PLA News, Pics, and Discussion

KushigumoAkane

New Member
Registered Member
View attachment 78834

T80U with Agava-2 thermal imager.
In early 1990s, the Russians was trying to export their weapons to China, so they set up a "Weapon expo" in Beijing and invited PLA officials to inspect the weapons in person. This is the context of the photo. The old man second from the right is Zhang Wannian, he was a PLA general and a member of the Central Military Commission at that time.

Now, if you argue that "getting one's hand onto something" means "acquiring it", you've got a point. However, while deals were made on purchasing S-300, Tor M1, BMP-3 (weapons system only), 2S9 (weapon system only), etc., the PLA did not purchase T-80U from Russia. No official announcement indicating such deal existed, and no T-80U entered service, and none was observed by a 3rd party. Unlike the Romanian T-72 Ural which had plenties of picture records of it being disassembled, having its parts measured, being reassembled, and being tested, T-80U had none. Today, you can see photos of that T-72 Ural parking in a museum somewhere in China, but the mysterious T-80U is nowhere to be found. Only some non-Chinese sources claim that China purchased 50 T-80Us.

The PLA obviously lacked the motive to purchase Russian T-80U. China's own 3rd Gen MBT project, WZ123, later known as type 99, was going well and already had a few prototypes made. Besides, unlike Korea, who acquired a whole bunch of T-80Us and BMP-3s because Russia used them to pay for its debt, China had to pay for these tanks out of its own pocket, and remember, China in the 1990s was not as economically prosperous as it is now. And Russia obviously wouldn't allow China to purchase just one or two T-80Us for reverse engineering.

Moreover, if the Chinese did have T-80U, do you think they will spare it from the main gun of type 99? But in reality, Chinese engineers had to use a heavily enhanced type 69 tank to simulate the armor of T-80U:
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Of course, it is impossible to expect the PLA to use an imported T-80U tank as target. After all, the price of two pieces of composite armor on the T-80U turret is equivalent to two Type 59. After all, it's just a test, as long as the frontal protection ability reaches the same level as the T-80U. The reason for choosing T-80U as the standard is also very simple. The PLA has actual contact and inspection of T-80U tanks and has a better understanding of its protection level. Unlike those Western tanks that can only rely on various public information and corresponding speculations, it may cause a relatively large error... Besides, the protective performance of the T-80U tank is really not bad.

In the end, it was a Type 69 medium tank to undertake this glorious task. Of course, since the T-80U is to be simulated, it will definitely not work without additional protective armor. Therefore, the tank is equipped with composite armor on the front and the front of the turret in accordance with the T-80U's frontal protection requirements.
In conclusion, I don't think the rumor of Chinese T-80U stands itself.
 

zxy_bc

Junior Member
Registered Member
Royal Ordnance L7 is 105mm is rifled I think. Was used in early M1 Abrams and many other tanks. Abrams later replaced it with Rhienmetal 120mm smoothbore which became de facto NATO standard although UK stuck with rifled 120mm until now (but Challenger 3 will have smoothbore).
And the Chinese did later got licensed RO 105mm rifled gun from Austria.
 

by78

General
View attachment 78695
Just some rumors and unconfirmed pics spreading on Weibo right now, military vehicles (including zbd-05 amphibious IFV, HQ9 and even Y20) transporting form Hangzhou to south.

If you want to post unverified rumors on troop movements with unverified images, do it somewhere else. Sinodefence Forum is not for fanboys, so please take your sensationalist nonsense elsewhere.
 

by78

General
An exercise in Tibet, at an elevation of 4000m.

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by78

General
View attachment 78695
Just some rumors and unconfirmed pics spreading on Weibo right now, military vehicles (including zbd-05 amphibious IFV, HQ9 and even Y20) transporting form Hangzhou to south.

My friend in Xiamen said that in China, the government recommended civilians to stock up on food just today. I don't know how reliable that is but the timing with all this troop movement in the same province is spooky.

Anyone else in China get a similar message?

Please exercise some common sense and judgement. Sinodefence Forum isn't
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.
 

supersnoop

Major
Registered Member
Had it bear fruit 100%, China would've switch to 105mm NATO standard smoothbore main gun and perhaps work it up towards 120mm NATO standard, instead of standardize on 125mm Russian main gun system.

But, it does got China a start in breaking the Russian mold (the T-55/Type 59), and henceforth incorporate more Western-bloc pioneered features in the newer platforms that are the ZTZ-96 and ZTZ-99 series.

120mm smoothbore cannon was actually put into service before 125mm as part of the Type 89 tank destroyer.
 
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