PLA Next Generation Main Battle Tank

KampfAlwin

Senior Member
Registered Member
I think it is a 3 man crew. It has a periscope between the 2 hatches. At least PLA is finally thinking about side armour lol. Also does anyone notice the periscopes from yesterday's tank pic is fixed to the hull while this new one is fixed to the hatches?

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WLFlatplace

Just Hatched
Registered Member
These contents are assumptions I can make so far. Sorry for using AI translation.
Firepower:
In the photo with two vehicles, they seems having different maingun, making it difficult to determine whether one has an outer shell and the other doesn't, or if they are using different weapon systems. If it's the latter, it suggests the possibility of a family of vehicles (similar to the Armata Universal Chassis, or a new generation of Type 59?).
The turret features protruding structures, which could be a remote weapon station, a new blinding laser, or a drone jammer (considering the extreme elevation restriction of the main gun, this is unlikely to be an SPAA, so it shouldn't be a radar).

Protection:
Based on the size estimated from the figures and considering the track width, this appears to be a relatively lightweight vehicle (not thought to be a traditionally positioned tank focused on armor-piercing).
The absence of a smoke extractor suggests it has an unmanned turret (this is uncertain; it could be a small-caliber rapid-fire cannon or the smoke extractor is covered by the outer shell. Currently, there's no direct evidence proving there's no hatch on the top of the turret).
Given the turret's volume and structure, it might have a rear-mounted ammunition compartment, but whether there's a loading mechanism inside the vehicle is unknown (a dual loading mechanism seems redundant; I don't like this assumption, but it's hard to imagine what else could be in the space under the turret, shield generator maybe :p)
The presence of optical windows at the joints of the upper and lower hull front armor indicates an emphasis on informatization and situational awareness. Referencing the VT5U, it might be able to operate remotely (Considered this point as crew protection).
The radar for the GL6 APS was confirmed during the previous protection test PPT leak.
Additional armor modules can be seen on the sides, which are different from the square ERA boxes on the sides of the VT5 and the heavy-duty model of Type 15. It's unclear whether this module is NERA or ERA.

Mobility:
The power compartment has noticeable protrusions (alright, this might be stating the obvious).
Six pairs of small-diameter road wheels (possibly indicating that this is not the same vehicle as the one with seven pairs of small-diameter road wheels and hydropneumatic suspension seen in the previous promotional video, hence it cannot be confirmed whether it has hydropneumatic suspension).
If the firepower section indeed only has a rear-mounted ammunition compartment and there's no revolver-type autoloader inside the hull, this space could potentially be a battery pack for a hybrid power system? (Well, you still can't get a new energy vehicle license plate with it in Shanghai).

Current Assumptions:
It may not be primarily intended for tank combat.
It could be a prototype vehicle from Norinco.
Judging by the camouflage, it might be a new generation main battle tank that failed to win a bid and is being marketed for export. (After all, most Chinese tank prototypes are mostly olive green.)
 

enroger

Junior Member
Registered Member
I wonder if its role is more geared towards infantry support rather than tank vs tank combat. If lessons of Russo-Ukraine war can be trusted, tanks are mostly killed by things other than tanks, and 90% of their usage is in infantry support.

If this is the case, then you want a tank that is well protected against threats such as drones and ATGM, and you can skim on apfsds and protection against it.

Thought a flaw in that argument is if you can protect your tank against drones and ATGM then eventually it takes another tank to be able to kill it
 

tankphobia

Senior Member
Registered Member
From additional images, could it be a light tank aimed at airborne operations? The footprint actually looks pretty small all things considered.
 
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