Type 69-IIa
| This page is about the gift Chinese medium tank Type 69-IIa. For other versions, see Type 69 (Family). |
Contents
Description
The Type 69-IIa is a premium gift rank V Chinese medium tank with a battle rating of 8.3 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced during Update "Drone Age" as a premium pack purchasable briefly in the Gaijin store during the 2022 "National Day of the People's Republic of China" mini-event.
An upgraded version of the Type 69-II medium tanks solely for exports orders, Type 69-IIA featured a very similar performance to a T-55A in Soviet service with most of their shells interchangeable. For players who need an extra tank for their line-up and been used to the performance of Warsaw Pact tanks, Type 69-IIA will not disappoint players with its variety of shells as well as better FCS for long-range fights.
Type 69-IIA was originally introduced in the Chinese (Tencent) server as a part of "The Might of Type 69" (六九扬威) event during the Update 1.69 "Regia Aeronautica" in 2017 as the National Day gift.[1]
(Sidenote: Dutch Youtuber MasterMilo's sponsored account is in fact the very first international server account to own Type 69-IIA in game for their efforts to repair a real one captured from Iraq by British forces[2])
General info
Survivability and armour
The overall appearance resembles a T-54/55 series medium tanks, but the tank itself is in fact the domestic modified version of WZ121 (Type 69) from Mainland China with a very similar appearance; Type 69-IIA includes side skirts and turret fences for extra protection against HEAT projectiles as a part of the demand of their customers (namely, Iraq), other than that it performs exactly like the main tech-tree Type 69 but armed with a rifled 100 mm gun instead. Since there were none ERA packages or applique armor from Mainland China, the protection and its layout is totally identical to Type 69; the wet ammo-rack might sometimes do magic against oncoming shots, but do not expect it can save players everytime as the odds for a ammo detonation is still high in this case.
Armour type:
| Armour | Front (Slope angle) | Sides | Rear | Roof |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hull | 100 mm (60°) UFP
100 mm (54°) LFP |
80 mm Top + 5 mm Side skirts 20 mm Bottom |
45 mm | 30 mm |
| Turret | 200 mm Turret front (Volumatic) 200 mm Gun mantlet (Volumatic) |
165 mm (Volumatic) | 65 mm (Volumatic) | 30 mm |
| Cupola | 100 mm | 40 mm | ||
Notes:
Mobility
Although claimed to be an upgrade from the original V-54/12V150L diesel engine, the engine (12V150L7BW) onboard shared the identical rated output at 580 hp as well as its top speed at 50 km/h; although it is better than some NATO tanks at the era in terms of power-to-weight ratio, in case of faster tanks such as Leopards and AMX-30s, it would be unlikely to outrun them to vantage points.
| Game Mode | Max Speed (km/h) | Weight (tons) | Engine power (horsepower) | Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | Reverse | Stock | Upgraded | Stock | Upgraded | ||
| Arcade | 56 | 9 | 36.7 | 899 | 1,107 | 24.5 | 30.16 |
| Realistic | 51 | 8 | 513 | 580 | 13.98 | 15.8 | |
Modifications and economy
2 × 140 / 200 / 250 % 2 × 208 / 208 / 208 % | Mobility | Protection | Firepower | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Armaments
Main armament
Due to the lack of firepower for the original Type 69 100 mm smoothbore cannon, Factory 617 rearmed later Type 69s variants with a Type 69-II rifled cannon of the same caliber where the earlier export tanks opted for as well. Although still being a rifled gun at its tier, the gun itself comes with a variety of Warsaw Pact/Chinese shells and slightly faster gun traverse speed thanks to new gun laying drivers.
| 100 mm Type 69-II | Turret rotation speed (°/s) | Reloading rate (seconds) | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mode | Capacity | Vertical | Horizontal | Stabilizer | Stock | Upgraded | Full | Expert | Aced | Stock | Full | Expert | Aced |
| Arcade | 44 | -4°/+18° | ±180° | Two-plane | 14.3 | 19.8 | 24.0 | 26.5 | 28.2 | 11.05 | 9.78 | 9.01 | 8.50 |
| Realistic | 8.9 | 10.5 | 12.8 | 14.1 | 15.0 | ||||||||
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 | ||
| Type 1959 APDS | APDS | 299 | 298 | 291 | 272 | 253 | 249 |
| Type 44 AP | APCBC | 239 | 236 | 220 | 202 | 186 | 170 |
| Type 1973 HEAT-FS | HEATFS | 390 | 390 | 390 | 390 | 390 | 390 |
| Type 44 HE | HE | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 19 |
| 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% | |||||||
| Type 1959 APDS | APDS | 1,432 | 3.18 | N/A | N/A | N/A | 75° | 78° | 80° |
| Type 44 AP | APCBC | 887 | 15.9 | 1.2 | 19 | 93.94 | 48° | 63° | 71° |
| Type 1973 HEAT-FS | HEATFS | 1,000 | 10.05 | 0.05 | 0.1 | 1,180 | 65° | 72° | 77° |
| Type 44 HE | HE | 900 | 15.6 | 0 | 0.1 | 1,460 | 79° | 80° | 81° |
Type 69-IIA shares very similar shells to a Type 59 with a rifled gun, but in Type 69-IIA's case, it has slightly different types of shells including APFSDS. Since it is a premium tank, all the rounds onboard comes researched.
One of the first stock shells, Type 59 APDS, is identical to Soviet's 3BM3 with sufficient penetration at its tier to deal with medium tanks of its tier; although it might have some trouble against tanks with rounded hull or late-WWII/Cold-War heavy tanks such as Pattons, M103 and Maus. Do remember to place the shots on their weakspots. Since it is a premium tank, this round can be ditched for good.
The other stock shell, Type 44 HE (OF-412), is again find on many tanks with D-10T cannon; due to its lesser explosive content and penetration to other larger caliber shells, it would only be good for taking out SPAAGs or light/open-top vehicles. Since it is a premium tank, this round can be ditched for good.
The first researchable shell,Type 44 AP (BR-412D), is again a common shell for 100 mm rifled guns on both Warsaw-Pact/Chinese tanks; infamous for its explosive content and sufficiently high penetration, any penetrated shots on enemy tanks are very likely knock them down right away if not sustained severe damages. In case for flanking assaults, this will be one of the go-to shell for Type 69-IIA.
The other researchable shell, 3BM25 can be found on Soviet T-55s as one of their later shells for research; although NORINCO did have their version of 100 mm steel/tungsten-core; steel rod darts, 69-IIA opted for 3BM25 instead; the overall performance is good enough to penetrate most targets at its tier as well, but in case of facing mid-Cold War Soviet tanks such as T-64A it would be very struggling to penetrate it unless at point blank range. For most sniping operations, 3BM25 will be the go-to shell for it.
The last researchable shell, Type 73 HEAT, is identical to Soviet 3BK17M. Although it might not have the highest penetration among other HEAT-FS at its tier, it is still sufficient to take-down well-armored targets with its 390 mm penetration; while lighter vehicles will have to face 10 kg of explosive contents that is more than enough to overpressure them right away, in most cases this will also be the go-to shell as well.
Ammo racks
| Full ammo |
1st rack empty |
2nd rack empty |
3rd rack empty |
4th rack empty |
5th rack empty |
6th rack empty |
Visual discrepancy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 44 | 43 (+1) | 38 (+6) | 34 (+10) | 22 (+22) | 20 (+24) | 1 (+43) | No |
Machine guns
Like most Chinese tanks of the era, it is equipped with a DShK (Type 53) HMG on the commander's side of turret; although having only 50 rounds per load, the penetration and caliber along can make sure aircrafts that get too close will not have a good time, sometimes even score a kill.
| 12.7 mm DShK | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount | Capacity (Belt) | Fire rate | Vertical | Horizontal |
| Pintle | 500 (50) | 600 | -10°/+60° | ±180° |
| 7.62 mm SGMT | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount | Capacity (Belt) | Fire rate | Vertical | Horizontal |
| Coaxial | 3,500 (250) | 600 | N/A | N/A |
Usage in battles
Players who own a T-55A or Type 69 in their respective tech tree will get on hands of Type 69-IIA very quickly as both of them shared many features including a two-plane stabilizer and very similar appearance; but players will soon find a distinctive feature on 69-IIA: its fences on the turret, it might make it somewhat bold in terms of its look, these fences still have some chances to stop HEAT shells from lower tiers by detonating them before hitting the turret. Other than it, most of its performance is identical to Type 69 but being a bit heavier; the overall mobility is identical though. Do note that the overall turret traverse speed is not as fast as its NATO competitors and it currently lacks a LRF (the small box mounted on the centerline of the tank, on the mantle) and automatic ballistic solution, so be extra careful for long-range engagement and close-quarter brawling; be prepare for any situation is the key to utilize Type 69-IIA. Although it doesn't have 3D3 smoke shell at disposal, it does comes with 8 smoke grenades with 2 shots per round so it does migrate the problem.
While it might not be the spearhead of the team, if being used properly, using a mix of HEAT-FS, APFSDS and APCBC can make sure the maximum efficiency out of Type 69-IIA depending on the scenario; for flanking operations, BR-412D can make sure tanks that showed their sides will meet their miserable end or at least disable them for a while; both HEAT-FS and APFSDS works fine dealing with heavier targets as well. But do not over-extent due to its low reverse speed and less maneuverability to NATO tanks, plan ahead before assaulting enemies; the armor might sometimes save players from total destruction, but do not rely on it as HEAT-FS and darts start to be common at later tier.
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:
- BR-412D is devastating for flanking thanks to the high explosive content
- Access to 3BM25 dart
- Overall sufficient protection at its tier
- Extra turret fences that somewhat helps stopping HEAT projectiles
- Access to smoke grenade launchers
Cons:
- Inferior optics at its tier
- Cramped interior with high risk of detonation
- Rather slow reload
- Slow turret traverse speed
- Relatively inferior mobility to some NATO tanks
History
The WZ121/BW121 (Type 69 and 79; coded BW when exported) has been a family of medium tanks in Mainland China and also being their first domestic designs with new technologies introduced during 70s and 80s. It was also the first commercially exported tank of the newly founded NORINCO as Mainland China was in dire for arms deal in view for funding of economic reforms in the 1980s; the 69-II variant was the precursor of all export BW121 series with revised fire control system, safety features with automatic fire suppression system. They were first delivered in 1982 and the later batches of BW121A received turret fences and NBC filtering system for the crew; due to the relatively low price over NATO tanks or even Soviet tanks, BW121 series received bulks of orders from countries with tight budgets, aside from Pakistan who has licensed production line and other ones that ordered ranging from dozens to hundreds, Iraq was the largest user of BW121 series (2860 69-II series and ARVs) including the later Type 79-based variants with 105 mm gun and western FCS. They were first used during the Iraq-Iran conflicts where oddly enough, both sides own quantities of BW121; but the later Gulf War and Operation Desert Storm also gave the death sentence to these tanks for its overall obsolete design and outdated systems.
While Type 69-IIAs are still being used by the current Iraqi Army in small quantities, insurgents of Middle East do own some quantities of Type 69-II.
Media
- Skins
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.
| Norinco (China North Industries Corporation) | |
|---|---|
| Light AFV/IFV | |
| WZ501 | ZBD86¹ |
| WZ131 | ▂Type 62 · Type 62 |
| WZ211 | Type 63 · ZTS63 |
| WZ502 | ZBD04A |
| MBT | |
| WZ120 | Type 59¹ · ZTZ59A · ZTZ59D1 |
| WZ121 | Type 69 |
| WZ122 | ZTZ88B · ZTZ88A · ZTZ96 · ZTZ96A · ZTZ96A (P) |
| WZ123 | ZTZ99-II · ZTZ99-III |
| WZ1001 | WZ1001(E) LCT · ZTZ99A |
| Tank Destroyers | AFT09 · PTL02 · PTZ89 · ZLT11 |
| SPH | PLZ83 |
| SPAA | ZSD63/PG87² · PGZ09 · PGZ04A |
| Export | |
| WZ121 | Type 69-IIa · T-69 II G |
| MBT2000 | MBT-2000 · Al-Khalid-I |
| MBT3000 | VT4A1 |
| Other | WMA301 · WZ305 |
| ¹ License production / Reverse engineered · ² Field modifications | |
| China medium tanks | |
|---|---|
| ZTZ59 | Type 59 · ZTZ59A · ZTZ59D1 |
| ZTZ69 | Type 69 · Type 69-IIa |
| ZTZ88/96 | ZTZ88A · ZTZ88B |
| ZTZ96 · ZTZ96A · ZTZ96A (P) | |
| ZTZ99 | ZTZ99-II · ZTZ99-III |
| ZTZ99A | ZTZ99A · WZ1001(E) LCT |
| Export series | MBT-2000 · VT4A1 |
| ROC | CM11 |
| Other | Т-34-85 Gai · Object 122MT "MC" |
| Bangladesh | T-69 II G |
| Japan | ␗Chi-Ha · ␗Chi-Ha Kai |
| Pakistan | Al-Khalid-I |
| USA | ␗M4A4 · ␗M4A4 (1st PTG) · ␗M4A1 (75) W · ␗M48A1 · ␗M60A3 TTS |
| USSR | ␗T-34 (1943) · ␗Т-34-85 (S-53) · T-34-85 No.215 · Т-62 №545 |
| China premium ground vehicles | |
|---|---|
| Light tanks | T-26 No.531 · ␗M3A3 (1st PTG) · ␗M41A3 · M64 · WMA301 |
| Medium tanks | ␗M4A4 (1st PTG) · T-34-85 No.215 · Т-62 №545 · ZTZ59A · Type 69-IIa · T-69 II G · ZTZ96A (P) · Al-Khalid-I |
| Heavy tanks | IS-2 No.402 |
- ↑ As shown in this PhlyDaily's video on 2017/10/13 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FL-tjWJWOM
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19nqhEgUZfE
