Main battle tank Type 80 (ZTZ-80) Type 69-Sh "Shturm" - designation until 1986. In 1985, the designers of the largest Chinese state-owned arms corporation developed the Type 80 main tank (until 1986 it was designated Type 69-Sh “Storm”). The tank has a classic layout. Crew 4 people. The driver is located in front of the hull at the left side. The turret accommodates the commander and gunner to the left of the gun, the loader to the right of it. In the hemispherical tower, a 105-mm rifled gun from the British company Royal Ordnance with an ejector and a heat-shielding casing is installed in two planes. The ammunition load includes unitary shots with shells produced by China under Western licenses. The tank is equipped with the SLA 15RS5-212. Auxiliary armament includes a 7,62 mm machine gun coaxial with a cannon and a 12,7 mm anti-aircraft machine gun on a turret above the loader's hatch. The frontal part of the tank hull has multi-layer armor. An option has been developed to install elements of dynamic protection or additional sheets of combined armor on the upper frontal plate of the hull. The tower is made of monolithic armored steel, but additional combined armor can be installed. Two four-barreled smoke grenade launchers are installed on the sides of the tower. The protection of the tank is increased by curly anti-cumulative side screens. The increase in mobility was achieved by the installation of a diesel engine Type 121501-7BW (type B-2) with a turbocharging of 730 hp. with. The transmission is mechanical. Tank Type 80 has a new chassis design, including six rubber-coated road wheels and three support rollers on board. Track rollers with individual torsion bar suspension; hydraulic shock absorbers are installed on the first, second, fifth and sixth suspension units. Caterpillar of sequential type, with rubber-metal hinges. The improvement in cross-country ability was facilitated by an increase in ground clearance to 480 mm. The tank is equipped with a radio station "889", TPU U1S-8. Type 80 has IR night vision devices, a TDA, FVU, OPVT system to overcome water barriers up to 5 m deep and up to 600 m wide. The Type 80 tank is in service only with the Chinese army. In 1989, on its basis, three modifications were developed: Type 80-P, Type 85-N, Type 85-IA, differing in fire control systems and transmissions. In addition, a new welded turret with a developed aft niche and a protrusion in the front of the roof to ensure the angle of depression of the gun was installed on the Type 85-I tank; two blocks of 4 smoke grenade launchers were fixed on the front plates of the turret. The ammunition load of the cannon has been increased by two shots and the ammunition load of the coaxial machine gun has been slightly reduced. Its combat weight is 42 tons. The tank with a turret is made according to the classical scheme (by the way, the chassis resembles the Soviet T-72 tank, and the appearance of the turret resembles the Soviet T-62). A distinctive feature is the crew arrangement, characteristic of NATO tanks, in which the commander and gunner are located in the turret on the right. The gun guidance drives are electro-hydraulic, in case of their failure, the control is carried out manually. Another feature of the new tank is the presence of a digital fire control system, a two-plane stabilizer and an automatic fire extinguishing system. As a power plant, a diesel engine of the American company Detroit Diesel with a capacity of 750 liters is used. With. in a single unit with automatic transmission XTO-411. The hull length of the Jaguar is slightly longer than that of the Type 59 tank. The suspension includes five pairs of road wheels and two pairs of support rollers. Rear drive wheel. The suspension design uses improved torsion shafts. It is possible that the next models of tanks will be equipped with Cadillac Gage hydropneumatic suspension, which provides increased maneuverability on rough terrain. Specialists from both companies that developed the tank believe that the Jaguar will find great demand in third world markets. The performance characteristics of the main battle tank Type 80 Combat weight, т 38 Crew, people 4 Dimensions, mm: length 9328 width 3354 height 2290 clearance 480 Armor   projectile Armament:   105 mm rifled cannon; 12,7 mm anti-aircraft machine gun; 7,62 mm machine gun Ammunition:   44 rounds, 500 rounds of 12,7 mm and 2250 rounds of 7,62 mm Engine Type 121501-7BW, 12-cylinder, V-shaped, diesel, turbocharged, power 730 hp s, at 2000 rpm Highway speed km / h 60 Cruising on the highway km 430 Obstacle obstacles: wall height, м 0,80 ditch width, м 2,70 ship depth, м 1,40 Sources: G. L. Kholyavsky “The Complete Encyclopedia of World Tanks 1915-2000”; Christopher F. Foss. Jane's Handbooks. Tanks and combat vehicles”; Philip Truitt. “Tanks and self-propelled guns”; Christoper Chant “World Encyclopedia of the Tank”.