Modern Main Battle Tanks ( MBT )
- Thread starter FORBIN
- Start date
I try to imagine how a modern tank battle between two peer powers would look like. It will involve satellites, drones, attack helicopters, ground attack planes, fighter jets and special mission planes. Modern tank battle's between or with great powers without these air assets is unthinkable.
The role of the MBT itself on the battlefield is heavily reduced. They are only one component of a much larger whole. Both naval and land battles these day depend heavily on air power.
The role of the MBT itself on the battlefield is heavily reduced. They are only one component of a much larger whole. Both naval and land battles these day depend heavily on air power.
plawolf
Lieutenant General
Actually, I see fights between peer powers as where each weapons system are all required to pull their weight.
When fighting against a hopelessly outmatched opponent, air power can reduce enemy ground forces to slag from a safe distance with minimal risk and losses.
However, if enemy air power and air defences are so powerful that your tac air is unable to mount effective large scale strikes against enemy ground targets, and your own air and anti-air forces are similarly able to limit the effectiveness of enemy tac air, well then, it will be down to the grunts on the ground to take the fight to the enemy's ground forces.
Tactical air defence systems like the Tor, that can keep up with advancing armour, as well as friendly attack helicopters will limit the effectiveness of enemy attack helicopters.
Active defence will limit the effectiveness of high cost, low shot count weapons like ATGMs, so I think in a future all out war between peers or near peers, it will be MBT fired sabots, artillery and sensor fused weapons that will make the most difference in a full scale armour brawl.
Active defence works best against explosive projectiles they could detonate prematurely. They are far less effective against kinetic penetrators and are vulnerable to saturation attacks.
In many ways, I see wars between peers and near peers as returning to the roots of combat. The closer in terms of tech and power of the two opposing sides, the more they can counter the synergies modern warfare is built upon of their opponent and be countered themselves, and the more battles will boil down to individual duals between the opposit number of both sides.
plawolf
Lieutenant General
I am struck at how much the Leopard looks like the old WWII Tiger without its distinctive armoured wedges.
