CM11
This page is about the Taiwanese/Chinese main battle tank CM11. For other vehicles of the family, see M48 Patton (Family) or M60 (Family).
Contents
Description
The CM11 is a rank VI Chinese medium tank
with a battle rating of 9.3 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.91 "Night Vision".
General info
Survivability and armour
The CM11 combines the hull of a M60 Patton with the turret of a M48 Patton, and as such the base turret and hull armour is more or less identical to these two tanks, respectively. The base armour is quite resistant to APHE rounds, which may be fired by the occasional Object 906, Object 685, and T-55AM-1, but the vast majority of opponents at its rank use HEAT-FS and APFSDS rounds that can cut through steel like butter. To counter the former, the CM11 is slathered with ERA, and can generally survive the first shot from most HEAT-FS rounds. However the ERA offers close to no protection against APFSDS rounds, which are the round of choice in top rank battles, and as a result the armour should not be trusted.
Post-penetration survivability is also questionable. It lacks blowout racks and ammunition tends to be scattered around the tank, so successful penetrations can reduce the CM11 to a fiery grave. It is a good idea to take no more ammunition than needed.
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 | 53 | 13 | 54 | 1162 | 1,431 | 21.52 | 26.5 |
| Realistic | 48 | 12 | 663 | 750 | 12.28 | 13.89 | |
The CM11's mobility is awful compared to its contemporaries. It weighs practically the same as the M1 Abrams while having less than half of the engine power. It is very slightly more mobile than the Chieftain Mk 10, but that is a very low bar, and unlike the Chieftain it does not have strong armour to make up for it. Expect to be among the last to arrive on the battlefield.
Armaments
Main armament
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: {{main|Name of the weapon}}. Describe in general terms the ammunition available for the main gun. Advise about how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage.
Additional armament
Some tanks are armed with several guns in one or more turrets. Evaluate the additional weaponry and give advice on its use. Describe the ammunition available for additional weaponry. Give advice on about how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage. If there is no additional weaponry remove this subsection.
Machine guns
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.
Usage in battles
Like most Chinese MBTs, the CM11 should be played in a laid back, cautious manner since its firepower is good but its speed is not nearly sufficient for flanking quickly and catching enemies by surprise. Unfortunately its poor armour and large profile make hull-down sniping difficult, though it does enjoy better gun depression than most PRC/Soviet tanks. It is best to stay close to cover and observe the environment. When the enemies are spotted, pop out, shoot first, and try to at least cripple them. The DM63 APFSDS has very good penetration for a 105 mm round and the fast reload time ensures rapid follow-up shots. If the teammates do a good job distracting the enemy team or the CM11 somehow manage to flank successfully, the CM11 can potentially knock out several targets in rapid succession. Make good use of the thermal optics, as not all tanks at its battle rating feature them and those optics can come as a great advantage.
As a whole, the CM11 is somewhat like a tank destroyer, having a powerful gun but not much else. In a meta favoring high speed and high protection, it is rather out of place, but it can still work decently in the hands of a skilled player.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Access to powerful DM63 APFSDS
- Fast reload, topping out at 5 seconds like the M1 Abrams
- Heavy ERA coverage grants decent resistance to chemical munitions
- Has a thermal sight
- Low-profile cupola, the infamous Patton cupola weakspot is less of an issue
- Stock M735 APFSDS
Cons:
- Large target
- Poor mobility
- ERA has negligible kinetic protection
- Base armour is no better than the original M60/M48, vulnerable to sabot rounds common at its rank
History
Development
In 1980, the Republic of China (ROC), also known as Taiwan, created the Armored Vehicle Development Center. It was created partially to develop the CM-11 tank. The Republic of China Army (ROCA) needed a 2nd generation main battle tank (MBT), and they wanted to acquire one without breaking any limitations placed on the ROC by the US-PRC Joint Communique. As such, they decided to create a hybrid design using the M48A3 turret and the M60A3 hull. In the ROC, it is known as the CM-11 Brave Tiger, whereas the United States designated it as the M48H for M48 hybrid. To create the tank, the ROC imported M60A3 hulls from the United States along with M68 105 mm cannons and M48A3 turrets. They imported the commanders cupola from Israel. Two prototypes were finished in 1988 and the ROCA ordered 450 CM-11 tanks.
Design
The hull of the CM-11 is from the M60A3 tank built in the US. As such, the CM-11 uses a torsion bar suspension system, and is powered by a Continental AVDS-1790-2C diesel engine producing 750 hp. The turret is from the M48A3 tank, but with the Israeli Urdan style commander's cupola with a low profile. Armament consists of an M68 105 mm cannon, the commander's 12.7 mm (.50 in) M2 Browning machine gun, a co-axial 7.62 mm M240 machine gun, and the loader's 7.62 mm M240 machine gun. The fire control system is the same system as used by the M1 Abrams, and the M68 105 mm gun has a two-plane stabilizer. The optics and thermal imaging are also as modern as those on the M1 Abrams, giving the CM-11 night fighting and fire-on-the-move ability. The design has a number of drawbacks though. The main battle tanks of the People's Liberation Army (PLO) are the 2nd generation ZTZ/Type 96 and 3rd generation ZTZ/Type 99, which mount a 125 mm gun which can reliably penetrate the armor of the CM-11. This is because the CM-11 is a design that has become outdated in terms of combat capability, as its parts were designed in the 1960's. To counter this, it was attempted to put explosive reactive armor (ERA) from the French company GIAT on the CM-11, but that would tax the suspension too much, so the idea was dropped. In 2012, a CM-11 was seen at an exercise mounting ERA designed by CSIST, which featured extreme angles to increase the chance of enemy shells deflecting off of the armor.
Production and Service
450 CM-11 Brave Tigers were ordered and delivered. They are still in service with the ROCA, and are likely to be upgraded in the 2020's after the upgrade program for the M60A3 TTS in ROCA service is completed.
Devblog
During the 1980s, armed forces in Taiwan were looking for more capable AFVs. However, as some existing agreements with the USA prevented the supply with more advanced US equipment, such as later versions of the M60 and the newer M1 Abrams tanks, military production was forced to develop an indigenous design.
While still retaining access to supplies of older US equipment and components, the decision was made to create a hybrid tank from the available components and outfit it with the latest electronics. As such, Taiwanese engineers took the hull and chassis of the M60A3 and combined it with the turret of the M48, while installing the M68A1 105mm cannon and the latest US fire control systems available.
The result of this undertaking was the CM11. In the late 1980s, two prototypes were sent to the US for comparative tests against the M60A3, where the CM11 outperformed its counterpart in gunnery trials. Shortly after these successful tests, the CM11 officially entered service in 1990.
However, as the protection was seen to be somewhat lacking, the decision was made to upgrade the CM11 with ERA packages obtained from GIAT in the early ‘90s. Due to substantial weight increases and associated upgrade costs however, this modernization effort was only applied to about a dozen vehicles. In total, 450 CM11s were built for the armed forces, still representing the spearhead of the country’s armored units today.
- From Devblog
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
| 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 |
