Modern Vehicles

Started by Leon, 02 July 2016, 12:54:12 AM

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sultanbev

AMX-30 tanks were used by the French and Qataris in 1st Gulf War.

Big Insect

Quote from: sultanbev on 12 February 2021, 04:56:40 PM
AMX-30 tanks were used by the French and Qataris in 1st Gulf War.

Interesting - thanks Mark
I've always been interested in that balance of the three main forces in MBTs:

1) armour
v
2) firepower
v
3) speed

The AMX-30 has that mix of speed & firepower over armour - but was it a success?
'He could have lived a risk-free, moneyed life, but he preferred to whittle away his fortune on warfare.' Xenophon, The Anabasis

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sultanbev

Most users apart from Chile seem to have been happy with their AMX-30s, probably because it's lighter than most contemporaries, and thus less damaging to the native infrastructure. If you factor in the fact that tanks generally spend over 50% of their combat time not fighting tanks, but more often soft targets such as infantry, houses, trucks and dugouts, then it can be considered a successful design.
The Qataris lost 2x AMX-30 out of 2 companies in the battle of Khafji, knocking out 3x T-55 (or Chinese equivalent Type 59) and capturing 4 more.
The French armoured regiment of 42 active AMX-30B2 tanks only fired 270 shells in Desert Storm, and are not known to have had any knocked out.