In the mid of 1990s South Korean government decided to begin
developing a domestically designed & produced tank. Result was the Hyundai built
K2-Black Panther which was operational by 2013-14. At first glance the K2 does
look like a Western tank with a large rectangular chassis & turret closely
resembling the Leopard 2 & Leclerc. It used a license built version of the Leopard 120mm
smoothbore gun as well as 1500hp German diesel engine. the tank fires around 10 rounds a minute.
2. T-90AM (Russia)
In the Soviet era T-72 tank was & continues to be the
backbone of many tank forces around the world. Over the last decades T-72 was
upgraded & improved on a regular basis to remain competitive with Western
designs. In the mid 1990s the design had been upgraded so much that Russian
designers decided it warranted a new model ‘The T-90’.
3. M1A2 SEPv2 (USA)
Out of all of the tanks on the list the M1 Abrams is far the
most battle proven. In the service since 1980, the M1 is an older design
constant upgrades have kept it at the top of the list when it come to ability &
sophistication. The M1A2 SEPv2 used the 120mm smoothbore gun found in many
Western tanks & can fire explosive & advanced armor piercing rounds
reportedly capable of defeating the most modern armors.
4. Merkava IVm (Israel)
Israel was reliant on obtaining tanks from outside countries.
Battlefield experience over the last decades led Israel planners to push for a
domestically designed & produced tank that met the needs of the Israeli
defence Force. The result was Merkava series of tanks. The latest model of this
tank is -Merkava IVm. This particular tank has a crew of four & can hold
several more soldiers inside.
5. Type 10 (Japan)
In the world of modern military, Japanese forces often get
overlooked. Because the Japanese military is designed as a defensive force &
its products are not exported as US & Russian equipment is. Nonetheless the Japanese have produced a new & rather
sophisticated MBT in the shape of the Type -10. Classified as advanced third
generation or next generation tank, the Type 10 entered service in 2012. Compared
with Japans previous tanks the Type 10 is a huge step forward in mobility,
firepower & protection.
6. Leopard 2A7+ (Germany)
Entering service in 1979 the Leopard-2 is an old tank but
remains one of the best all around weapons on the market. The current 2-A7+
model takes all of the abilities of the previous versions & incorporate
improvements which came about as a result of experience using tanks in urban
warfare: – like Iraq. This Leopard 2 is armed with a 120mm gun which fires a
range of ammunition including the ability to fire the Israeli made LAHAT guided
missiles. The gun is fully stabilized & linked to a laser range finding
system: – all of which allows the tank to hit a target up to 5km while on the
move. An integrated command & information system along with enhanced daylight & thermal
sites give the newest Leopard 2 an advantage on the battlefield when it come to
hunting other tanks.
7. Challenger 2 (Great Britain)
In service 1998, the British Challenger- 2 is often stated
to be the best protected tank in the world. This is thank to its highly
classified ‘Dorchester’ armor which is said to be a composite of ceramic &
various metals layered together. The Challenger 2 armor is so strong that more
than one occasion in Iraq it withstood a barrage of enemy rocket propelled
grenades. Only 1 has ever been destroyed & that was thanks to friendly fire
from another Challenger 2. This tank is also equipped with explosive reactive
armor modules.
8. AMX-56 Leclerc (France)
Leclerc entered
French service in 1992 & today there are over 400 serving with the French
military & over 350 with the United Arab Emirates. For much of its
production runs the Leclerc was the most expensive tank in the world. This tank
is unusual for a Western design MBT in that it uses an autoloader. This
autoloader is very fast & can reportedly load up to 12 rounds a minute for
the 120mm gun. An all digital fire control system allows the gunners to pick
out six targets & engage them all in a little over 30 second. Thermal
sights & laser range finders all help in identifying & targeting the
enemy is as far out as four kilometers. Armor on the newest models of this tank
includes tungsten & titanium modules & explosive reactive armor module.
All of these sophisticated- technology is further protected by laser &
missile warning systems as well as infrared decoys & anti-personnel
grenades.
9. Type 99 A2 (China)
Chinese tanks of the last 50 years have not been considered
sophisticated especially by Russian & American standards. This resulted fact
that for much of this time Chinese tanks were developed & reverse
engineered from captured / covertly obtained tanks. The result was often a tank
that looked like a Soviet or Russian design but was far inferior in every
respects.
10. T-84 Oplot-M (Ukraine)
After the collapse of
the -Soviet Union, Ukraine left with a tank factory in Kharkov which had been
producing T-80UD main battle tank (MBT). In effort to develop their own tank,
it was decided to take the T80 design & modify its design to meet the need
of the Ukrainian military. The result was the T84 which evolved into the T84 Oplot-M.
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