effective hit (maximum 1,600 m for long range, at least 10 m at close range, at least 100 m for a guidance system to start in RB)
** Need a visual target for an accurate hit, otherwise it heavily relies on operator skill to hit anything at all
* Very limited main ammunition (6 missiles)
** Reload per launcher is {{Annotation|13s|13s Stock, 11.5s Full, 10.6s Expert, 10s Ace}} which can mean a long downtime if both missiles are spent after quick succession

* AB related:
** Cannot be partially rearmed on capture point, forcing it to completely empty the ammunition, making it incapable of sustaining massive sieges on its own, even though forcing it out of cover is a challenge
** Missile can start "fluttering" when control signal is reaching its limits, which is hard to predict without experience
* RB related:
** Can't move while the missile flies to the target because of manual input
** It can be difficult to hit tanks if they move in circles around type 60 ATM

== History ==


The Type 60 ATM was a Japanese Type 60 APC personnel carrier equipped with guided anti-tank Type 64 MAT missiles. The Type APC itself was developed by the Mitsubishi company in 1959 and officially put into service in 1960, becoming the first APC developed by Japan after the war. The Type 64 MAT (Anti-tank Missile) first-generation missiles, also known as KAM-3, were developed by the Kawasaki company and put into service in 1964.

The Type 64 MAT was an ordinary guided, wired HEAT missile, very reminiscent in its design of the German anti-tank Cobra and the Soviet 9M14 Malyutka, put into service several years before. The firing crew consisted of three people, and the vehicle aimed by sending a signal from the control unit along a wire connected to the rear of the missile. The wired aiming system limited the maximum cruising speed and flight range of the missile, but was extremely reliable and cheap to produce.

Containers of these missiles were used as portable weapons, and were also installed on jeeps and APCs. In total, roughly 430 standard models of the Type 60 APC were produced, and around 220 Type 64 MAT missile systems, but the precise number of APCs equipped with the missiles is unknown.

- From [[wt:en/news/4585-development-type-60-atm-death-on-a-wire-en|Devblog]]

== Media ==


;Skins

* [https://live.warthunder.com/feed/camouflages/?vehicleCountry=japan&vehicleType=tank&vehicleClass=missile_tank&vehicle=jp_type_60_atm Skins and camouflages for the {{PAGENAME}} from live.warthunder.com.]

;Images
<gallery mode="packed-hover" heights="200px">
Type 60 APC.png|{{PAGENAME}} without launcher. (Almost Type 60 APC)
</gallery>

;Videos
{{Youtube-gallery|hoKUjLz4To0|'''{{PAGENAME}} - The Wörst''' - ''Napalmratte''|svE3kEFq2B8|'''{{PAGENAME}} Tank Review''' - ''NUSensei''}}

== See also ==


;Other vehicles of similar configuration and role

* [[Swingfire]]
* [[RakJPz 2]]

== External links ==


* [[wt:en/news/4585-development-type-60-atm-death-on-a-wire-en|[Devblog] Type 60 ATM: Death on a Wire]]

{{Japan tank destroyers}}

Challenger 2 TES

2021-12-14T11:39:48Z

U9115888: Added to Survivability and Armour, adjusted table values.

== Description ==
The '''Challenger 2 TES (2008)''' is a rank VII British medium tank with a battle rating of 11.0. It was introduced in [[Update "Winged Lions"]].

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Tank-Armour}}

The Challenger 2 TES has the armour that would be expected of the name (TES - Theatre Entry Standard). The tank has been updated to meet the modern theatres of war, including streetfighting, more effective chemical munitions and kinetic weapons. The ERA on the sides displays this exact line of thought. The tank now boasts some of the most effective ERA in the game, beating the T-90A's frontal chemical protection by over 500mm.

Equipped with the iconic jammer plate mounted to the roof, this tank will be easy to spot and identify, so one should take care to cover their weak points with extra care, as many will know where the weaknesses are, and feel pressured to shoot them due to the increased armor elsewhere. The tank retains the same weakspots; the gun mantlet, driver's port and the lower frontal plate, though it is less vulnerable to chemical munitions now. The gun breech will most likely block any penetrating round spalling, allowing TES players to retreat and repair their breech, should they be far enough away from danger.

When opposing enemy tanks, commanders should attempt to angle their tank slightly, as the composite side screens can take most of the brunt of lower power kinetic rounds (M111, DM33) on an angle. Chemical rounds will also fail to penetrate when hitting any ERA on the side. Angling has the added bonus of making the driver's port less effective as a means of knocking out the tank's crew.

'''Armour type:''' 


{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || 38-50 mm (56-83°) ''Upper Plate''
70 mm (31-34°) ''Lower Glacis'' 60 mm (0-80°) ''Driver's Port''
| 25 mm Top (70°)
25 mm Middle (0°) 38 mm ''Bottom'' (0°)
| 25 mm (32°) || 10-20 mm
|-
| Turret || 38 - 50 mm (56-82°) ''Turret Front'' 30 mm (3-82°) ''Gun Mantlet'' || 20-25 mm (8-10°) || 20 mm (18°) || 10-38 mm
|-
| Cupola || 8 mm (3-78°) || 8 mm (9-60°) || 8 mm (1-80°) || 44-60 mm
|-
!Composite Armour
!Front
! colspan="3" |Sides
|-
|Hull
|'''Upper''' Kinetic: 420-700 mm Chemical: 800-1100 mm '''Lower''' Kinetic: 100-270 mm Chemical: 130-800 mm
| colspan="3" |'''Ext. Composite Screen with ERA:''' Kinetic: 88 mm Chemical: 1900 mm
|-
|Turret
|'''Turret Cheeks''' Kinetic: 440-720 mm Chemical: 780-1000 mm
| colspan="3" |'''Internal Composite''' Kinetic: 190-740 mm Chemical: 300-1000 mm
'''Ext. ERA''':

Kinetic: 30 mm

Chemical: 222 mm
|-
|}

'''Notes:'''

* ''Upper Frontal Plate'' has additional 6.35mm external structural steel plate.
* ''Lower Frontal Plate'' has additional Composite with NERA Elements, which is very effective against chemical munitions.

=== Mobility ===
{{Specs-Tank-Mobility}}

''Write about the mobility of the ground vehicle. Estimate the specific power and manoeuvrability, as well as the maximum speed forwards and backwards.''

{{tankMobility|abMinHp=1076|rbMinHp=1886|weight=74.8}}

=== Modifications and economy ===
{{Specs-Economy}}

== Armaments ==
{{Specs-Tank-Armaments}}
=== Main armament ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|1}}

{{main|L30A1 (120 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L30A1 (120 mm)|120 mm L30A1]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 50 || rowspan="2" | -10°/+20° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | Two-plane || 29.5 || 40.8 || 49.6 || 54.8 || 58.4 || rowspan="2" | 6.50 || rowspan="2" | 5.75 || rowspan="2" | 5.30 || rowspan="2" | 5.00
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 18.4 || 21.7 || 26.4 || 29.1 || 31.0
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 396 || 394 || 387 || 376 || 367 || 357
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 493 || 491 || 487 || 481 || 474 || 468
|-
| L27A1 || APFSDS || 564 || 562 || 557 || 551 || 545 || 538
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="10" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 1,535 || 3.89 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 670 || 17.1 || 0.1 || 4 || 6,560 || 73° || 77° || 80°
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 1,650 || 4.1 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
| L27A1 || APFSDS || 1,650 || 4.1 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="7" | Smoke shell characteristics
|-
! Ammunition
! Velocity (m/s)
! Projectile Mass (kg)
! Screen radius (m)
! Screen deploy time (s)
! Screen hold time (s)
! Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
|-
| L34 || 670 || 17.1 || 20 || 5 || 25 || 50
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====


{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! 5th rack empty
! 6th rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''__''' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __
|-
|}

=== Machine guns ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|3}}
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|2}}

{{main|L37A2 (7.62 mm)|L94A1 (7.62 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L37A2 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L37A2]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Pintle || 1,700 (100) || 650 || -10°/+50° || ±180°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L94A1 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L94A1]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 2,300 (2,000) || 600 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==

''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''

=== Pros and cons ===

''Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in a bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".''

'''Pros:'''

* Impressive chemical protection on the front and sides.
* Maintains the kinetic protection from previous variants, with improvements in places.
* Very accurate L30A1 120 mm gun.
* Fast reload.

*

'''Cons:'''

* Maintains the same weakspots from previous variants.
* No CITV (Commander Independent Thermal Viewer).
* L27A1 has low penetration compared to other top rank NATO ammunition.

*

== History ==

''Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under <code><nowiki>=== In-game description ===</nowiki></code>, also if applicable).''

== Media ==

''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.''

== See also ==

''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''

* ''reference to the series of the vehicles;''
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.''

== External links ==

''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''

* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''other literature.''

[[Category:Design_templates]]

Challenger 2 TES

2021-12-14T11:08:32Z

U9115888: Created page with "== Description == The '''Challenger 2 TES (2008)''' is a rank VII British medium tank with a battle rating of 11.0. It was introduced in Update "Winged Lions". == General..."

== Description ==
The '''Challenger 2 TES (2008)''' is a rank VII British medium tank with a battle rating of 11.0. It was introduced in [[Update "Winged Lions"]].

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Tank-Armour}}

''Describe armour protection. Note the most well protected and key weak areas. Appreciate the layout of modules as well as the number and location of crew members. Is the level of armour protection sufficient, is the placement of modules helpful for survival in combat? If necessary use a visual template to indicate the most secure and weak zones of the armour.''

'''Armour type:''' 


{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || 38-50 mm (56-83°) ''Upper Plate''
70 mm (31-34°) ''Lower Glacis'' 60 mm (0-80°) ''Driver's Port''
| 25 mm Top (70°)
25 mm Middle (0°) 38 mm ''Bottom'' (0°)
| 25 mm (32°) || 10-20 mm
|-
| Turret || 38 - 50 mm (56-82°) ''Turret Front'' 30 mm (3-82°) ''Gun Mantlet'' || 20-25 mm (8-10°) || 20 mm (18°) || 10-38 mm
|-
| Cupola || 8 mm (3-78°) || 8 mm (9-60°) || 8 mm (1-80°) || 44-60 mm
|-
!Composite Armour
!Front
! colspan="3" |Sides
|-
|Hull
|'''Upper''' Kinetic: 420-700 mm Chemical: 800-1100 mm '''Lower''' Kinetic: 100-270 mm Chemical: 130-800 mm
| colspan="3" |'''Ext. Composite Screen with ERA:''' Kinetic: 88 mm Chemical: 1900 mm
|-
|Turret
|'''Turret Cheeks''' Kinetic: 440-720 mm Chemical: 780-1000 mm
| colspan="3" |'''Internal Composite''' Kinetic: 190-740 mm Chemical: 300-1000 mm '''Ext. Composite with NERA''' Kinetic: 30 mm Chemical: 400 mm
|-
|}

'''Notes:'''
* ''Upper Frontal Plate'' has additional 6.35mm external structural steel plate.

=== Mobility ===
{{Specs-Tank-Mobility}}

''Write about the mobility of the ground vehicle. Estimate the specific power and manoeuvrability, as well as the maximum speed forwards and backwards.''

{{tankMobility|abMinHp=1076|rbMinHp=1886|weight=74.8}}

=== Modifications and economy ===
{{Specs-Economy}}

== Armaments ==
{{Specs-Tank-Armaments}}
=== Main armament ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|1}}

{{main|L30A1 (120 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L30A1 (120 mm)|120 mm L30A1]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 50 || rowspan="2" | -10°/+20° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | Two-plane || 29.5 || 40.8 || 49.6 || 54.8 || 58.4 || rowspan="2" | 6.50 || rowspan="2" | 5.75 || rowspan="2" | 5.30 || rowspan="2" | 5.00
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 18.4 || 21.7 || 26.4 || 29.1 || 31.0
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 396 || 394 || 387 || 376 || 367 || 357
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 493 || 491 || 487 || 481 || 474 || 468
|-
| L27A1 || APFSDS || 564 || 562 || 557 || 551 || 545 || 538
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="10" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 1,535 || 3.89 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 670 || 17.1 || 0.1 || 4 || 6,560 || 73° || 77° || 80°
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 1,650 || 4.1 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
| L27A1 || APFSDS || 1,650 || 4.1 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="7" | Smoke shell characteristics
|-
! Ammunition
! Velocity (m/s)
! Projectile Mass (kg)
! Screen radius (m)
! Screen deploy time (s)
! Screen hold time (s)
! Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
|-
| L34 || 670 || 17.1 || 20 || 5 || 25 || 50
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====


{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! 5th rack empty
! 6th rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''__''' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __
|-
|}

=== Machine guns ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|3}}
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|2}}

{{main|L37A2 (7.62 mm)|L94A1 (7.62 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L37A2 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L37A2]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Pintle || 1,700 (100) || 650 || -10°/+50° || ±180°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L94A1 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L94A1]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 2,300 (2,000) || 600 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==

''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''

=== Pros and cons ===

''Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in a bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".''

'''Pros:'''
*

'''Cons:'''
*

== History ==

''Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under <code><nowiki>=== In-game description ===</nowiki></code>, also if applicable).''

== Media ==

''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.''

== See also ==

''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''
* ''reference to the series of the vehicles;''
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.''

== External links ==

''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''
* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''other literature.''

[[Category:Design_templates]]

Challenger 2 (2F)

2021-04-14T03:57:06Z

U9115888: /* Usage in battles */ Updated Usage in Battles

{{About
| about = British medium tank '''{{PAGENAME}}'''
| usage = other uses
| link = Challenger (Disambiguation)
}}
{{Specs-Card
|code=uk_challenger_2_dorchester
|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg}}
}}

== Description ==

The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} British medium tank {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update "Starfighters"]].

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Tank-Armour}}

The Challenger 2 (2F) was created to give increased protection against shaped charges and as much is evident when evaluating the armour. While the internal composite armour remains the same from the previous variant, a large amount of external composite and ERA has been added to the hull front and sides as well as the turret sides. Additional slat armour has also been mounted to the sides and rear of the hull and turret.

With the only real change being the additional external armour, the same structural weakspots that exist on the Challenger 2 remain on the 2F. The large driver's port is an obvious target for enemy armour, which can penetrate it at almost any angle due to only RHA protection. Kinetic rounds aimed through the driver's port from the direct or near-direct front will often go straight through the tank, often taking several crew members, the cannon breach or the engine, occasionally resulting in a knocked out crew. Chemical rounds are less effective but fragments may set off the charges stored next to the driver, especially when fired at from above.

The gun mantlet is also a large weakspot, although kinetic rounds will be most effective, as chemical rounds will often only knock out the cannon breach or be blocked by the optics mounted at the top of the gun, which will allow the tank to pull back and repair provided it has the distance to do so. Kinetic rounds will often not fragment properly, going straight through the back of the turret, at max taking out two crew members due to the breach acting as a shield to the other side of the turret. Only when attacking from above will rounds have a significant chance of detonating ammunition due to the 2 stage system used by British tanks. Any ammunition stored in the turret will be warheads which are not able to be detonated.

As with the last variant and many other MBTs, the sides have no real kinetic protection, however the 2F has additional protection against chemical rounds. Most shots to the side of the front half of the turret have a high likelihood of taking out the cannon breach and a crew member, occasionally knocking out 2 or 3 crew. Any shots the the back half of the turret from the side will be ineffective due to the large amount of empty space. Aiming low on the tank's hull will give the best results for penetration and ammo detonation. Despite the additional ERA on the lower frontal plate, chemical rounds such as the German DM12A1 can still get through, and can get through the side mounted composite screens on a flat angle (0-25°).

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || 38-50 mm (56-83°) ''Upper Plate''
70 mm (31-34°) ''Lower Glacis'' 60 mm (0-80°) ''Driver's Port''
| 25 mm Top (70°)
25 mm Middle (0°) 38 mm ''Bottom'' (0°)
| 25 mm (32°) || 10-20 mm
|-
| Turret || 38 - 50 mm (56-82°) ''Turret Front'' 30 mm (3-82°) ''Gun Mantlet'' || 20-25 mm (8-10°) || 20 mm (18°) || 10-38 mm
|-
| Cupola || 8 mm (3-78°) || 8 mm (9-60°) || 8 mm (1-80°) || 44-60 mm
|-
!Composite Armour
!Front
! colspan="3" |Sides
|-
|Hull
|'''Upper''' Kinetic: 420-1000 mm Chemical: 700-950 mm '''Lower''' Kinetic: 100-400 mm Chemical: 350-570 mm
'''With Dorchester 2F Modification''' 
'''Upper''' Kinetic: 420-1000 mm Chemical: 700-1200 mm 
'''Lower''' Kinetic: 140-180 mm Chemical: 200-860 mm
| colspan="3" |'''Ext. Composite with NERA:''' Kinetic: 30 mm Chemical: 400 mm
|-
|Turret
|'''Turret Cheeks''' Kinetic: 440-720 mm Chemical: 780-1000 mm
| colspan="3" |'''Internal Composite''' Kinetic: 190-740 mm Chemical: 300-1000 mm '''Ext. Composite with NERA''' Kinetic: 30 mm Chemical: 400 mm
|-
|}

'''Notes:'''

* ''Upper Frontal Plate'' has additional 10 mm external plate.
* ''Lower Frontal Plate'' has 25.4 mm external steel and ROMOR-A ERA. This is upgraded to a composite with NERA plate when mounting the Dorchester 2F upgrade, as detailed in the table above.
* Parts of the side and rear hull have mounted Slat Armour (50 mm Chemical Protection).

=== Mobility ===
{{Specs-Tank-Mobility}}


{{tankMobility|abMinHp=1,886|rbMinHp=1,076|AoAweight=1.1|weight=63.6}}

=== Modifications and economy ===
{{Specs-Economy}}

== Armaments ==
{{Specs-Tank-Armaments}}
=== Main armament ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|1}}

{{main|L30A1 (120 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L30A1 (120 mm)|120 mm L30A1]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 50 || rowspan="2" | -10°/+20° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | Two-plane || 29.5 || 40.8 || 49.6 || 54.8 || 58.4 || rowspan="2" | 6.50 || rowspan="2" | 5.75 || rowspan="2" | 5.30 || rowspan="2" | 5.00
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 18.4 || 21.7 || 26.4 || 29.1 || 31.0
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 396 || 394 || 387 || 376 || 367 || 357
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 493 || 491 || 487 || 481 || 474 || 468
|-
| L27A1 || APFSDS || 564 || 562 || 557 || 551 || 545 || 538
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="10" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 1,535 || 3.89 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 670 || 17.1 || 0.05 || 0.1 || 6,560 || 73° || 77° || 80°
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 1,650 || 4.1 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
| L27A1 || APFSDS || 1,650 || 4.1 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="7" | Smoke shell characteristics
|-
! Ammunition
! Velocity (m/s)
! Projectile Mass (kg)
! Screen radius (m)
! Screen deploy time (s)
! Screen hold time (s)
! Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
|-
| L34 || 670 || 17.1 || 20 || 5 || 25 || 50
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====


{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! 5th rack empty
! 6th rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''50''' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __
|-
|}

=== Machine guns ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|2}}
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|3}}

{{main|L37A2 (7.62 mm)|L94A1 (7.62 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L37A2 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L37A2]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Pintle || 1,700 (100) || 650 || -10°/+50° || ±180°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L94A1 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L94A1]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 2,300 (2,000) || 600 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==

In many ways, the Challenger (2F) plays the same as the precursor [[Challenger 2]], however it differentiates itself with its increased ability to brawl. Especially with the armour package, the 2F can find itself brawling alongside its teammates, though players should be wary of the target they are facing to decide which ones they will play aggressive towards. For example, brawling with T-72As and TURMS can be viable due to their HEAT-FS and APFSDS rounds being ill equipped to penetrate many parts of the tank. Slight angling should be used to counter their rounds, and players should attempt to draw attention to their turret to try and bait shots onto the Challenger 2s impenetrable turret cheeks. One should never attempt to brawl a Leopard 2A5 or 6, and likewise any 10.3 or 7 battle-rating tanks. In urban environments, moving up, taking position, and waiting to hear approaching engines to set up ambushes is definitely a viable strategy, especially when going against Russian or American tanks, as their engines give off the characteristic rotary whine.

As expected, the tank excels at sniping, even more so than the previous Challenger 2, as it has access to its Depleted Uranium round, the L27A1, which boasts 70mm of additional penetration at 1000m. It has access the to the same smoke-generation capabilities of the Challenger 2, and therefore can support the team effectively over range and close in. Additionally, the tank can resist missiles from helicopters which one can expect to happen in open areas that lend themselves to sniping. This is possible provided the missile does not hit the roof, so if you see a missile approaching, you can attempt to block it with your gun. The slat armour on the back of the tank is very effective against chemical rounds, including missiles, which can be the difference between living and being knocked out. Once hit, however, it will fall off and therefore players should attempt to avoid exposing their rear more-so where slat armour has been destroyed.

=== Pros and cons ===


'''Pros:'''

* Effective side-ERA against air-to-ground missiles
* Fast reload, particularly for a 120 mm (5 seconds aced)
* Sights with high zoom, 2nd generation thermals and a wide FOV
* High reverse of -40 km/h
* The L30A1 120 mm gun is incredibly accurate, even at long range
* Turret cheeks are invulnerable to all HEAT-FS and APFSDS, including the dreaded DM53 shell

'''Cons:'''

* Vulnerable commander's hatch and cannon breech
* No CITV (Commander Independent Thermal Viewer)
* Dorchester 2F only marginally increases LFP armour against FIN shells and ATGMs
* Dorchester 2F adds 1,100 kg of weight to an already sluggish tank
* L27A1 has low penetration compared to other top rank NATO ammunition
* Accessible weakspots, especially the gun mantlet

== History ==

The Challenger 2F or CR2 TES is an upgraded version of the Challenger 2, featuring the upgrade kit known as TES (Theatre Entry Standard) and nicknamed 'Megatron'. The upgrade protection kit saw several adjustments over the years until the present time.

These modifications were ordered by the MOD, as part of the numerous updates inside the Challenger 2's LEP (Life Extension Programme) to increase the operability, lethality and protection of the 1998 design until 2025, or until a new British MBT design is available. The TES aims to increase the protection levels against the operational threats of the British Army such as the IEDs, hollow charges or Tandem charges - common threats during suburban deployments.

'''MCS'''

The Challenger 2 was covered with an MCS (Mobile Camouflage System) all around the tank, reducing the heat signature and keeping the vehicle almost indistinguishable from Thermal imaging devices.

'''Bar armour '''

The slat or bar armour was added to the sides and the rear of the vehicle to increase the levels of protection against rocket-propelled grenades while not downgrading the mobility of the Challenger. The bar armour must disrupt any hollow charges from detonating; either by crushing it upon impact or damaging the warhead and the fuze through contact with the '''bars.'''

'''Dorchester 2F armour kit'''

Most previous NERA (Non-Explosive Reactive Armour) side plates have been reinforced with additional Dorchester armour plates, notably the lower frontal-glacis protection was drastically improved, with the addition of a large block of Dorchester armour; augmenting the protection in one of the most vulnerable areas for the Challenger 2. Furthermore, the sides of the turret also received external Dorchester armour packages, enhancing the protection of the crew inside the fighting compartment from possible side-attacks.

'''Remote controlled weapon systems (RCWS) '''

As an offensive upgrade, the TES received a new Remote controlled weapon systems (RCWS) over the loader's hatch ring, capable of assessing the battlefield and engaging light targets or infantry from within the vehicle. Previously, the operator had to open the hatch to fire the pintle-mounted L37A2 7.62mm GPMG machine gun.

The CR2 TES also received IED jammers near the left and right front fenders and ECM countermeasures antennas capable of detecting nearby Improvised Explosive Devices.

== Media ==

''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.''

== See also ==

'''Preceded by'''

* [[Challenger Mk.2]]
* [[Challenger Mk.3]]

'''Similar variants'''

* [[Challenger 2]]

'''Analogues on other nations'''

* [[Leopard 2A6]]
* [[Ariete PSO]]
* [[Leclerc S2]]
* [[M1A2 Abrams]]
* [[T-72B3]]

== External links ==

''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''

* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''encyclopedia page on the tank;''
* ''other literature.''

{{Britain medium tanks}}

ADATS (M113)

2021-03-23T00:36:48Z

U9115888: /* Ammo racks */

{{Specs-Card
|code=uk_adats_m113a3
|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg}}
}}

== Description ==

The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} British tank destroyer {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update "Hot Tracks"]].

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Tank-Armour}}

''Describe armour protection. Note the most well protected and key weak areas. Appreciate the layout of modules as well as the number and location of crew members. Is the level of armour protection sufficient, is the placement of modules helpful for survival in combat? If necessary use a visual template to indicate the most secure and weak zones of the armour.''

'''Armour type:''' 


{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front (Slope angle) !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || ___ mm || ___ mm ''Top'' ___ mm ''Bottom'' || ___ mm || ___ - ___ mm
|-
| Turret || ___ - ___ mm ''Turret front'' ___ mm ''Gun mantlet'' || ___ - ___ mm || ___ - ___ mm || ___ - ___ mm
|-
| Cupola || ___ mm || ___ mm || ___ mm || ___ mm
|-
|}

'''Notes:''' 


=== Mobility ===
{{Specs-Tank-Mobility}}
{{tankMobility|abMinHp=396|rbMinHp=247}}

=== Modifications and economy ===
{{Specs-Economy}}

== Armaments ==
{{Specs-Tank-Armaments}}
=== Main armament ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|1}}

{{main|MIM146}}
''Give the reader information about the characteristics of the main gun. Assess its effectiveness in a battle based on the reloading speed, ballistics and the power of shells. Do not forget about the flexibility of the fire, that is how quickly the cannon can be aimed at the target, open fire on it and aim at another enemy. Add a link to the main article on the gun: <code><nowiki>{{main|Name of the weapon}}</nowiki></code>. Describe in general terms the ammunition available for the main gun. Give advice on how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage.''

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[MIM146]] missile || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 8 || rowspan="2" | 0°/+85° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | N/A || __._ || __._ || __._ || __._ || __._ || rowspan="2" | _.__ || rowspan="2" | _.__ || rowspan="2" | _.__ || rowspan="2" | _.__
|-
! ''Realistic''
| __._ || __._ || __._ || __._ || __._
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | '''Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)'''
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
| MIM146 || ATGM ||900||900
|900
|900
|900
|900
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="10" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
| MIM146 || ATGM ||1200||51.0||0.0||0.1||7,860|| 80° || 82° || 90°
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====


{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| Belts: 2 || 0 ''(+2)'' || No
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==

''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''

=== Pros and cons ===


'''Pros:'''

* Has 8 multi purpose missiles that can destroy both tanks and aircraft
* Missiles can penetrate 900 mm of armour
* Missiles have a range of 10 km
* One of the fastest missiles in the game (1,200 m/s)
* Missiles aren't affected by infrared APS such as on [[T-90A]] or [[AMX-30B2 BRENUS]]
* Lower profile than the American [[ADATS]] - especially with the radar folded down
* Far easier to use and more effective in the AA role than its predecessor, the [[Stormer HVM]]
* Missile launchers can elevate higher than the ones on the American ADATS
* Missiles are armed with a proximity fuse, meaning a direct hit isn't needed to down an aircraft

'''Cons:'''

* Really fragile, can be penetrated by autocannons and high-calibre machine guns
* Long antennas might give your position
* Unable to depress the launcher below horizontal - unable to engage tanks lower than you or low flying aerial vehicles
* Lacks the 25 mm gun found on the American ADATS
* Smoke launchers are mounted on the front of the vehicle - hull must face the direction of smokescreen deployment
* The M113 chassis has a low hp/ton ratio - mobility is severely reduced off-road, in mud, snow, and sand
* No ESS
* Low reactive mobility
* Only 8 missiles - after these are used they must be reloaded on a capture point which takes quite some time
* Missiles need to travel a certain distance to arm the fuze - unable to engage enemy aerial vehicles at close range, except for a direct hit

== History ==
The ADATS (M113) was a Canadian-operated anti-aircraft and anti-tank missile carrier system, designed to engage both ground and air targets. Developed in the early 1970s by Oerlikon-Buhrle (now part of Rheinmetall), the AA system failed to see service with the countries it was intended for, namely the United States. However, the Canadian armed forces procured 36 ADATs vehicles based on the M113 chassis, which served with the Canadian army as anti-aircraft systems until their withdrawal in 2007.

=== Design and Development ===
In the early 1970s, Oerlikon-Buhrle began the process of developing a new vehicle, designed for both anti-tank and anti-aircraft defence. This vehicle would later become the ADATs. In 1979, Martin-Marietta joined the design process. The vehicle was designed to compete in the FAAD (Forward Area Air Defence) competition for the US Department of Defence, which wished to replace it’s interim [[M163]]/M167 Vulcan Anti-Aircraft guns and the MIM-72 Corporal anti-aircraft systems. The ADATS ended up winning the competition, beating out competitors including the Franco-German-designed Roland.

However, the ADATs encountered a number of critical issues with it’s operability. Namely, it had an extremely high mechanical failure rate resulting in a very low operational readiness. And, in 1990, the Cold War ended; that was the final straw for the ADATS. As a result, the US DoD cancelled the ADATS program, after almost five billion dollars of funding. Despite this, the Canadian government ordered the ADATS for their Low Level Air Defence (LLAD) program, spending 1.09 billion dollars to purchase 36 ADATS vehicles along with the necessary equipment.

The ADATS was highly unique in that it was designed for both anti-air and anti-ground defence. Based on the M113 APC chassis, the weapon system was composed of eight ADATS missiles, along with a search radar and laser missile director. The Canadian version was not fitted with the M242 Bushmaster cannon fitted to American ADATS SPAAs. The missiles themselves were laser-guided, and had a combined HEAT/HE-Frag warhead capable of penetrating 900 mm of armour. This system enabled the ADATS to destroy both tanks and helicopters from a maximum range of 10 km, or 7 km altitude.

=== Operational History ===
The ADATS entered service with the Canadian armed forces in 1989, and was built by Oerlikon Aerospace, based in Quebec. The ADATS saw combat just once, being deployed by the Canadian armed forces during the Gulf War. However, it never actually saw combat, and never fired a shot in anger. The ADATS was unusually expensive for an anti-aircraft vehicle, due to its large design and development costs and small order in terms of vehicles. As a result, the Canadian Armed Forces announced that they would retire the ADATS in 2006. By 2007, all ADATS vehicles had been withdrawn from Canadian service.

== Media ==

''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.''

== See also ==

''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''

* ''reference to the series of the vehicles;''
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.''

== External links ==

=== References ===

* Military Today. (2006). ADATS. Retrieved January 02, 2021, from <nowiki>http://www.military-today.com/missiles/adats.htm</nowiki>

* Sherman, R. (1999, July 3). ADATS. Retrieved January 02, 2021, from <nowiki>https://fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/adats.html</nowiki>

{{Britain tank destroyers}}

L30A1 (120 mm)

2021-03-17T03:55:15Z

U9115888: /* Available ammunition */ Addendum to previous change, adding the smoke round details.

== Description ==
''Write an introduction to the article in 2-3 small paragraphs. Briefly tell us about the history of the development and combat using the weaponry and also about its features. Compile a list of air, ground, or naval vehicles that feature this weapon system in the game.''

=== Vehicles equipped with this weapon ===


* {{Specs-Link|uk_challenger_II}}
* {{Specs-Link|uk_challenger_2_dorchester}}

== General info ==
''Tell us about the tactical and technical characteristics of the cannon or machine gun.''

=== Available ammunition ===
''Describe the shells that are available for the weapon and their features and purpose. If it concerns autocannons or machine guns, write about different ammo belts and what is inside (which types of shells).''

The gun has access to three variants of kinetic rounds, a chemical shell and a smoke shell. Additionally, the turret has one co-axial and an AA machine gun, both of which are 7.62mm calibre.

The three kinetic rounds it has access to are;

* Shot L23A1
* Shot L26
* Shot L27A1

These three rounds are all long-rod penetrators, which is characterised by low spalling creation on penetration but a much higher penetration value and is more consistent than its HEAT-FS counterpart, especially against ERA. The three rounds all act rather similarly, with one of the main benefits from upgrading being the higher penetration, and in regards to the L23A1, the other two rounds have a higher muzzle velocity. This higher penetration allows the already existing weak spots (turret mantlet, drivers port on Russian MBTs) wider and therefore easier to hit. One can reasonably expect to only bring kinetic rounds into the battle and have no problems.

The only chemical round the L30 has is the shell L31A7, a High Explosive Squash Head (HESH) round. This round excels at achieving penetration on highly sloped targets, such as the top of Russian MBTs turrets, Leopards upper frontal plates, etc. Using the round against ERA-equipped targets is inadvisable. Due to the hull break mechanic, these rounds are extremely effective, and help players avoid situations where the kinetic round does not penetrate through the engine from the front (on BMPs, Begleitpanzers, etc.) or shooting lighter vehicles in the side and failing to eliminate enough crew or ammo to destroy the target. The round has 6.5kg of explosive equivalent, and as such has a much reduced muzzle velocity, so use with a laser rangefinder at longer ranges is recommended.

The tank also has access to a smoke round, the L34, which has a 20m radius, and the round's effect lasts 30 seconds, with 5 seconds to fully deploy and 25 seconds of full smoke cover. The round is the same weight as the HESH, leading to the same muzzle velocity.

=== Comparison with analogues ===
''Give a comparative description of cannons/machine guns that have firepower equal to this weapon.''

== Usage in battles ==
The gun is extremely accurate at all ranges, and with 1650m/s of muzzle velocity, is quite easy to aim. Due to the optics of the gun, sniping is extremely viable on almost all maps, and locating weak spots on far away enemies is also easy. The gun is capable of punching through the front of most top tier rivals at several points, the most common being the lower frontal plate, mantlet, and drivers port on some tanks. Due to the potency of the gun, fighting Russian MBTs is made easy as the rotary autoloading ammo-rack below the turret will be set off if hit, and can be hit from all sides. Against Leopards and Abrams, the gun has enough penetration to punch through the turret ring. The HESH is also potent against light vehicles and some MBTs without ERA on the sides or turret roof. As expected, shooting for strong points, such as turret cheeks or upper front plates, will not provide a penetration.

=== Pros and cons ===
'''Pros:'''

* The gun is extremely accurate at all ranges.
* The L27A1 is an extremely competitive round for the BR, in penetration and muzzle velocity.
* Optics are powerful.
* The HESH round has plenty of explosive filler for soft targets.

*

'''Cons:'''

* Chemical round has a low muzzle velocity.
* Lower versatility than some smooth-bore guns at the same BR, lacking any ATGM, HEAT-FS or Proximity rounds.

*

== History ==
''Examine the history of the creation and combat usage of the weapon in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the weapon and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Weapon-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>.''

== Media ==
''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.''

== See also ==
''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''

* ''reference to the article about the variant of the cannon/machine gun;''
* ''references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.''

== External links ==
''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''

* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''encyclopedia page on the weapon;''
* ''other literature.''

{{Britain tank cannons}}

[[Category:Tank cannons]]

Challenger 2 (2F)

2021-03-17T03:48:18Z

U9115888: /* Survivability and armour */ Added to the Notes on the Lower Frontal Plate to include changes due to the Dorchester mod.

{{About
| about = British medium tank '''{{PAGENAME}}'''
| usage = other uses
| link = Challenger (Disambiguation)
}}
{{Specs-Card
|code=uk_challenger_2_dorchester
|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg}}
}}

== Description ==

The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} British medium tank {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update "Starfighters"]].

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Tank-Armour}}

The Challenger 2 (2F) was created to give increased protection against shaped charges and as much is evident when evaluating the armour. While the internal composite armour remains the same from the previous variant, a large amount of external composite and ERA has been added to the hull front and sides as well as the turret sides. Additional slat armour has also been mounted to the sides and rear of the hull and turret.

With the only real change being the additional external armour, the same structural weakspots that exist on the Challenger 2 remain on the 2F. The large driver's port is an obvious target for enemy armour, which can penetrate it at almost any angle due to only RHA protection. Kinetic rounds aimed through the driver's port from the direct or near-direct front will often go straight through the tank, often taking several crew members, the cannon breach or the engine, occasionally resulting in a knocked out crew. Chemical rounds are less effective but fragments may set off the charges stored next to the driver, especially when fired at from above.

The gun mantlet is also a large weakspot, although kinetic rounds will be most effective, as chemical rounds will often only knock out the cannon breach or be blocked by the optics mounted at the top of the gun, which will allow the tank to pull back and repair provided it has the distance to do so. Kinetic rounds will often not fragment properly, going straight through the back of the turret, at max taking out two crew members due to the breach acting as a shield to the other side of the turret. Only when attacking from above will rounds have a significant chance of detonating ammunition due to the 2 stage system used by British tanks. Any ammunition stored in the turret will be warheads which are not able to be detonated.

As with the last variant and many other MBTs, the sides have no real kinetic protection, however the 2F has additional protection against chemical rounds. Most shots to the side of the front half of the turret have a high likelihood of taking out the cannon breach and a crew member, occasionally knocking out 2 or 3 crew. Any shots the the back half of the turret from the side will be ineffective due to the large amount of empty space. Aiming low on the tank's hull will give the best results for penetration and ammo detonation. Despite the additional ERA on the lower frontal plate, chemical rounds such as the German DM12A1 can still get through, and can get through the side mounted composite screens on a flat angle (0-25°).

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || 38-50 mm (56-83°) ''Upper Plate''
70 mm (31-34°) ''Lower Glacis'' 60 mm (0-80°) ''Driver's Port''
| 25 mm Top (70°)
25 mm Middle (0°) 38 mm ''Bottom'' (0°)
| 25 mm (32°) || 10-20 mm
|-
| Turret || 38 - 50 mm (56-82°) ''Turret Front'' 30 mm (3-82°) ''Gun Mantlet'' || 20-25 mm (8-10°) || 20 mm (18°) || 10-38 mm
|-
| Cupola || 8 mm (3-78°) || 8 mm (9-60°) || 8 mm (1-80°) || 44-60 mm
|-
!Composite Armour
!Front
! colspan="3" |Sides
|-
|Hull
|'''Upper''' Kinetic: 420-1000 mm Chemical: 700-950 mm '''Lower''' Kinetic: 100-400 mm Chemical: 350-570 mm
'''With Dorchester 2F Modification''' 
'''Upper''' Kinetic: 420-1000 mm Chemical: 700-1200 mm 
'''Lower''' Kinetic: 140-180 mm Chemical: 200-860 mm
| colspan="3" |'''Ext. Composite with NERA:''' Kinetic: 30 mm Chemical: 400 mm
|-
|Turret
|'''Turret Cheeks''' Kinetic: 440-720 mm Chemical: 780-1000 mm
| colspan="3" |'''Internal Composite''' Kinetic: 190-740 mm Chemical: 300-1000 mm '''Ext. Composite with NERA''' Kinetic: 30 mm Chemical: 400 mm
|-
|}

'''Notes:'''

* ''Upper Frontal Plate'' has additional 10 mm external plate.
* ''Lower Frontal Plate'' has 25.4 mm external steel and ROMOR-A ERA. This is upgraded to a composite with NERA plate when mounting the Dorchester 2F upgrade, as detailed in the table above.
* Parts of the side and rear hull have mounted Slat Armour (50 mm Chemical Protection).

=== Mobility ===
{{Specs-Tank-Mobility}}


{{tankMobility|abMinHp=1,886|rbMinHp=1,076|AoAweight=1.1|weight=63.6}}

=== Modifications and economy ===
{{Specs-Economy}}

== Armaments ==
{{Specs-Tank-Armaments}}
=== Main armament ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|1}}

{{main|L30A1 (120 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L30A1 (120 mm)|120 mm L30A1]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 50 || rowspan="2" | -10°/+20° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | Two-plane || 29.5 || 40.8 || 49.6 || 54.8 || 58.4 || rowspan="2" | 6.50 || rowspan="2" | 5.75 || rowspan="2" | 5.30 || rowspan="2" | 5.00
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 18.4 || 21.7 || 26.4 || 29.1 || 31.0
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 396 || 394 || 387 || 376 || 367 || 357
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 493 || 491 || 487 || 481 || 474 || 468
|-
| L27A1 || APFSDS || 564 || 562 || 557 || 551 || 545 || 538
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="10" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 1,535 || 3.89 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 670 || 17.1 || 0.05 || 0.1 || 6,560 || 73° || 77° || 80°
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 1,650 || 4.1 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
| L27A1 || APFSDS || 1,650 || 4.1 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="7" | Smoke shell characteristics
|-
! Ammunition
! Velocity (m/s)
! Projectile Mass (kg)
! Screen radius (m)
! Screen deploy time (s)
! Screen hold time (s)
! Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
|-
| L34 || 670 || 17.1 || 20 || 5 || 25 || 50
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====


{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! 5th rack empty
! 6th rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''50''' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __
|-
|}

=== Machine guns ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|2}}
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|3}}

{{main|L37A2 (7.62 mm)|L94A1 (7.62 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L37A2 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L37A2]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Pintle || 1,700 (100) || 650 || -10°/+50° || ±180°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L94A1 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L94A1]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 2,300 (2,000) || 600 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==

''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''

=== Pros and cons ===


'''Pros:'''

* Effective side-ERA against air-to-ground missiles
* Fast reload, particularly for a 120 mm (5 seconds aced)
* Sights with high zoom, 2nd generation thermals and a wide FOV
* High reverse of -40 km/h
* The L30A1 120 mm gun is incredibly accurate, even at long range
* Turret cheeks are invulnerable to all HEAT-FS and APFSDS, including the dreaded DM53 shell

'''Cons:'''

* Vulnerable commander's hatch and cannon breech
* No CITV (Commander Independent Thermal Viewer)
* Dorchester 2F only marginally increases LFP armour against FIN shells and ATGMs
* Dorchester 2F adds 1,100 kg of weight to an already sluggish tank
* L27A1 has low penetration compared to other top rank NATO ammunition
* Accessible weakspots, especially the gun mantlet

== History ==

The Challenger 2F or CR2 TES is an upgraded version of the Challenger 2, featuring the upgrade kit known as TES (Theatre Entry Standard) and nicknamed 'Megatron'. The upgrade protection kit saw several adjustments over the years until the present time.

These modifications were ordered by the MOD, as part of the numerous updates inside the Challenger 2's LEP (Life Extension Programme) to increase the operability, lethality and protection of the 1998 design until 2025, or until a new British MBT design is available. The TES aims to increase the protection levels against the operational threats of the British Army such as the IEDs, hollow charges or Tandem charges - common threats during suburban deployments.

'''MCS'''

The Challenger 2 was covered with an MCS (Mobile Camouflage System) all around the tank, reducing the heat signature and keeping the vehicle almost indistinguishable from Thermal imaging devices.

'''Bar armour '''

The slat or bar armour was added to the sides and the rear of the vehicle to increase the levels of protection against rocket-propelled grenades while not downgrading the mobility of the Challenger. The bar armour must disrupt any hollow charges from detonating; either by crushing it upon impact or damaging the warhead and the fuze through contact with the '''bars.'''

'''Dorchester 2F armour kit'''

Most previous NERA (Non-Explosive Reactive Armour) side plates have been reinforced with additional Dorchester armour plates, notably the lower frontal-glacis protection was drastically improved, with the addition of a large block of Dorchester armour; augmenting the protection in one of the most vulnerable areas for the Challenger 2. Furthermore, the sides of the turret also received external Dorchester armour packages, enhancing the protection of the crew inside the fighting compartment from possible side-attacks.

'''Remote controlled weapon systems (RCWS) '''

As an offensive upgrade, the TES received a new Remote controlled weapon systems (RCWS) over the loader's hatch ring, capable of assessing the battlefield and engaging light targets or infantry from within the vehicle. Previously, the operator had to open the hatch to fire the pintle-mounted L37A2 7.62mm GPMG machine gun.

The CR2 TES also received IED jammers near the left and right front fenders and ECM countermeasures antennas capable of detecting nearby Improvised Explosive Devices.

== Media ==

''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.''

== See also ==

'''Preceded by'''

* [[Challenger Mk.2]]
* [[Challenger Mk.3]]

'''Similar variants'''

* [[Challenger 2]]

'''Analogues on other nations'''

* [[Leopard 2A6]]
* [[Ariete PSO]]
* [[Leclerc S2]]
* [[M1A2 Abrams]]
* [[T-72B3]]

== External links ==

''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''

* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''encyclopedia page on the tank;''
* ''other literature.''

{{Britain medium tanks}}

L30A1 (120 mm)

2021-03-17T03:42:42Z

U9115888: /* Usage in battles */ Updated Usage in Battles and Pros and Cons

== Description ==
''Write an introduction to the article in 2-3 small paragraphs. Briefly tell us about the history of the development and combat using the weaponry and also about its features. Compile a list of air, ground, or naval vehicles that feature this weapon system in the game.''

=== Vehicles equipped with this weapon ===


* {{Specs-Link|uk_challenger_II}}
* {{Specs-Link|uk_challenger_2_dorchester}}

== General info ==
''Tell us about the tactical and technical characteristics of the cannon or machine gun.''

=== Available ammunition ===
''Describe the shells that are available for the weapon and their features and purpose. If it concerns autocannons or machine guns, write about different ammo belts and what is inside (which types of shells).''

The gun has access to three variants of kinetic rounds and a chemical shell. Additionally, the turret has one co-axial and an AA machine gun, both of which are 7.62mm calibre.

The three kinetic rounds it has access to are;

* Shot L23A1
* Shot L26
* Shot L27A1

These three rounds are all long-rod penetrators, which is characterised by low spalling creation on penetration but a much higher penetration value and is more consistent than its HEAT-FS counterpart, especially against ERA. The three rounds all act rather similarly, with one of the main benefits from upgrading being the higher penetration, and in regards to the L23A1, the other two rounds have a higher muzzle velocity. This higher penetration allows the already existing weak spots (turret mantlet, drivers port on Russian MBTs) wider and therefore easier to hit. One can reasonably expect to only bring kinetic rounds into the battle and have no problems.

The only chemical round the L30 has is the shell L31A7, a High Explosive Squash Head (HESH) round. This round excels at achieving penetration on highly sloped targets, such as the top of Russian MBTs turrets, Leopards upper frontal plates, etc. Using the round against ERA-equipped targets is inadvisable. Due to the hull break mechanic, these rounds are extremely effective, and help players avoid situations where the kinetic round does not penetrate through the engine from the front (on BMPs, Begleitpanzers, etc.) or shooting lighter vehicles in the side and failing to eliminate enough crew or ammo to destroy the target. The round has 6.5kg of explosive equivalent, and as such has a much reduced muzzle velocity, so use with a laser rangefinder at longer ranges is recommended.

=== Comparison with analogues ===
''Give a comparative description of cannons/machine guns that have firepower equal to this weapon.''

== Usage in battles ==
The gun is extremely accurate at all ranges, and with 1650m/s of muzzle velocity, is quite easy to aim. Due to the optics of the gun, sniping is extremely viable on almost all maps, and locating weak spots on far away enemies is also easy. The gun is capable of punching through the front of most top tier rivals at several points, the most common being the lower frontal plate, mantlet, and drivers port on some tanks. Due to the potency of the gun, fighting Russian MBTs is made easy as the rotary autoloading ammo-rack below the turret will be set off if hit, and can be hit from all sides. Against Leopards and Abrams, the gun has enough penetration to punch through the turret ring. The HESH is also potent against light vehicles and some MBTs without ERA on the sides or turret roof. As expected, shooting for strong points, such as turret cheeks or upper front plates, will not provide a penetration.

=== Pros and cons ===
'''Pros:'''

* The gun is extremely accurate at all ranges.
* The L27A1 is an extremely competitive round for the BR, in penetration and muzzle velocity.
* Optics are powerful.
* The HESH round has plenty of explosive filler for soft targets.

*

'''Cons:'''

* Chemical round has a low muzzle velocity.
* Lower versatility than some smooth-bore guns at the same BR, lacking any ATGM, HEAT-FS or Proximity rounds.

*

== History ==
''Examine the history of the creation and combat usage of the weapon in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the weapon and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Weapon-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>.''

== Media ==
''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.''

== See also ==
''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''

* ''reference to the article about the variant of the cannon/machine gun;''
* ''references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.''

== External links ==
''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''

* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''encyclopedia page on the weapon;''
* ''other literature.''

{{Britain tank cannons}}

[[Category:Tank cannons]]

L30A1 (120 mm)

2021-03-17T03:26:25Z

U9115888: Added a summary of the ammunition types.

== Description ==
''Write an introduction to the article in 2-3 small paragraphs. Briefly tell us about the history of the development and combat using the weaponry and also about its features. Compile a list of air, ground, or naval vehicles that feature this weapon system in the game.''

=== Vehicles equipped with this weapon ===


* {{Specs-Link|uk_challenger_II}}
* {{Specs-Link|uk_challenger_2_dorchester}}

== General info ==
''Tell us about the tactical and technical characteristics of the cannon or machine gun.''

=== Available ammunition ===
''Describe the shells that are available for the weapon and their features and purpose. If it concerns autocannons or machine guns, write about different ammo belts and what is inside (which types of shells).''

The gun has access to three variants of kinetic rounds and a chemical shell. Additionally, the turret has one co-axial and an AA machine gun, both of which are 7.62mm calibre.

The three kinetic rounds it has access to are;

* Shot L23A1
* Shot L26
* Shot L27A1

These three rounds are all long-rod penetrators, which is characterised by low spalling creation on penetration but a much higher penetration value and is more consistent than its HEAT-FS counterpart, especially against ERA. The three rounds all act rather similarly, with one of the main benefits from upgrading being the higher penetration, and in regards to the L23A1, the other two rounds have a higher muzzle velocity. This higher penetration allows the already existing weak spots (turret mantlet, drivers port on Russian MBTs) wider and therefore easier to hit. One can reasonably expect to only bring kinetic rounds into the battle and have no problems.

The only chemical round the L30 has is the shell L31A7, a High Explosive Squash Head (HESH) round. This round excels at achieving penetration on highly sloped targets, such as the top of Russian MBTs turrets, Leopards upper frontal plates, etc. Using the round against ERA-equipped targets is inadvisable. Due to the hull break mechanic, these rounds are extremely effective, and help players avoid situations where the kinetic round does not penetrate through the engine from the front (on BMPs, Begleitpanzers, etc.) or shooting lighter vehicles in the side and failing to eliminate enough crew or ammo to destroy the target. The round has 6.5kg of explosive equivalent, and as such has a much reduced muzzle velocity, so use with a laser rangefinder at longer ranges is recommended.

=== Comparison with analogues ===
''Give a comparative description of cannons/machine guns that have firepower equal to this weapon.''

== Usage in battles ==
''Describe the cannon/machine gun in the game - its distinctive features, tactics of usage against notable opponents. Please don't write a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but give the reader food for thought.''

=== Pros and cons ===
''Summarise and briefly evaluate the weaponry in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark pros and cons as a list.''

'''Pros:'''

*

'''Cons:'''

*

== History ==
''Examine the history of the creation and combat usage of the weapon in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the weapon and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Weapon-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>.''

== Media ==
''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.''

== See also ==
''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''

* ''reference to the article about the variant of the cannon/machine gun;''
* ''references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.''

== External links ==
''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''

* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''encyclopedia page on the weapon;''
* ''other literature.''

{{Britain tank cannons}}

[[Category:Tank cannons]]

Challenger 2 (2F)

2021-03-13T14:07:02Z

U9115888: /* Survivability and armour */ Added a section detailing protection with the Dorchester Modification

{{About
| about = British medium tank '''{{PAGENAME}}'''
| usage = other uses
| link = Challenger (Disambiguation)
}}
{{Specs-Card
|code=uk_challenger_2_dorchester
|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg}}
}}

== Description ==

The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} British medium tank {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update "Starfighters"]].

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Tank-Armour}}

The Challenger 2 (2F) was created to give increased protection against shaped charges and as much is evident when evaluating the armour. While the internal composite armour remains the same from the previous variant, a large amount of external composite and ERA has been added to the hull front and sides as well as the turret sides. Additional slat armour has also been mounted to the sides and rear of the hull and turret.

With the only real change being the additional external armour, the same structural weakspots that exist on the Challenger 2 remain on the 2F. The large driver's port is an obvious target for enemy armour, which can penetrate it at almost any angle due to only RHA protection. Kinetic rounds aimed through the driver's port from the direct or near-direct front will often go straight through the tank, often taking several crew members, the cannon breach or the engine, occasionally resulting in a knocked out crew. Chemical rounds are less effective but fragments may set off the charges stored next to the driver, especially when fired at from above.

The gun mantlet is also a large weakspot, although kinetic rounds will be most effective, as chemical rounds will often only knock out the cannon breach or be blocked by the optics mounted at the top of the gun, which will allow the tank to pull back and repair provided it has the distance to do so. Kinetic rounds will often not fragment properly, going straight through the back of the turret, at max taking out two crew members due to the breach acting as a shield to the other side of the turret. Only when attacking from above will rounds have a significant chance of detonating ammunition due to the 2 stage system used by British tanks. Any ammunition stored in the turret will be warheads which are not able to be detonated.

As with the last variant and many other MBTs, the sides have no real kinetic protection, however the 2F has additional protection against chemical rounds. Most shots to the side of the front half of the turret have a high likelihood of taking out the cannon breach and a crew member, occasionally knocking out 2 or 3 crew. Any shots the the back half of the turret from the side will be ineffective due to the large amount of empty space. Aiming low on the tank's hull will give the best results for penetration and ammo detonation. Despite the additional ERA on the lower frontal plate, chemical rounds such as the German DM12A1 can still get through, and can get through the side mounted composite screens on a flat angle (0-25°).

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || 38-50 mm (56-83°) ''Upper Plate''
70 mm (31-34°) ''Lower Glacis'' 60 mm (0-80°) ''Driver's Port''
| 25 mm Top (70°)
25 mm Middle (0°) 38 mm ''Bottom'' (0°)
| 25 mm (32°) || 10-20 mm
|-
| Turret || 38 - 50 mm (56-82°) ''Turret Front'' 30 mm (3-82°) ''Gun Mantlet'' || 20-25 mm (8-10°) || 20 mm (18°) || 10-38 mm
|-
| Cupola || 8 mm (3-78°) || 8 mm (9-60°) || 8 mm (1-80°) || 44-60 mm
|-
!Composite Armour
!Front
! colspan="3" |Sides
|-
|Hull
|'''Upper''' Kinetic: 420-1000 mm Chemical: 700-950 mm '''Lower''' Kinetic: 100-400 mm Chemical: 350-570 mm
'''With Dorchester 2F Modification'''

'''Upper'''

Kinetic: 420-1000 mm

Chemical: 700-1200 mm

'''Lower'''

Kinetic: 140-180 mm

Chemical: 200-860 mm
| colspan="3" |'''Ext. Composite with NERA:''' Kinetic: 30 mm Chemical: 400 mm
|-
|Turret
|'''Turret Cheeks''' Kinetic: 440-720 mm Chemical: 780-1000 mm
| colspan="3" |'''Internal Composite''' Kinetic: 190-740 mm Chemical: 300-1000 mm '''Ext. Composite with NERA''' Kinetic: 30 mm Chemical: 400 mm
|-
|}

'''Notes:'''

* ''Upper Frontal Plate'' has additional 10 mm external plate.
* ''Lower Frontal Plate'' has 25.4 mm external steel and ROMOR-A ERA.
* Parts of the side and rear hull have mounted Slat Armour (50 mm Chemical Protection).

=== Mobility ===
{{Specs-Tank-Mobility}}


{{tankMobility|abMinHp=1,886|rbMinHp=1,076|AoAweight=1.1|weight=63.6}}

=== Modifications and economy ===
{{Specs-Economy}}

== Armaments ==
{{Specs-Tank-Armaments}}
=== Main armament ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|1}}

{{main|L30A1 (120 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L30A1 (120 mm)|120 mm L30A1]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 50 || rowspan="2" | -10°/+20° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | Two-plane || 29.5 || 40.8 || 49.6 || 54.8 || 58.4 || rowspan="2" | 6.50 || rowspan="2" | 5.75 || rowspan="2" | 5.30 || rowspan="2" | 5.00
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 18.4 || 21.7 || 26.4 || 29.1 || 31.0
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | '''Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)'''
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 396 || 394 || 387 || 376 || 367 || 357
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 471 || 469 || 464 || 457 || 450 || 443
|-
| L27A1 || APFSDS || 538 || 536 || 532 || 525 || 518 || 511
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="10" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 1,535 || 3.89 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 670 || 17.1 || 0.05 || 0.1 || 6,560 || 73° || 77° || 80°
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 1,550 || 4.1 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
| L27A1 || APFSDS || 1,550 || 4.1 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="7" | Smoke shell characteristics
|-
! Ammunition
! Velocity (m/s)
! Projectile Mass (kg)
! Screen radius (m)
! Screen deploy time (s)
! Screen hold time (s)
! Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
|-
| L34 || 670 || 17.1 || 20 || 5 || 25 || 50
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====


{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! 5th rack empty
! 6th rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''50''' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __
|-
|}

=== Machine guns ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|2}}
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|3}}

{{main|L37A2 (7.62 mm)|L94A1 (7.62 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L37A2 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L37A2]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Pintle || 1,700 (100) || 650 || -10°/+50° || ±180°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L94A1 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L94A1]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 2,300 (2,000) || 600 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==

''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''

=== Pros and cons ===


'''Pros:'''

* Effective side-ERA against air-to-ground missiles
* Fast reload, particularly for a 120 mm (5 seconds aced)
* Sights with high zoom, 2nd generation thermals and a wide FOV
* High reverse of -40 km/h
* The L30A1 120 mm gun is incredibly accurate, even at long range
* Turret cheeks are invulnerable to all HEAT-FS and APFSDS, including the dreaded DM53 shell

'''Cons:'''

* Vulnerable commander's hatch and cannon breech
* No CITV (Commander Independent Thermal Viewer)
* Dorchester 2F only marginally increases LFP armour against FIN shells and ATGMs
* Dorchester 2F adds 1,100 kg of weight to an already sluggish tank
* L27A1 has low penetration compared to other top rank NATO ammunition
* Accessible weakspots, especially the gun mantlet

== History ==

The Challenger 2F or CR2 TES is an upgraded version of the Challenger 2, featuring the upgrade kit known as TES (Theatre Entry Standard) and nicknamed 'Megatron'. The upgrade protection kit saw several adjustments over the years until the present time.

These modifications were ordered by the MOD, as part of the numerous updates inside the Challenger 2's LEP (Life Extension Programme) to increase the operability, lethality and protection of the 1998 design until 2025, or until a new British MBT design is available. The TES aims to increase the protection levels against the operational threats of the British Army such as the IEDs, hollow charges or Tandem charges - common threats during suburban deployments.

'''MCS'''

The Challenger 2 was covered with an MCS (Mobile Camouflage System) all around the tank, reducing the heat signature and keeping the vehicle almost indistinguishable from Thermal imaging devices.

'''Bar armour '''

The slat or bar armour was added to the sides and the rear of the vehicle to increase the levels of protection against rocket-propelled grenades while not downgrading the mobility of the Challenger. The bar armour must disrupt any hollow charges from detonating; either by crushing it upon impact or damaging the warhead and the fuze through contact with the '''bars.'''

'''Dorchester 2F armour kit'''

Most previous NERA (Non-Explosive Reactive Armour) side plates have been reinforced with additional Dorchester armour plates, notably the lower frontal-glacis protection was drastically improved, with the addition of a large block of Dorchester armour; augmenting the protection in one of the most vulnerable areas for the Challenger 2. Furthermore, the sides of the turret also received external Dorchester armour packages, enhancing the protection of the crew inside the fighting compartment from possible side-attacks.

'''Remote controlled weapon systems (RCWS) '''

As an offensive upgrade, the TES received a new Remote controlled weapon systems (RCWS) over the loader's hatch ring, capable of assessing the battlefield and engaging light targets or infantry from within the vehicle. Previously, the operator had to open the hatch to fire the pintle-mounted L37A2 7.62mm GPMG machine gun.

The CR2 TES also received IED jammers near the left and right front fenders and ECM countermeasures antennas capable of detecting nearby Improvised Explosive Devices.

== Media ==

''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.''

== See also ==

'''Preceded by'''

* [[Challenger Mk.2]]
* [[Challenger Mk.3]]

'''Similar variants'''

* [[Challenger 2]]

'''Analogues on other nations'''

* [[Leopard 2A6]]
* [[Ariete PSO]]
* [[Leclerc S2]]
* [[M1A2 Abrams]]
* [[T-72B3]]

== External links ==

''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''

* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''encyclopedia page on the tank;''
* ''other literature.''

{{Britain medium tanks}}

VFM5

2020-12-08T14:39:40Z

U9115888: /* Survivability and armour */ A detailed description of the armour protection and survivability.

{{Specs-Card|code=uk_vfm_5}}

== Description ==

[[File:GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|420px|thumb|left]]
{{Break}}
The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} British light tank {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update "New Power"]].

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===

The VFM5 has little to no armour protection from anything larger than 7.62mm rounds, the M2 50. cal being able to penetrate its sides. The most protected section of the tank is the front of the hull towardsthe more extreme angles around the driver's ports, which is up to 160mm of effective thickness, however this is halved by APFSDS, not that it would matter either way. HEATFS is even more effective, the thickness against chemical rounds dropping to approximately 23mm.

The tank can survive a shot, however shots to the turret have a higher chance, as long as the spalling created by the shell is blocked by the cannon breach. Shots to the left side of the turret (The right side looking front-on) will likely detonate the ready-rack ammunition. Side shots can be survived as long as they are to the hull due to large amounts of empty space. To increase your chance of survival of side shots, a player can take no more than 30 rounds to ensure the room below the turret is ammunition-free. As one would expect from a tank of this type, taking shots should not be attempted under any circumstances.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front (Slope angle) !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull ||38.1 mm (79°) ''Upper Glacis''
38.1 mm (Various Angles) ''Driver's Hatch''

38.1 mm +6.35 mm (Curved) ''Lower Glacis''
| 25.4 mm + 6.35 ''Upper'' 44 mm ''Lower'' ||25.4 mm||5 - 25.4 mm
|-
| Turret || 50.8 mm (37-43°) ''Turret front'' 38.1 mm (37-43°) ''Gun mantlet''
25.4 mm ''Gunner'' ''Optics''
|38.1 mm + 6.35 mm||12.7 mm +12.7 mm||25.4 mm
|-
| Cupola ||25.4 mm||25.4 mm
|25.4 mm
|25.4 mm
|-
|}

'''Notes:''' 


=== Mobility ===
{{tankMobility|abMinHp=868|rbMinHp=495}}

== Armaments ==
=== Main armament ===

{{main|LRF (105 mm)}}
''Give the reader information about the characteristics of the main gun. Assess its effectiveness in a battle based on the reloading speed, ballistics and the power of shells. Do not forget about the flexibility of the fire, that is how quickly the cannon can be aimed at the target, open fire on it and aim at another enemy. Add a link to the main article on the gun: <code><nowiki>{{main|Name of the weapon}}</nowiki></code>. Describe in general terms the ammunition available for the main gun. Give advice on how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage.''

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[LRF (105 mm)|105 mm LRF]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 41 || rowspan="2" | -10°/+20° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | Two-plane || __._ || __._ || __._ || __._ || __._ || rowspan="2" | _.__ || rowspan="2" | _.__ || rowspan="2" | _.__ || rowspan="2" | _.__
|-
! ''Realistic''
| __._ || __._ || __._ || __._ || __._
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | '''Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)'''
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
|M456A2||HEATFS||400||400||400||400||400||400
|-
| M393A2 || HESH ||127||127
|127
|127
|127
|127
|-
| M735 || APFSDS ||353||350||342||333||322||312
|-
| C76A1 ||APFSDS||334||330||323||314||306||297
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="10" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
|M456A2||HEATFS||1173||10.50||0.05||0.1||1270||65°||72°||77°
|-
| M393A2 || HESH ||732||14.85||0.05||0.1||4310|| 73° || 77° || 80°
|-
| M735 || APFSDS ||1501||3.70||N/A||N/A||N/A|| 76° || 77° || 80°
|-
|C76A1||APFSDS||1509||3.60||N/A||N/A||N/A||78°||80°||81°
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====


{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! 5th rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''41''' || 34 ''(+7)'' || 28 ''(+13)'' || 22 ''(+19)'' || 11 ''(+30)'' || 0 ''(+41)'' || Yes
|-
|}
[[File:VFM5 Ammo Racks Numbered.png|thumb|The VFM5 ammo racks numbered in order of usage.]]

=== Machine guns ===

{{main|M2HB (12.7 mm)|L8A2 (7.62 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[M2HB (12.7 mm)|12.7 mm M2HB]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Pintle || 600 (200) || 576 || -5°/+25° || -120°/+100°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L8A2 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L8A2]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 4,500 (200) || 600 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==

''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''

=== Modules ===
{| class="wikitable"
!Tier
! colspan="2" |Mobility
!Protection
! colspan="3" |Firepower
|-
|I
|Tracks
|
|Parts
|Horizontal Drive
|M393A2
|M735
|-
|II
|Suspension
|Brake System
|FPE
|Adjustment of Fire
|Airstrike
|NVD
|-
|III
|Filters
|
|Crew Replenishment
|Elevation Mechanism
|Laser Rangefinder
|
|-
|IV
|Transmission
|Engine
|Smoke Grenade
|Artillery Support
|Improved Optics
|C76A1
|-
|}

=== Pros and cons ===


'''Pros:'''

* Equips the renowned 105 mm L7 cannon
* Good mobility

'''Cons:'''

* Lightly armoured

== History ==

The VFM 5, also known as Vickers Mk.5, was a light tank built by Vickers. It was based on the hull of the American Close Combat Vehicle Light (CCV-L), which was built by VFM, but with a new turret and main armament. It was primarily designed for export.

=== Development ===
The CCV-L was first revealed by FMC at AUSA in October 1985. Vickers Defense Systems and FMC formed a cooperative agreement later that year to design an export version of the tank. It had been designed as a cheaper version of the CCV-L, and it was designated as the VFM 5. After the prototype was completed in 1986, it was displayed at the British Army Equipment Exhibition of the same year. No production orders were received.

=== Design ===
The hull was nearly unmodified from the CCV-L, made of welded aluminum armor with applique steel armor available for the front and sides.

The layout of the VFM 5 was conventional. The driver was located in the front, the fighting compartment in the center, and the engine compartment at the rear.

The driver sat in the center of the front of the hull. His seat was adjustable, with a folding backrest to allow access to the fighting compartment. His hatch was opened by use of hinges on the rear, and it had five periscopes for viewing to the front and sides. When necessary, the center, forward facing periscope could be replaced with a passive periscope for night operations.

The turret is different from that of the CCV-L. The turret had a crew of three, and it was constructed in the same way as the hull, with welded aluminum armor and applique steel plates. The turret was mounted on a high-accuracy low-friction turret ring that is tilted down 3° at the front.

The main armament of the VMF 5 was a 105 mm Low Recoil Force gun, fitted with an integral muzzle break and a rigid thermal sleeve. 41 rounds of 105 mm ammunition were carried. 22 rounds were stored in the front of the hull, 11 on each side of the driver. 19 rounds were stored in the fighting compartment, located below the turret ring. Unlike the CCV-L, the VFM 5 features a loader, rather than an automatic loading system.

A Marconi fire-control system (FCS) is used, which includes computerized fire-control systems and a two-axis gun stabilizer. The turret traversed electronically 360°, while the gun elevated from -10° to +20°.

The secondary armament consisted of a coaxial 7.62 mm L8 machine gun. A total of 2,600 rounds of 7.62 mm ammunition were carried in boxes of 200 rounds. Additionally, a 7.62 mm or 12.7 mm machine gun could be pintle-mounted at the leader's hatch. 500 rounds could be carried if the 12.7 mm machine gun was fitted.

A bank of six smoke grenade launchers was located on each side of the turret, for a total of twelve smoke or fragmentation grenades. They were fired electronically by the bank's commander from the interior.

The gunner's primary sight was a NANOQUEST telescopic sight with a zoom of x10. It incorporated a laser rangefinder and muzzle reference system. The gunner also had a NANOQUEST periscope for wide-angle observation. A thermal imaging system was available as an option.

The commander had a rear-opening, single piece hatch with fiver periscopes. He also had a Pilkington PE/Raven II day/night sight with magnification of x1 and x8, as well as image intensification for night operations.

The loader also had a single piece, rear-opening hatch with a single AFV No 3 Mk 1 periscope with 360° of rotation.

The suspension of the VFM 5 is a torsion bar type. There are six road wheels on each side of the chassis and a shock absorber at each road wheel. 38 cm double-pin tracks are used.

The engine is a General Motors (GM) Detroit Diesel Model 6V-92 TA 6-cylinder, producing 550 horsepower. A General Electric (GE) HMPT-500-3 transmission is used, with three forward gears and one reverse gear. The powerpack is cooled by a water radiator and oil cooler. Easy access to the engine is provided by a rear hull ramp, which the engine can be slid down for maintenance or replacement. Access covers are located on the engine compartment roof for easy maintenance as well.

The engine compartment is protected by an automatic fire-suppression system, and one can also be fitted for the crew compartment. Handheld extinguishers are also provided.

=== [[wt:en/news/6900-development-vfm-5-private-venture-en|Devblog]] ===
In 1985, Vickers formed a consortium with the American FMC company in order to develop a modern, yet cost-effective light tank for the export market. To achieve this, development and production costs had to be kept as low as possible. As a result, the decision was made to combine the CCVL hull developed by FMC for the US Army’s AGS project with a Vickers-built turret, housing a modified low-recoil version of the widely used L7 cannon.

The first prototype was built in 1986 and subsequently revealed to the public at the British Army Equipment Exhibition that year. However, despite its modern equipment, excellent mobility and low weight thanks to the wide use of aluminum alloys, the VFM 5 failed to attract any attention from potential international operators at first.

However, testing and further refinement of the vehicle’s design continued into the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, just at that time negotiations were held with Malaysia to supply the tank to the national armed forces, but it ultimately never came to a production agreement. In the end, only a single prototype of the VFM 5 was ever constructed.

== Media ==


;Skins

* [https://live.warthunder.com/feed/camouflages/?vehicleCountry=britain&vehicleType=tank&vehicleClass=light_tank&vehicle=uk_vfm_5 Skins and camouflages for the {{PAGENAME}} from live.warthunder.com.]

;Images
<gallery mode="packed" caption="VFM 5 Devblog Images" heights="170">
File:VFM 5 WTWallpaper 001.jpg|
File:VFM 5 WTWallpaper 002.jpg|
File:VFM 5 WTWallpaper 003.jpg|
File:VFM 5 WTWallpaper 004.jpg|
File:VFM 5 WTWallpaper 005.jpg|
File:VFM 5 WTWallpaper 006.jpg|
</gallery>

;Videos
{{Youtube-gallery|TiEoq_VirjA|'''{{PAGENAME}}''' - ''Pinhead_Plays''}}

== See also ==

''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''

* ''reference to the series of the vehicles;''
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.''

== External links ==


* [[wt:en/news/6900-development-vfm-5-private-venture-en|[Devblog] VFM 5: Private Venture]]

{{Britain light tanks}}

VFM5

2020-12-08T12:26:23Z

U9115888: /* Main armament */ Filled in missing ammo rack usage information.

{{Specs-Card|code=uk_vfm_5}}

== Description ==

[[File:GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|420px|thumb|left]]
{{Break}}
The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} British light tank {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update "New Power"]].

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===

''Describe armour protection. Note the most well protected and key weak areas. Appreciate the layout of modules as well as the number and location of crew members. Is the level of armour protection sufficient, is the placement of modules helpful for survival in combat? If necessary use a visual template to indicate the most secure and weak zones of the armour.''

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front (Slope angle) !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull ||38.1 mm (79°) ''Upper Glacis''
38.1 mm (Various Angles) ''Driver's Hatch''

38.1 mm +6.35 mm (Curved) ''Lower Glacis''
| 25.4 mm + 6.35 ''Upper'' 44 mm ''Lower'' ||25.4 mm||5 - 25.4 mm
|-
| Turret || 50.8 mm (37-43°) ''Turret front'' 38.1 mm (37-43°) ''Gun mantlet''
25.4 mm ''Gunner'' ''Optics''
|38.1 mm + 6.35 mm||12.7 mm +12.7 mm||25.4 mm
|-
| Cupola ||25.4 mm||25.4 mm
|25.4 mm
|25.4 mm
|-
|}

'''Notes:''' 


=== Mobility ===
{{tankMobility|abMinHp=868|rbMinHp=495}}

== Armaments ==
=== Main armament ===

{{main|LRF (105 mm)}}
''Give the reader information about the characteristics of the main gun. Assess its effectiveness in a battle based on the reloading speed, ballistics and the power of shells. Do not forget about the flexibility of the fire, that is how quickly the cannon can be aimed at the target, open fire on it and aim at another enemy. Add a link to the main article on the gun: <code><nowiki>{{main|Name of the weapon}}</nowiki></code>. Describe in general terms the ammunition available for the main gun. Give advice on how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage.''

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[LRF (105 mm)|105 mm LRF]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 41 || rowspan="2" | -10°/+20° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | Two-plane || __._ || __._ || __._ || __._ || __._ || rowspan="2" | _.__ || rowspan="2" | _.__ || rowspan="2" | _.__ || rowspan="2" | _.__
|-
! ''Realistic''
| __._ || __._ || __._ || __._ || __._
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | '''Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)'''
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
|M456A2||HEATFS||400||400||400||400||400||400
|-
| M393A2 || HESH ||127||127
|127
|127
|127
|127
|-
| M735 || APFSDS ||353||350||342||333||322||312
|-
| C76A1 ||APFSDS||334||330||323||314||306||297
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="10" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
|M456A2||HEATFS||1173||10.50||0.05||0.1||1270||65°||72°||77°
|-
| M393A2 || HESH ||732||14.85||0.05||0.1||4310|| 73° || 77° || 80°
|-
| M735 || APFSDS ||1501||3.70||N/A||N/A||N/A|| 76° || 77° || 80°
|-
|C76A1||APFSDS||1509||3.60||N/A||N/A||N/A||78°||80°||81°
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====


{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! 5th rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''41''' || 34 ''(+7)'' || 28 ''(+13)'' || 22 ''(+19)'' || 11 ''(+30)'' || 0 ''(+41)'' || Yes
|-
|}
[[File:VFM5 Ammo Racks Numbered.png|thumb|The VFM5 ammo racks numbered in order of usage.]]

=== Machine guns ===

{{main|M2HB (12.7 mm)|L8A2 (7.62 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[M2HB (12.7 mm)|12.7 mm M2HB]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Pintle || 600 (200) || 576 || -5°/+25° || -120°/+100°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L8A2 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L8A2]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 4,500 (200) || 600 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==

''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''

=== Modules ===
{| class="wikitable"
!Tier
! colspan="2" |Mobility
!Protection
! colspan="3" |Firepower
|-
|I
|Tracks
|
|Parts
|Horizontal Drive
|M393A2
|M735
|-
|II
|Suspension
|Brake System
|FPE
|Adjustment of Fire
|Airstrike
|NVD
|-
|III
|Filters
|
|Crew Replenishment
|Elevation Mechanism
|Laser Rangefinder
|
|-
|IV
|Transmission
|Engine
|Smoke Grenade
|Artillery Support
|Improved Optics
|C76A1
|-
|}

=== Pros and cons ===


'''Pros:'''

* Equips the renowned 105 mm L7 cannon
* Good mobility

'''Cons:'''

* Lightly armoured

== History ==

The VFM 5, also known as Vickers Mk.5, was a light tank built by Vickers. It was based on the hull of the American Close Combat Vehicle Light (CCV-L), which was built by VFM, but with a new turret and main armament. It was primarily designed for export.

=== Development ===
The CCV-L was first revealed by FMC at AUSA in October 1985. Vickers Defense Systems and FMC formed a cooperative agreement later that year to design an export version of the tank. It had been designed as a cheaper version of the CCV-L, and it was designated as the VFM 5. After the prototype was completed in 1986, it was displayed at the British Army Equipment Exhibition of the same year. No production orders were received.

=== Design ===
The hull was nearly unmodified from the CCV-L, made of welded aluminum armor with applique steel armor available for the front and sides.

The layout of the VFM 5 was conventional. The driver was located in the front, the fighting compartment in the center, and the engine compartment at the rear.

The driver sat in the center of the front of the hull. His seat was adjustable, with a folding backrest to allow access to the fighting compartment. His hatch was opened by use of hinges on the rear, and it had five periscopes for viewing to the front and sides. When necessary, the center, forward facing periscope could be replaced with a passive periscope for night operations.

The turret is different from that of the CCV-L. The turret had a crew of three, and it was constructed in the same way as the hull, with welded aluminum armor and applique steel plates. The turret was mounted on a high-accuracy low-friction turret ring that is tilted down 3° at the front.

The main armament of the VMF 5 was a 105 mm Low Recoil Force gun, fitted with an integral muzzle break and a rigid thermal sleeve. 41 rounds of 105 mm ammunition were carried. 22 rounds were stored in the front of the hull, 11 on each side of the driver. 19 rounds were stored in the fighting compartment, located below the turret ring. Unlike the CCV-L, the VFM 5 features a loader, rather than an automatic loading system.

A Marconi fire-control system (FCS) is used, which includes computerized fire-control systems and a two-axis gun stabilizer. The turret traversed electronically 360°, while the gun elevated from -10° to +20°.

The secondary armament consisted of a coaxial 7.62 mm L8 machine gun. A total of 2,600 rounds of 7.62 mm ammunition were carried in boxes of 200 rounds. Additionally, a 7.62 mm or 12.7 mm machine gun could be pintle-mounted at the leader's hatch. 500 rounds could be carried if the 12.7 mm machine gun was fitted.

A bank of six smoke grenade launchers was located on each side of the turret, for a total of twelve smoke or fragmentation grenades. They were fired electronically by the bank's commander from the interior.

The gunner's primary sight was a NANOQUEST telescopic sight with a zoom of x10. It incorporated a laser rangefinder and muzzle reference system. The gunner also had a NANOQUEST periscope for wide-angle observation. A thermal imaging system was available as an option.

The commander had a rear-opening, single piece hatch with fiver periscopes. He also had a Pilkington PE/Raven II day/night sight with magnification of x1 and x8, as well as image intensification for night operations.

The loader also had a single piece, rear-opening hatch with a single AFV No 3 Mk 1 periscope with 360° of rotation.

The suspension of the VFM 5 is a torsion bar type. There are six road wheels on each side of the chassis and a shock absorber at each road wheel. 38 cm double-pin tracks are used.

The engine is a General Motors (GM) Detroit Diesel Model 6V-92 TA 6-cylinder, producing 550 horsepower. A General Electric (GE) HMPT-500-3 transmission is used, with three forward gears and one reverse gear. The powerpack is cooled by a water radiator and oil cooler. Easy access to the engine is provided by a rear hull ramp, which the engine can be slid down for maintenance or replacement. Access covers are located on the engine compartment roof for easy maintenance as well.

The engine compartment is protected by an automatic fire-suppression system, and one can also be fitted for the crew compartment. Handheld extinguishers are also provided.

=== [[wt:en/news/6900-development-vfm-5-private-venture-en|Devblog]] ===
In 1985, Vickers formed a consortium with the American FMC company in order to develop a modern, yet cost-effective light tank for the export market. To achieve this, development and production costs had to be kept as low as possible. As a result, the decision was made to combine the CCVL hull developed by FMC for the US Army’s AGS project with a Vickers-built turret, housing a modified low-recoil version of the widely used L7 cannon.

The first prototype was built in 1986 and subsequently revealed to the public at the British Army Equipment Exhibition that year. However, despite its modern equipment, excellent mobility and low weight thanks to the wide use of aluminum alloys, the VFM 5 failed to attract any attention from potential international operators at first.

However, testing and further refinement of the vehicle’s design continued into the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, just at that time negotiations were held with Malaysia to supply the tank to the national armed forces, but it ultimately never came to a production agreement. In the end, only a single prototype of the VFM 5 was ever constructed.

== Media ==


;Skins

* [https://live.warthunder.com/feed/camouflages/?vehicleCountry=britain&vehicleType=tank&vehicleClass=light_tank&vehicle=uk_vfm_5 Skins and camouflages for the {{PAGENAME}} from live.warthunder.com.]

;Images
<gallery mode="packed" caption="VFM 5 Devblog Images" heights="170">
File:VFM 5 WTWallpaper 001.jpg|
File:VFM 5 WTWallpaper 002.jpg|
File:VFM 5 WTWallpaper 003.jpg|
File:VFM 5 WTWallpaper 004.jpg|
File:VFM 5 WTWallpaper 005.jpg|
File:VFM 5 WTWallpaper 006.jpg|
</gallery>

;Videos
{{Youtube-gallery|TiEoq_VirjA|'''{{PAGENAME}}''' - ''Pinhead_Plays''}}

== See also ==

''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''

* ''reference to the series of the vehicles;''
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.''

== External links ==


* [[wt:en/news/6900-development-vfm-5-private-venture-en|[Devblog] VFM 5: Private Venture]]

{{Britain light tanks}}

File:Ammoracks VFM5.png

2020-12-08T12:25:24Z

U9115888:

A diagram of the VFM5 ammo racks, numbered in accordance with the ammo rack usage table.

Crusader "The Saint"

2020-10-17T05:40:50Z

U9115888: /* Survivability and armour */ Added details on Armour, including summary of armour protection and protection values.

{{Specs-Card
|code=uk_crusader_mk_2_the_saint
|store=9265
}}
{{About
| about = premium British light tank '''{{PAGENAME}}'''
| usage = other versions
| link = Crusader (Family)
}}

== Description ==

[[File:GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|420px|thumb|left]]
{{Break}}
The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a premium rank {{Specs|rank}} British light tank {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update "Regia Marina"]].

This is your standard in-tree [[Crusader II]], with a historical camo. This tank was called the Saint and served with 10th Royal Hussars regiment, which was part of the 2nd Armoured Brigade, 1st Armoured Division, which fought in the North African Campaign.

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===

Armor protection on the Crusader "The Saint" is the same as the Crusader II, and as a cruiser tank is understandably poor in most areas. The hull is overly very penetrable, only averaging 30-40mm of equivalent protection. However, the two protrusions for the driver and machine gunner have hatches which can easily block a shot or in some cases reduce spalling, only knocking out 1-2 crew with APCBC.Side and back armor are predictably weak.

The turret armor is the thickest on the cheeks, and the angled sides can also block or bounce rounds if correctly angled and baited. The mantlet is a clear weakspot, often resulting in the turret crew being completely wiped out. The armor on the tank is supplemented by the 5 crew members, which can save players from a one-shot. In the case of the mantlet, the three turret crew may be knocked out, but the tank will survive if the driver and machine gunner remain, allowing those positioned away from the enemy a chance to get away. Additionally, the gun, coaxial machine gun, and optics in the mantlet can also block shots, though it shouldn't be relied on.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front (Slope angle) !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || 9-32 mm (29-81°) || 14 mm || 14 mm || 7 mm
|-
| Turret || 31.75 mm ''Turret front (9-73°'') 30 mm ''Gun mantlet (7-83°)'' || 14 mm || 17 mm || 12.7 mm
|-
|}

'''Notes:''' 


=== Mobility ===


{{tankMobility|abMinHp=527|rbMinHp=301}}

== Armaments ==
=== Main armament ===

{{main|QF 2-pounder (40 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[QF 2-pounder (40 mm)|40 mm QF 2-pounder]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 110 || rowspan="2" | -15°/+20° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | Vertical || 34.27 || 47.44 || 57.60 || 63.69 || 67.76 || rowspan="2" | 3.64 || rowspan="2" | 3.22 || rowspan="2" | 2.97 || rowspan="2" | 2.80
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 21.42 || 25.20 || 30.60 || 33.84 || 36.00
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | '''Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)'''
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
| Shot Mk.1 AP/T || AP || 72 || 68 || 52 || 37 || 27 || 19
|-
| Shot Mk.IXB APCBC/T || APCBC || 89 || 86 || 77 || 66 || 57 || 50
|-
| Shot Mk.1 APHV/T || AP || 80 || 75 || 58 || 41 || 30 || 21
|-
| Shell Mk.1 AP/T || APHE || 66 || 62 || 49 || 36 || 26 || 20
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="10" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
| Shot Mk.1 AP/T || AP || 792 || 1.08 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 47° || 60° || 65°
|-
| Shot Mk.IXB APCBC/T || APCBC || 792 || 1.24 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 48° || 63° || 71°
|-
| Shot Mk.1 APHV/T || AP || 853 || 1.08 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 47° || 60° || 65°
|-
| Shell Mk.1 AP/T || APHE || 792 || 1.08 || 1.2 || 9 || 20.9 || 47° || 60° || 65°
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====
[[File:Ammoracks_Crusader_II.png|right|thumb|x250px|[[Ammo racks]] of the {{PAGENAME}}]]
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! 5th rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''110''' || 89 ''(+21)'' || 67 ''(+43)'' || 45 ''(+65)'' || 23 ''(+87)'' || 1 ''(+109)'' || No
|-
|}

Notes:

* Turret & center empty: 45 ''(+65)'' shells.
* Racks disappear after all shells in the rack have been shot or loaded.

=== Machine guns ===

{{main|BESA (7.92 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[BESA (7.92 mm)|7.92 mm BESA]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 3,375 (225) || 600 || N/A || N/A
|-
| Turreted || 4,950 (225) || 600 || ±10° || ±50°
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==

''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''

=== Modules ===
{| class="wikitable"
! Tier
! colspan="2" | Mobility
! Protection
! colspan="3" | Firepower
|-
| I
| Tracks
|
| Parts
| Horizontal Drive
| Shot Mk.1 APHV/T
|
|-
| II
| Suspension
| Brake System
| FPE
| Adjustment of Fire
| Airstrike
| Shell Mk.1 AP/T
|-
| III
| Filters
|
| Crew Replenishment
| Elevation Mechanism
| Improved optics
|
|-
| IV
| Transmission
| Engine
|
| Artillery Support
| Shot Mk.IXB APCBC/T
| Smoke grenade
|-
! colspan="7" | This is a premium vehicle: all modifications are unlocked on purchase
|-
|}

=== Pros and cons ===

''Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in a bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".''

'''Pros:'''

*

'''Cons:'''

*

== History ==

''Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under <code><nowiki>=== In-game description ===</nowiki></code>, also if applicable).''

== Media ==


;Skins

* [https://live.warthunder.com/feed/camouflages/?vehicleCountry=britain&vehicleType=tank&vehicleClass=light_tank&vehicle=uk_crusader_mk_2 Skins and camouflages for the {{PAGENAME}} from live.warthunder.com.]

;Videos
{{Youtube-gallery|4_cJ1CpEatw|'''Best gun depression''' discusses the {{PAGENAME}} at 1:33 - ''War Thunder Official Channel''}}

== See also ==

''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''

* ''reference to the series of the vehicles;''
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.''

== External links ==

''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''

* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''encyclopedia page on the tank;''
* ''other literature.''

{{Britain light tanks}}
{{Britain premium ground vehicles}}

User:U9115888

2020-10-17T05:17:22Z

U9115888: Added a profile bio

An avid British War Thunder player, driven by patriotic vigor. Occasionally edits pages here on the Wiki where I think I can help. Find my contributions on a few of the British pages.

Ordnance QF Tk. L1A2 (120 mm)

2020-10-15T08:33:53Z

U9115888: Added a description of the gun's history and in-game features.

== Description ==
The L1A2, also known as the L1 or L11, is a 120 mm tank cannon mounted on the Conqueror and Conway in the UK tree. The gun was developed by the Royal Ordnance as a precursor to the L11A5 tank cannon most commonly seen on the Chieftain tanks and later, the Challenger 1 tanks. The large caliber of 120 mm was deemed necessary in NATO's desire to counter the U.S.S.R's newly unveiled IS-3 heavy tanks. The gun never saw combat, with the Conway project being scrapped after one prototype and the Conquerors were only put into service in Germany as part of the BAOR (British Army of the Rhine).

The cannon fires a traditional APDS (Armor-Piercing Discarding Sabot) round and, thanks to the gun's rifling, also fires HESH (High Explosive Squash Head). Penetrating up to 362 mm of armor-equivalent, the gun has a high potency. The trade-off for this is the gun's two-stage round system, which significantly increases reload times (approximately 19-20 seconds stock).

=== Vehicles equipped with this weapon ===


* {{Specs-Link|uk_conqueror_mk_2}}
* {{Specs-Link|uk_fv4004_conway}}

== General info ==
''Tell us about the tactical and technical characteristics of the cannon or machine gun.''

=== Available shells ===
The gun has two shells, Shot L1G (Armor-Piercing Discarding Sabot) and L1TK (High Explosive Squash Head).

The sabot will be familiar to anyone who has previously used other variants, especially those other variants in the UK tree. The sabot has the classic trade-off of reduced shell spalling in exchange for superior penetration.This shell is the main multi-purpose shot for this gun.

HESH is the UK's preferred HE delivery method, which gives greatly increased penetration values on extreme angles, in exchange for lower overall penetration.This shell is for use against hull-breakable vehicles such as BMPs and SPAAs, and tanks with more extreme angles, for example later Russian tanks such as T-54s and T-55s.

{| class="wikitable"
! rowspan="2" |Round
! colspan="5" |Penetration (10 meters)
! colspan="3" |Penetration (2000 meters)
|-
! colspan="2" |0°
!30°
! colspan="2" |60°
!0°
!30°
!60°
|-
|Shot L1G
| colspan="2" |362 mm
|332 mm
| colspan="2" |138 mm
|321 mm
|294 mm
|123 mm
|-
|Shot L1TK
|152 mm
| colspan="3" |152 mm
|152 mm
|152 mm
|152 mm
|152 mm
|}

=== Comparison with analogues ===
''Give a comparative description of cannons/machine guns, that have firepower equal to these type of weapons.''

== Usage in battles ==
''Describe the cannon/machine gun in the game - its distinctive features, tactics of usage against the main opponents. Please don't write a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but give the reader food for thought.''

=== Pros and cons ===
''Summarize and briefly evaluate the weaponry in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark pros and cons as a list.''

'''Pros:'''

*

'''Cons:'''

*

== History ==
''Examine the history of the creation and combat usage of this weapon. If the historical reference turns out to be too big, take it to a separate article, taking a link to an article about the vehicle and adding a block "/ History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(weapon-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article.''

== Media ==
''An excellent addition to the article would be a video guide, as well as screenshots from the game and photos.''

== See also ==
''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''

* ''reference to the article about the variant of the cannon/machine gun;''
* ''references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.''

== External links ==
''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''

* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''encyclopedia page on weapon;''
* ''other literature.''

{{Britain tank cannons}}

[[Category:Tank cannons]]

Ordnance QF Tk. L1A2 (120 mm)

2020-10-15T07:50:56Z

U9115888: /* Description */ Added information on Shell Usage and penetration values.

Challenger 2

2020-09-01T04:31:32Z

U9115888: /* Media */ Added Tank Chat on Challenger 2.

{{Specs-Card|code=uk_challenger_II}}
{{About
| about = British medium tank '''{{PAGENAME}}'''
| usage = other uses
| link = Challenger (Disambiguation)
}}

== Description ==

[[File:GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|420px|thumb|left]]
{{Break}}
The '''{{Specs|name}}''' (shortened to '''CR2''') is a rank {{Specs|rank}} British medium tank {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update 1.87 "Locked On"]].

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===

[[File:Challenger 2 Density Visualisation.png|thumb|CR2 Frontal [[Protection Density Visualisation]]]]
The Challenger 2 reinforces the strengths of the Challenger 1 Mk.2/Mk.3, with extremely well protected turret cheeks and better UFP protection, while suffering from similar weaknesses - a particularly weak lower front plate and negligible side protection.

The Challenger 2 has a defined gun mantlet that is far larger in area compared to previous Challenger models. This mantlet is very weak in comparison to the rest of the turret, providing roughly 300 mm of RHAe protection, making it a glaring weakspot that easily results in the destruction of the gun breech and loss of turret crew. Additionally, the taller turret design exposes a weak frontal roof slope - while this is a somewhat small vulnerability, penetration may result in the gunner or commander's incapacitation.

Similarly to the Challenger 1s, the driver's hatch on the Challenger 2 is a significant weakness that compromises the well protected UFP. The hatch has no composite behind it and provides at best 100 mm of RHA protection. As such, the Challenger 2 thrives in hull-down positions where minimal vulnerabilities are exposed and it can retreat into further cover if one of the few weak spots are penetrated. In situations where protective positioning is not an option, the Challenger 2 should be used conservatively and carefully, avoiding direct confrontation wherever possible.

If direct melee confrontation with Soviet medium tanks is impossible to avoid, operator should note, that, due to design differences, Challenger 2 towers over tanks like [[T-64B]] and at point blank (almost ramming range), LFP becomes untargetable for them, while UFP and turret take such a high angle, that even upgraded APDSFS of theirs have problems penetrating them. While it's very unlikely that rank VI or VII player will be this startled, Challenger 2 can survive about two to three panic shots like this.

If enemy was not confused by your aggression and immediately fired at driver's hatch or gun mantlet, the outcome will then be decided by amount of ammunition still stored inside of tank turret. If it was low enough, and enemy didn't account for it, then, depending on shell used, tank will lose either driver, loader, gunner or gun breech.

During urban combat it is also important to remember, that Challenger 2 hull is very big and long, compared to small Soviet MBT it feels like a landship, and it can block entire street with just it's hull if it was immobilized, rendering your teammates unable to assist. It is also very heavy and hard to push around, so they won't be able to just move you out of the way. Keep yourself closer to walls and avoid narrow streets, if you want to be helped.

=== Mobility ===


{{tankMobility|abMinHp=1,886|rbMinHp=1,076|AoAweight=1.1}}

The {{PAGENAME}} is fitted with a similar twin turbo V12 diesel engine to the Challenger 1, producing a maximum of 1,200 horsepower. The {{PAGENAME}} can reach a maximum forward speed of 66 km/h (41 mph) in AB and 59 km/h (37 mph) in RB. The vehicle's stock performance is lacklustre, with acceleration and manoeuvrability suffering due to the {{PAGENAME}}'s 62.5 tonne total weight. However, once all upgrades are researched, the {{PAGENAME}} performs acceptably, despite being generally out-classed by competitor vehicles like the M1A2 and T-80U. The {{PAGENAME}} also utilises a fully functional neutral steering system, and even when stock the vehicle's neutral steering ability is admirable - easiest used with manual gear selection to avoid shifting during traverse. Notably, the {{PAGENAME}}'s reverse speed is quite comfortable, with the vehicle capable of up to 36 km/h (RB/SB) backwards thanks to the two reverse gears.

== Armaments ==
=== Main armament ===

{{main|L30A1 (120 mm)}}

The Challenger 2's primary armament is the 120 mm L30A1 cannon. Unlike most modern MBT cannons, the L30A1 is rifled as opposed to smoothbore. This is primarily due to the British preference for HESH (High-Explosive Squash Head) ammunition availability, the design of which requires a rifled cannon for accurate fire. The rifled design has some positive attributes: it's extremely accurate with both HESH and APFSDS rounds, including at long range; however the downside is a limited selection of ammunition: the CR2 only has the L23A1 and L26 APFSDS rounds, the L31A7 HESH round and the L34 Smoke round available to it.

The L30A1 has a base reload time of 6.5 seconds, improving to 5 seconds with an aced crew. As a result, the Challenger 2 sports the fastest reloading 120 mm cannon in-game along with the [[Type 90]]'s autoloaded 120 mm (as of the time of writing). In addition, the Challenger 2 allows the L30A1 a comfortable 10° of gun depression and a reasonable turret traverse speed.

The characteristics of the CR2 in combination with the L30A1 weight the vehicle towards a long-range sniping playstyle, something the vehicle generally feels very comfortable doing as it minimises the inferior mobility of the vehicle by having it stay in the back, providing long range fire support and exploiting unaware enemies.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L30A1 (120 mm)|120 mm L30A1]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 50 || rowspan="2" | -10°/+20° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | Two-plane || 29.50 || 40.85 || 47.85 || 56.60 || 58.35 || rowspan="2" | 6.50 || rowspan="2" | 5.75 || rowspan="2" | 5.30 || rowspan="2" | 5.00
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 18.40 || 21.70 || 25.42 || 30.03 || 31.00
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | '''Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)'''
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 396 || 394 || 387 || 376 || 367 || 357
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 471 || 469 || 464 || 457 || 450 || 443
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="10" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 1,535 || 3.89 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 670 || 17.1 || 0.4 || 0.1 || 5,250 || 73° || 77° || 80°
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 1,550 || 4.1 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="7" | Smoke shell characteristics
|-
! Ammunition
! Velocity (m/s)
! Projectile Mass (kg)
! Screen radius (m)
! Screen deploy time (s)
! Screen hold time (s)
! Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
|-
| L34 || 670 || 17.1 || 20 || 5 || 25 || 50
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! 5th rack empty
! 6th rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''50''' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __
|-
|}

=== Machine guns ===

{{main|L37A2 (7.62 mm)|L94A1 (7.62 mm)}}

The Challenger 2 possesses one pintle-mounted 7.62 mm machine gun and one coaxial 7.62 mm machine gun. While these aren't particularly effective against aircraft, they can be used as a deterrent, and lucky shots may result in critical damage or pilot snipes. Besides anti-aircraft fire, they're useful for clearing light obstacles and the crew of open-top vehicles.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L37A2 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L37A2]]
|-
! Mount
! Capacity (Belt capacity)
! Rate of fire (shots/minute)
! Vertical guidance
! Horizontal guidance
|-
| Pintle || 1,700 (100) || 650 || -10°/+50° || ±180°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L94A1 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L94A1]]
|-
! Mount
! Capacity (Belt capacity)
! Rate of fire (shots/minute)
! Vertical guidance
! Horizontal guidance
|-
| Coaxial || 2,300 (2,000) || 600 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==

The Challenger 2 excels as a sniper or a support tank, and should be played as such whenever possible. As such, it's important to try to find reasonable cover, regardless of the situation, with the ideal position being hull-down, preferably with some degree of angling available to maximise the bouncing capability of the frontal turret roof section. The Challenger 2 is the slowest of the top rank MBTs - a fact which is extremely important to keep in mind when using it - and as such should never be expected to rush points or used for quick flanks.

'''Rural Combat'''

The CR2 is most comfortable in rural combat, where cover is generally plentiful and targets will often open themselves to fire when moving forward. This is particularly perceptible on maps such as [[Maginot Line (Ground Forces)|Maginot Line]], where, in most configurations, the main routes to capture points are open to snipers on hills throughout the landscape. In these situations the CR2 excels, able to hold a defensive position while protecting team members in faster MBTs and covering capture points.

'''Urban Combat'''

The Challenger 2 is less agreeable in urban situations, where proper cover is more rare and its fatal weak points are often more exposed. In some situations, such as [[Alaska]], the opportunity may arise to flank around the side roads and pick a somewhat protected position behind the ridges lining them. However, in other maps like [[American Desert]] or [[Cargo Port]] proper hull-down cover is sparse and the vehicle can only be utilised without proper protection. In situations such as this, the Challenger 2 is best played defensively holding angles and slowly pushing forward with careful attention to the local surroundings and where opposing vehicles may appear from.

'''Notable Targets'''

* '''[[Leopard 2A5]]:''' The 2A5 should be engaged with care: it has better overall protection than the Challenger 2, and in many situations can appear near-impossible to destroy at range. Aim for the gun mantlet with at least the intention of disabling the weapon; some rounds may make it past and knock crew out. If the frontal hull is presented, aim for the left side of the hull as usually the driver, gunner and commander are all lined up so they can be knocked out all at the same time, resulting in the Leopard's destruction.

* '''[[Leclerc]]:''' The Leclerc is in possession of one of the few rounds capable of penetrating the Challenger 2 UFP reliably. When in combat with the Leclerc, it's important to expose as little of the CR2 as possible - if the Leclerc is able to destroy your weapon, it will often be able to use its high speed to get close enough to finish you off.

* '''[[Ariete|C1 Ariete]]/[[Ariete PSO]]:''' The C1 Ariete and Ariete PSO with the CL1343 shell can penetrate nearly anywhere on the Challenger 2, with the exception of the outer turret cheeks (and even then, at close ranges and particular angles, it can even punch through those). As such, it's a potent sniper and should be handled with care. Fortunately, the Ariete MBTs have somewhat sub-par protection characteristics, and the Challenger 2 will often prove itself capable of quickly dispatching an Ariete at range.

=== Modules ===
{| class="wikitable"
! Tier
! colspan="2" | Mobility
! Protection
! colspan="3" | Firepower
|-
| I
| Tracks
|
| Parts
| Horizontal Drive
| Smoke grenade
|
|-
| II
| Suspension
| Brake System
| FPE
| Adjustment of Fire
| NVD
|
|-
| III
| Filters
|
| Crew Replenishment
| Elevation Mechanism
| Dorchester 2E
| L34
|-
| IV
| Transmission
| Engine
| ESS
| Laser rangefinder
| L26
| Artillery Support
|-
|}

=== Pros and cons ===


'''Pros:'''

* Extremely accurate main cannon
* Good gunner optics
* 10° of gun depression
* Fast reload, particularly for a 120 mm
* Extremely good turret cheek protection
* Good UFP protection
* 36 km/h reverse speed
* Has ESS, smoke shells and smoke grenades
* Can get upgraded chemical protection with Dorchester battle pack

'''Cons:'''

* A CR2 with an exposed hull is extremely vulnerable
* Negligible LFP armour
* Cannon surround has negligible armour
* The frontal turret roof is somewhat vulnerable to chemical rounds
* Ammunition is strewn throughout the vehicle, penetration often results in ammo detonation
* Sub-par acceleration and top speed relative to many other MBTs
* Prior to mobility upgrades being researched, manual neutral gear selection is required for reasonable hull traverse

== History ==

Work on developing a successor to the Challenger 1 began only a short time after the vehicle entered service with the British armed forces. Already by the mid-1980s, the Vickers company had developed a new MBT as part of a private venture. After requirements for a next-generation MBT have been issued, Vickers immediately submitted their design on the new Challenger 2 to the Ministry of Defence. Having briefly considered the adoption of the M1 Abrams, the Ministry decided to proceed with the Vickers design by ordering the construction of a prototype Challenger 2 for testing and evaluation. The Challenger 2 passed the evaluation and met expectations even when put through comparative testing against contemporary MBTs of other nations, such as the American M1 Abrams and German Leopard 2. Satisfied with the test results, the Ministry of Defence adopted the Challenger 2 and placed the first production order in 1993, with the initial batch consisting of 127 tanks in addition to 13 trainer vehicles. The first Challenger 2 tanks were delivered to the tank regiments by 1994. The Challenger 2 participated in several operations during the '90s and into the 2000s, ranging from peacekeeping missions on the Balkans to military interventions in Iraq. A number of Challenger 2 MBTs have also been exported to Oman, with this nation being the only operator of the Challenger 2, besides the UK. Production of Challenger 2 tanks seized in 2002 after all pending production orders were fulfilled, with close to 440 vehicles being produced. Since 2008, Challenger 2 tanks have constantly been undergoing modernization work, with a number of upgrade packages being developed. Thanks to these upgrades, the Challenger 2 MBT is expected to serve with the British Army well into the future.

''- From [[wt:en/news/6035-development-challenger-2-and-rank-vii-armored-vehicles-en|Devblog]]''

== Media ==

{{Youtube-gallery|7YrtSp7ADe8|'''The Shooting Range #146''' - ''Metal Beasts'' section at 00:32 discusses the Challenger 2.}}{{Youtube-gallery|re-zMIOtSk0=}}

== See also ==
''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''

* ''reference to the series of the vehicles;''
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.''

== External links ==


* [[wt:en/news/6035-development-challenger-2-and-rank-vii-armored-vehicles-en|[Devblog] Challenger 2 and rank VII armored vehicles]]

{{Britain medium tanks}}

Vickers Mk.7

2020-09-01T04:24:16Z

U9115888: Added information and diagrams to the Ammo racks section. Wasn't sure the best way to mark charge positions so used C# markers and explained in notes below the rack table.

{{Specs-Card|code=uk_vickers_mk7}}

== Description ==

[[File:GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|420px|thumb|left]]
{{Break}}
The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} British medium tank {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update 1.93 "Shark Attack"]].

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===
''Describe armour protection. Note the most well protected and key weak areas. Appreciate the layout of modules as well as the number and location of crew members. Is the level of armour protection sufficient, is the placement of modules helpful for survival in combat? If necessary use a visual template to indicate the most secure and weak zones of the armour.''

=== Mobility ===


{{tankMobility|abMinHp= 2,032|rbMinHp= 1,327}}

== Armaments ==
=== Main armament ===

{{main|L11A5 (120 mm)}}

The Mk. 7 uses the same L11A5 120mm rifled gun that the Challenger I uses. Shell loadout is identical and works well for mid-Cold War era tanks such as the Type 90, Leopard 2A4, T-64/T-72/T-80B, etc., but may struggle when fighting more modern vehicles such as the Leopard 2A5, T-80U, Leclerc, etc.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L11A5 (120 mm)|120 mm L11A5]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 50 || rowspan="2" | -10°/+20° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | Two-plane || 29.5 ||4.08||49.6||54.9||58.4|| rowspan="2" | 7.8 || rowspan="2" |6.9|| rowspan="2" |6.4|| rowspan="2" | 6.0
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 18.4 ||21.7||26.4||29.1|| 31.0
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | '''Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)'''
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152
|-
| Shot L23 || APFSDS || 410 || 408 || 405 || 400 || 390 || 380
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 396 || 394 || 387 || 376 || 367 || 357
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="10" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 670 || 17.1 || 0.4 || 0.1 || 5,248 || 73° || 77° || 80°
|-
| Shot L23 || APFSDS || 1,535 || 3.89 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 76° || 77° || 78°
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 1,535 || 3.89 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
|}

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="7" | Smoke shell characteristics
|-
! Ammunition
! Velocity (m/s)
! Projectile Mass (kg)
! Screen radius (m)
! Screen deploy time (s)
! Screen hold time (s)
! Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
|-
| L34 || 670 || 17.1 || 20 || 5 || 25 || 50
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====
[[File:Ammoracks Vickers Mk.7.png|thumb|[[Ammo racks]] of the Vickers Mk.7.]]
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! 5th rack empty
! colspan="2" |Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''50''' || 47 ''(+3)'' || 15 ''(+35)'' || ''10 (+40)'' || 7 ''(+43)'' || 1 ''(+49)''
| colspan="2" |No
|-
!Full charges
!1st rack empty
!2nd rack empty
!3rd rack empty
!4th rack empty
!5th rack empty
!6th
rack empty
!Visual discrepancy
|-
|'''50'''
|47 ''(+3)''
|18 ''(+32)''
|15 ''(+35)''
|9 ''(+41)''
|4 ''(+46)''
|1 ''(+49)''
|No
|-
|}
[[File:AmmoRacksVickersMk7Pt2.png|thumb|[[Ammo racks]] of the Vickers Mk. 7. Additional Charges not visible in first image.]]
Notes:

* Due to British two stage ammunition, Warheads are marked with numbers (1, 2, etc.), and Charges are marked with numbers preceded by C (C1, C2, etc.).
* In the case of Warhead racks 1 and 4 and Charge racks C3 and C6, the first half are taken out first, and the second half at a later time, and are therefore referred to as two racks.

=== Machine guns ===

{{main|L8A2 (7.62 mm)}}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L8A2 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L8A2]]
|-
! Mount
! Capacity (Belt capacity)
! Fire rate (shots/minute)
! Vertical guidance
! Horizontal guidance
|-
| Coaxial || 2,000 (200) || 600 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==
''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''

=== Modules ===
{| class="wikitable"
! Tier
! colspan="2" | Mobility
! Protection
! colspan="3" | Firepower
|-
| I
| Tracks
|
| Parts
| Horizontal Drive
|
|
|-
| II
| Suspension
| Brake System
| FPE
| Adjustment of Fire
| NVD
|
|-
| III
| Filters
|
| Crew Replenishment
| Elevation Mechanism
| L34
| Smoke grenade
|-
| IV
| Transmission
| Engine
|
| Artillery Support
| Shot L23A1
| Laser rangefinder
|-
|}

=== Pros and cons ===
''Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in a bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".''

'''Pros:'''

*

'''Cons:'''

*

== History ==

In the mid 1980's, Vickers Defence Systems developed a new MBT as a private venture to find a successor to the Challenger back in following official specifications. The Vickers Mk.7 is a further development of the earlier Vickers Mk.4 Valiant main battle tank. The tank was very similar to the Mk.4, using the same "Valiant" or universal turret that the Mk.4 used, but being built with a Leopard 2 chassis, along with an MTU engine supplied by Krauss-Maffei. The tank was never adopted into service by the British Army, but its design was used as a base for the [[Challenger 2|Challenger II MBT]]. The Vickers Mk.7 tank was actively offered for export, however it also received no production orders from other countries. Therefore only one Vickers Mk.7 prototype has been built.

Despite its naming, the tank has no relation to the Mk.1 [[Vickers MBT]] sitting at rank V.

===[[wt:en/news/6438-development-vickers-mk-7-the-steel-centaur-en|Devblog]]===
Following the failure of the previous Mk. 4 Valiant project, Vickers continued work on their design, confident in its success. As a result, Vickers developed the Mk.7 tank in the late 1980s on the basis of the previous Mk.4, hoping that it could be seen as a potential replacement for the Challenger 1. The new Mk.7 featured the existing turret of the Mk.4, though fitted to a Leopard 2 chassis.

Contrary to expectations, the British armed forces didn’t procure the Mk.7, and so, the focus shifted towards the export market, similarly as was the case with the Mk.4 Valiant. Vickers developed an improved version of the vehicle, capable of mounting a variety of different 120mm cannons, in an effort to attract foreign interest. However, the high cost of the Vickers Mk.7 achieved only the contrary, with potential foreign interest being lost to other, more economical designs on the market.

Additionally, by the end of the 1980s, Germany imposed a ban on military equipment sales to countries in unstable regions, mainly those in the Middle East. Vickers, using the German-built Leopard 2 chassis, was therefore prevented from making sales to the most promising potential buyer of the Mk.7 - the United Arab Emirates.

Due to the high production costs resulting in low foreign interest in the vehicle, as well as dependency on outside factors, further development of the Vickers Mk.7 was officially halted, with only a single prototype being built for testing. However, although the Vickers Mk.7 itself became, in the end, another failed project, much of the experiences gained during its development found use in the creation of the far more successful Challenger 2.

== Media ==

{{Youtube-gallery|NHRUSJ79Re4|'''The Shooting Range #175''' - ''Metal Beasts'' section at 00:38 discusses the Vickers Mk.7.}}

== See also ==


* [[Vickers MBT]] — The early little brother of the Mk.7.
* [[Challenger Mk.2]] / [[Challenger Mk.3]] — The predecessors.
* [[Challenger 2]] — The production model.

== External links ==


* [[wt:en/news/6438-development-vickers-mk-7-the-steel-centaur-en|[Devblog] Vickers Mk.7: The Steel Centaur]]

{{Britain medium tanks}}

File:Ammoracks Vickers Mk.7.png

2020-09-01T04:19:54Z

U9115888:

Ammo racks of the Vickers Mk.7.

File:Ammoracks Vickers Mk.7 (2).png

2020-09-01T04:10:19Z

U9115888:

Ammo racks of the Vickers Mk. 7. Additional Charges not visible in first image.

Challenger (Disambiguation)

2020-09-01T03:27:22Z

U9115888: Added Challenger 2 (2F) to disambiguation.

{{DISPLAYTITLE:Challenger (Disambiguation)}}

'''Challenger''' may refer to:

==Rank III Vehicle==

* [[Challenger|A30 Challenger]]

==Rank VI Vehicle==

* [[Challenger Mk.2]]
* [[Challenger Mk.3]]

==Rank VII Vehicle==

* [[Challenger 2]]
* [[Challenger 2 (2F)]]

[[Category:Disambiguation pages]]

Challenger 2 (2F)

2020-08-31T03:19:16Z

U9115888: Expanded survivability section with armour values and details of survivability and weakspots.

{{Specs-Card|code=uk_challenger_2_dorchester}}

== Description ==

[[File:GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|420px|thumb|left]]
{{Break}}
The '''{{Specs|name}}''' is a rank {{Specs|rank}} British medium tank {{Battle-rating}}. It was introduced in [[Update "Starfighters"]].

== General Info ==
=== Survivability and Armour ===

The Challenger 2 (2F) was created to give increased protection against shaped charges and as much is evident when evaluating the armour. While the internal composite armour remains the same from the previous variant, a large amount of external composite and ERA has been added to the hull front and sides as well as the turret sides. Additional slat armour has also been mounted to the sides and rear of the hull and turret.

With the only real change being the additional external armour, the same structural weakspots that exist on the Challenger 2 remain on the 2F. The large driver's port is an obvious target for enemy armour, which can penetrate it at almost any angle due to only RHA protection. Kinetic rounds aimed through the driver's port from the direct or near-direct front will often go straight through the tank, often taking several crew members, the cannon breach or the engine, occasionally resulting in a knocked out crew. Chemical rounds are less effective but fragments may set off the charges stored next to the driver, especially when fired at from above.

The gun mantlet is also a large weakspot, although kinetic rounds will be most effective, as chemical rounds will often only knock out the cannon breach or be blocked by the optics mounted at the top of the gun, which will allow the tank to pull back and repair provided it has the distance to do so. Kinetic rounds will often not fragment properly, going straight through the back of the turret, at max taking out two crew members due to the breach acting as a shield to the other side of the turret. Only when attacking from above will rounds have a significant chance of detonating ammunition due to the 2 stage system used by British tanks. Any ammunition stored in the turret will be warheads which are not able to be detonated.

As with the last variant and many other MBTs, the sides have no real kinetic protection, however the 2F has additional protection against chemical rounds. Most shots to the side of the front half of the turret have a high likelihood of taking out the cannon breach and a crew member, occasionally knocking out 2 or 3 crew. Any shots the the back half of the turret from the side will be ineffective due to the large amount of empty space. Aiming low on the tank's hull will give the best results for penetration and ammo detonation. Despite the additional ERA on the lower frontal plate, chemical rounds such as the German DM12A1 can still get through, and can get through the side mounted composite screens on a flat angle (0-25°).

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || 38-50 mm (56-83°) ''Upper Plate''
70 mm (31-34°) ''Lower Glacis'' 60 mm (0-80°) ''Driver's Port''
| 25 mm Top (70°)
25 mm Middle (0°) 38 mm ''Bottom'' (0°)
| 25 mm (32°) || 10-20 mm
|-
| Turret || 38 - 50 mm (56-82°) ''Turret Front'' 30 mm (3-82°) ''Gun Mantlet'' || 20-25 mm (8-10°) || 20 mm (18°) || 10-38 mm
|-
| Cupola || 8 mm (3-78°) || 8 mm (9-60°) || 8 mm (1-80°) || 44-60 mm
|-
!Composite Armour
!Front
! colspan="3" |Sides
|-
|Hull
|'''Upper'''
Kinetic: 420-1000mm Chemical: 700-950mm

'''Lower''' Kinetic: 100-400mm

Chemical: 350-570mm
| colspan="3" |'''Ext. Composite with NERA:'''
Kinetic: 30mm Chemical: 400mm
|-
|Turret
|'''Turret Cheeks'''
Kinetic: 440-720mm

Chemical: 780-1000mm
| colspan="3" |'''Internal Composite'''
Kinetic: 190-740mm

Chemical: 300-1000mm

'''Ext. Composite with NERA'''

Kinetic: 30mm Chemical: 400mm
|-
|}

'''Notes:'''

* ''Upper Frontal Plate'' has additional 10mm external plate.
* ''Lower Frontal Plate'' has 25.4mm external steel and ROMOR-A ERA.
* Parts of the side and rear hull have mounted Slat Armour (50mm Chemical Protection).


=== Mobility ===

''Write about the mobility of the ground vehicle. Estimate the specific power and manoeuvrability, as well as the maximum speed forwards and backwards.''

{{tankMobility|abMinHp=1,886|rbMinHp=1,076|AoAweight=1.1|weight=63.6}}

== Armaments ==
=== Main armament ===

{{main|L30A1 (120 mm)}}

''Give the reader information about the characteristics of the main gun. Assess its effectiveness in a battle based on the reloading speed, ballistics and the power of shells. Do not forget about the flexibility of the fire, that is how quickly the cannon can be aimed at the target, open fire on it and aim at another enemy. Add a link to the main article on the gun: <code><nowiki>{{main|Name of the weapon}}</nowiki></code>. Describe in general terms the ammunition available for the main gun. Give advice on how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage.''

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L30A1 (120 mm)|120 mm L30A1]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 50 || rowspan="2" | -10°/+20° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | Two-plane || 29.5 || 40.8 || __.__ || __.__ || 58.4 || rowspan="2" | 6.50 || rowspan="2" | _.__ || rowspan="2" | _.__ || rowspan="2" | 5.00
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 18.4 || 21.7 || __.__ || __.__ || 31.0
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="8" | Penetration statistics
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! colspan="6" | '''Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)'''
|-
! 10 m !! 100 m !! 500 m !! 1,000 m !! 1,500 m !! 2,000 m
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 396 || 394 || 387 || 376 || 367 || 357
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 471 || 469 || 464 || 457 || 450 || 443
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152 || 152
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
! colspan="10" | Shell details
|-
! rowspan="2" data-sort-type="text" | Ammunition
! rowspan="2" | Type of warhead
! rowspan="2" | Velocity (m/s)
! rowspan="2" | Projectile Mass (kg)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse delay (m)
! rowspan="2" | Fuse sensitivity (mm)
! rowspan="2" | Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
! colspan="3" | Ricochet
|-
! 0% !! 50% !! 100%
|-
| Shot L23A1 || APFSDS || 1,535 || 3.89 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
| L26 || APFSDS || 1,550 || 4.10 || N/A || N/A || N/A || 78° || 80° || 81°
|-
| Shell L31A7 || HESH || 670 || 17.10 || 0.4 || 0.1 || 5,250 || 73° || 77° || 80°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="7" | Smoke shell characteristics
|-
! Ammunition
! Velocity (m/s)
! Projectile Mass (kg)
! Screen radius (m)
! Screen deploy time (s)
! Screen hold time (s)
! Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
|-
| L34 || 670 || 17.1 || 20 || 5 || 25 || 50
|-
|}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full ammo
! 1st rack empty
! 2nd rack empty
! 3rd rack empty
! 4th rack empty
! 5th rack empty
! 6th rack empty
! Visual discrepancy
|-
| '''50''' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __ ''(+__)'' || __
|-
|}

=== Machine guns ===

{{main|L37A2 (7.62 mm)|L94A1 (7.62 mm)}}

''Offensive and anti-aircraft machine guns not only allow you to fight some aircraft but also are effective against lightly armoured vehicles. Evaluate machine guns and give recommendations on its use.''

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L37A2 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L37A2]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Pintle || 1,700 (100) || 650 || -10°/+50° || ±180°
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[L94A1 (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm L94A1]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 2,300 (2,000) || 600 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==

''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''

=== Modules ===
{| class="wikitable"
! Tier
! colspan="2" | Mobility
! Protection
! colspan="3" | Firepower
|-
| I
|Tracks
|
|Parts
|Horizontal drive
|L34
|
|-
| II
|Suspension
|Brake System
|FPE
|Adjustment of Fire
|NVD
|
|-
| III
|Filters
|
|Crew Replenishment
|Elevation Mechanism
|Dorchester 2F
|
|-
| IV
|Transmission
|Engine
|ESS
|Laser rangefinder
|L26
|Artillery Support
|-
|}

=== Pros and cons ===

''Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in a bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".''

'''Pros:'''

*

'''Cons:'''

*

== History ==

''Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under <code><nowiki>=== In-game description ===</nowiki></code>, also if applicable).''

== Media ==

''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.''

== See also ==

''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''

* ''reference to the series of the vehicles;''
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.''

== External links ==

''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''

* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''encyclopedia page on the tank;''
* ''other literature.''

{{Britain medium tanks}}