The role and concept of a heavy tank disappeared in the 50's when it became obvious that all the heavy armour force could be of one type of tank, which could support infantry, engage fixed positions and take on armour. Up til then, it'd been necessary to field two types of tank - a medium and a heavy.

while todays' MBT's are much heavier than the last set of heavy tanks, it's the role and the differentiation between platforms that's changed.

Ian

 

Is there any difference between Heavy Tanks and MBTs in our days?
The last heavy tank was the russian T-10 which weight 52 tons.
Meanwhile, Abrams and Leopard 2 are both considered MBTs even if they weight 60+ tons.
What makes a MBT is it's mobility (i suppose) which deppends on it's engine power/tons ratio alone.
It doesn't matter how heavy it is; if i have a powerful enough engine for it (to give it reasonable speed - 60km/h) it will be considered a MBT.
So can anyone put a newer, more powerfull engine on the T-10 and transform that "heavy tank" into a "main battle tank"?

Main battle tank=general purpose tank, modern concept.

"Heavy" tank=WW II term for infantry support tank or fortified line assault tank.

 

Confused with two other concepts "infantry tank" which was a slow heavily armored tank, and ":cavalry" tank which was a fast lightly armored tank. Infantry tank was governed to match infantry march pace and assault trenches. Cavalry tank was designed for speed and exploitation of infantry tank breakthroughs.

 

Own opinion of these terms and classifications?

 

Silly.

 

The tank is a mobile track laying shock action weapon designed to cross obstacle strewn ground covered by denial weapon effects too hazardous to be overcome by infantry and other surface combat vehicles. It can be of any mass class but it uist be fast enough, well armed enough, and well protected enough, to statistically survive such barrier defenses and weapon effects against it, that an enemy may employ against it to breach such a defense or stop equivalent enemy machines that have breached one's own equivalent defenses. (main battle tank)

 

A light tank is the recon version of the main battle tank. Not as tough nor expected to be. Often confused with a tank destroyer which is any land vehicle that is supposed to just kill tanks that does not meet the "tank" definition.  

 

H.

 

   

A light tank is the recon version of the main battle tank.

 

-just not as useful.  I am reminded of Richard Simpkins comment, "There are two types of light tanks.  Those that were popular in peacetime and failures in war, and all the rest."

light tanks have ther uses - the CVRT range has been a succesess.

 

as long as there deployment reflects there limitations there a valuable asset - eg cvrt provides fire support to light troops in places a lot of armour cant get, just dont try going toe to toe with mbts

It's worth noting the role of the heavy tank post WWII.  The British Conqueror and US M103 both mounted 120mm guns and were designed to support with long range direct fire the MBT's of the time which were mounting 90mm class main guns.  The T-10 had a 122mm and was also used in this rule as well as the more traditional role of the heavy tank as used in WWII.  The USMC eventually got the 103's and did use them in a more traditional support role.

 

Once the Centurion got the 105mm the Conqueror was seen as not worth the bother and the next MBT got a 120mm in any case.  At this point the MBT is a heavy tank.  Tanks are about as big as one wants them to be for  various reasons now.  The Conqueror was 65 tons right around the weight of modern MBT's.

 

Forget the T-10.  Great armor in it's day but eventually modern composite armor is far superior and that 122mm is not a modern 120mm or 125mm.  While it's possible someone could field a 140mm gun on a "heavy" tank almost all the discussion seems to rely on a current MBT carrying fewer rounds if mounting that gun.

 

We once had heavy and light cavalry.  Eventually cavalry became standard being armed with  firearms and using a sword/saber for shock value- ignoring the few remaining lancers that survived into the modern era.  The modern MBT has the protection and firepower of the heavy tank and the mobility of the medium, indeed it's far superior in all these areas.