H.35

H.35

H.35

France

I Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
1.0	1.0	1.0

Class:

Light tank

Research:2 900

Purchase:700

Description

The Char léger modèle 1935 H (Hotchkiss light tank model 1935) is a rank I French light tank with a battle rating of 1.0 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.75 "La Résistance". The H.35 was removed from its reserve status and hidden from the main tech tree during Update 1.85 "Supersonic" after the ammo update, though it is still unlockable after reaching rank II French ground vehicles. During its session in the main tree, it was arguably the worst reserve vehicle in War Thunder.

General info

Survivability and armour

The armour is decent and it will protect you from incoming long-range shots... but nothing more than that. At close ranges, anything bigger than HMG fire can shred your tank very easily. If you're lucky enough to survive a shot, retreat and ask your allies for help.

Armour type:

• Cast homogeneous armour (hull, turret, cupola)

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	34 mm (8-87°) Front plate 22 mm (75-85°) Upper glacis 34 mm (31°) Central glacis 34 mm (30°) Lower glacis	34 mm (21-33°) Top 34 mm Bottom	34 mm (31°) Top 34 mm Bottom (7-32°)	22 mm (11-18°)
Turret	45 + 25 mm (5°) Turret front 45 mm (28-30°) Left side 25 mm (10-19°) Gun mantlet 35 mm (8-25°) View port	40 mm (1-28°) 35 mm (6-16°) View ports	40 mm (30°)	25 mm
Cupola	40 mm (spherical)

Notes:

• Suspension wheels, bogies, and tracks are all 15 mm thick.
• Belly is 8 mm thick.
• Gun barrel is 10 mm thick.

Mobility

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	32	6	10.6	81	143	7.64	13.49
Realistic	29	6		66	75	6.23	7.08

With its low speed, don't even dream of bold flanking manœuvres, you must rely on road and downhills in order to achieve a decent speed. Climbing hills and turning on the spot are also a hard thing to achieve while driving this vehicle. The only thing "light" about this tank is the weight.

Armaments

Main armament

37 mm SA18 L/21					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	76	-13°/+20°	±180°	Shoulder	15.0	20.7	25.1	27.8	29.6	4.03	3.56	3.28	3.10
Realistic					9.3	11.0	13.3	14.8	15.7

With only 36 mm of penetration, poor post-penetration damage and a long reload time, this tank's main gun is the main failing of the H.35. With -13° of depression, it is actually a very depressing gun to shoot in a figurative and literal sense.

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
Mle1937	APCR	36	33	24	16	8	5

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile Mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
Mle1937	APCR	600	0.5	N/A	N/A	N/A	66°	70°	72°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the H.35

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	5th rack empty	6th rack empty	7th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
76	75 (+1)	62 (+14)	49 (+27)	36 (+40)	23 (+53)	10 (+66)	1 (+75)	Yes

Notes:

• The visual discrepancy concerns the total number of shells as well as the number of shells per rack:
  • 100 shells are modeled but you can only pack 76 shells, meaning some racks always empty (crossed out in the picture).
  • Rack 1 is modeled as 6 shells but contains only 2 shells.
• As they are modeled by sets of 6 or 7, shells disappear from racks 2 to 6 only after you fire all shells in the set.
• Rack 7 disappears after you've fired all shells in the rack.

Machine guns

7.5 mm MAC 31
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Coaxial	2,400 (150)	1,350	N/A	N/A

The small calibre of the MAC 31 machine gun makes it largely ineffective against all armoured vehicles but the ones with an open compartment. It still can be used to ping targets as a rangefinding help or to mow down minor obstacles blocking your line of sight.

Usage in battles

Playing the H.35 is a hard task. Having such a bad gun, it cannot reliably engage a fight without getting the first shot off; hence, one must stick with its teammates in order to survive an encounter. Never drag attention on yourself since anything bigger than HMG fire will shred you at normal combat ranges (~500 m).

Tactics

Hull down:

Since your turret armour is decent, a good way to use this tank can be to hide the hull behind a rock, a hill or any shell-proof prop and wait for the enemy to fall in your sights. This way, you will either be able to shoot at their weak side or have enough time to aim before they can react to your presence. Ensure yourself to pick a spot near a choke-point such as a capture point or a popular main road.

"Brawling":

In urban maps, narrow streets and crossroad allow for many flanking and close-quarter action: follow your team, always cover behind allied vehicles and don't bother stealing a score from them since it's about the only good shots you will get on an enemy with such a poor vehicle.

Fleeing:

Turn your back to the enemy and use your engine deck as a shield for the crew. Use this tactic anytime you are left alone and go find yourself another teammate. Don't use your reverse speed since it's too low: turn back and flee, your armour is as thick as on the front of your tank. Never stop to try a shot since your pursuers have a way better gun than yours.

Modules

Tier	Mobility		Protection	Firepower
I	Tracks		Parts	Horizontal Drive
II	Suspension	Brake System	FPE	Adjustment of Fire
III	Filters		Crew Replenishment	Elevation Mechanism
IV	Transmission	Engine		Artillery Support

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Decent armour for its BR (at distances)
• Good depression of -13°
• Tiny target
• Thick and sloped turret makes a good hull-down position
• Coaxial MAC 31 MG

Cons:

• Arguably the worst beginner ground vehicle: very frustrating to play
• It has the worst APCR-shot in the entire game
• APCR deals only punctual damage: unable to one-shot anything but other French light tanks
• Reload speed is a little on the slow side for the calibre
• Not very mobile for a light tank
• Tracks are narrow, offering poor cross-country capability
• HP/ton ratio is unsatisfying (8.49 HP/ton)
• Only two crew member allows for no survivability, and barely so with crew replenishment

History

Officially known as the Char Leger mle 1935 Hotchkiss (Hotchkiss Light Tank model 1935), this was a competitor with Renault's R.35 to replace the WWI-era FT-17 as France's infantry tank. While the infantry went with the R.35, the French cavalry adopted the H.35 to serve alongside the S.35 Somua. The R.35 and H.35 were very similar in construction and visual appearance, with the same turret and the SA 18 37mm main gun, a tank gun conversion of a 1916 infantry gun. Both tanks also used a cast hull, a novel idea in 1935. As with all French tanks, none were equipped with radios. The H.35, as a cavalry tank was heavier but also somewhat faster than the R.35.

In total 400 of the Hotchkiss model would be built, 300 for the cavalry and another 100 for the 13th and 38th independent tank battalions. Cavalry units equipped with the H.35 during the fall of France included the 4th Cuirassiers, the 11th (Motorized), 13th, 18th and 29th Dragoons, the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Armored Car Regiments, and the 5th Divisional Reconnaissance Group, in total comprising 16 squadrons of 16-20 tanks each. Another three H.35s were on trials with the Polish Army at the onset of war in September 1939. They, along with 4 stray R.35s, fought in an ad hoc unit on the Ukrainian front until the fall of Poland.

Another 900 R.35s, using the same turret, the SA 18 gun and a very similar hull, were in service in 1940, in 20 tank battalions, making it the most common tank in French service during the war. In total, somewhere between 1400 and 2000 of the Renault model would be built. Another 190 of the R.35s were exported pre-war, to Poland (50), Yugoslavia (50), Turkey (50), and Romania (40). Most of those in Polish service was with the 21st Light Tank Battalion, which escaped to Romania without seeing combat; it is unclear how many of the Yugoslav-purchased tanks were even delivered before France fell, but those that arrived served with that country's 2nd Tank Battalion, which saw limited or no action during the 1941 invasion; after that country fell those R.35s would have been turned over to the Romanians as well. The Romanians would upgrade their R.35s with captured Russian 45 mm tank guns and continue to use them through to 1944.

The SA 18-armed R.35 also continued in service with Vichy France until 1942 and were used in fighting in Syria and North Africa. Another 124 SA 18-armed R.35s were turned over by the Germans to Italy, where they fought and were lost in the invasion of Sicily in 1942. The Germans converted another 174 R.35s to tank destroyers (PanzerJager), generally armed with 47mm guns in the place of turrets and used primarily in France and secondary theatres. 110 of these were still in service at the start of 1944. Syria would employ these tanks in the 1947-1949 Palestine War, however they were vastly outdated and were employed more for more of a fear factor than tactical use. They would also later be refit with a QF 2 pounder gun and used in the 1958 Lebanon Crisis and would be the last recorded use of the vehicle.

Media

The Shooting Range #80 - Pages of History section at 06:41 discusses the H.35.

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.