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Yes
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Yes as event or premium
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Overview: The Type 69-II third-generation tank technology demonstrator is an experimental vehicle based on the Type 69-II, incorporating various technologies and equipment developed for China’s third-generation tanks. It can be considered something of a “Chinese T-55AMD,” but its significance in the history of Chinese tank development goes far beyond that comparison.
History
Type 69-II
The Type 69 was China’s first independently designed main battle tank. Development began in the 1960s, and the design was finalized in the early 1970s. After several rounds of upgrades, the Type 69 evolved into an entire family of vehicles. Among them, the Type 69-II was developed from the Type 69 medium tank. Its design was completed in 1981, with mass production beginning in 1982.
The major improvements included the installation of the Type 69-II 100 mm rifled gun , a simplified fire-control system with an automatic lead-angle calculator, and hydraulically assisted controls for the main clutch and steering system.
Type 69-II
Type 69-II 100 mm Gun
This new 100 mm rifled gun shared the same barrel as the Type 59’s 100 mm rifled gun and used the same ammunition. Its elevation and traverse mechanisms were derived from those of the Type 69’s 100 mm smoothbore gun.
In the early 1970s, China successfully developed an APFSDS round known as the Type 1959 100 mm Tungsten-Core Armor-Piercing Projectile . In addition to being used with the Type 59, it could also be fired from the Type 69-II. The projectile featured a steel body with a 36 mm diameter and a 1 kg sintered tungsten penetrator in the nose. It used a saddle-type sabot and plastic slip bands, and could be fitted with a combustible cartridge case and combustible primer tube. The muzzle velocity was 1,435 m/s , with a reported penetration of 100 mm at 65° at 2,000 m . Other sources give a penetration range of 100 mm at 65° at 2,763–3,171 m .
Type 59 100 mm“ Tungsten-Core”APFSDS
Later, based on Belgium’s MECAR M1000A1 armor-piercing projectile, Chinese engineers developed the DTW2-100 APFSDS . This round used a monolithic tungsten-alloy penetrator, with a muzzle velocity of 1,480 m/s and a reported penetration of 380 mm . It could likewise be used as ammunition for the Type 69-II’s 100 mm rifled gun.
Belgian M1000A1
DTW2-100
Third-Generation Tank Experimental Program
On September 18, 1985, a working conference on the development of China’s third-generation tank was held at the Tank Research Institute. The conference established a chief designer’s office and a technical advisory group, while also setting up the various subsystem development teams, marking the formal beginning of the development program.
At the conference, the chief designer proposed the overall design philosophy of “system superiority.” This meant using systems engineering and operations research to optimize the combination of individual subsystems, while achieving the best overall performance through functional matching and compensation between individual components and between different subsystems.
During the design and evaluation process, the development team selected a 125 mm gun as the main armament, together with the 150HB engine and its associated transmission system. For protection, in addition to the basic configuration of a welded turret with composite armor, the team also planned to incorporate two emerging technologies into the new third-generation tank: a hard-kill active protection system (APS) , then referred to in Chinese as “ultra-close anti-missile,” and a laser countermeasure system . These systems were intended to provide protection against anti-tank guided missiles and reduce the probability of being hit.
To test the reliability of these subsystems, the development team installed various pieces of equipment—including the APS and laser countermeasure system—onto a Type 69-II tank. A feature article published in the Beijing Daily referred to the vehicle as a “Third-Generation Tank New Technology Test Vehicle,” confirming that the equipment fitted to it represented technologies intended for the future third-generation tank.
Active Protection System (APS)
During the technical evaluation of the third-generation tank, the development team planned to equip it with a fixed-launcher hard-kill APS , at the time referred to as “ 超近反导 .” The system consisted of four launcher groups: two facing forward and two angled upward, providing interception coverage across a sector in front of the turret.
However, the system was ultimately not adopted on the production Type 99 . It was reportedly abandoned after failing to meet the required technical performance during testing. Nevertheless, this represented one of the Chinese design teams’ early explorations of hard-kill active protection technology, and the experience accumulated through this experimental vehicle helped pave the way for more mature APS systems such as GL5 and GL6 .
The APS-equipped ZBD04A seen previously used a similar type of launcher.
Laser Countermeasure System
An early prototype of the laser countermeasure system was also tested on the technology demonstrator. It was mounted on an additional platform at the rear of the turret and was intended to suppress enemy thermal imaging, observation and aiming, and guidance systems. The system also incorporated a laser communication device for sharing battlefield information between vehicles.
Since the photographs of the equipment installed on the Type 69-II test vehicle are not sufficiently clear, the photographs of the laser countermeasure and observation system installed on the full-scale prototype are used here to illustrate its functions.
The main components shown above were:
① Thermal Imaging Jammer — used a carbon dioxide laser to interfere with thermal imaging systems.
② Laser Countermeasure System — combined green and near-infrared laser output to suppress and interfere with enemy observation and aiming systems. It could also potentially cause eye injury and interfere with fire-control and guidance systems operating in the visible and near-infrared wavelengths.
③ Laser Communication System — used for battlefield information exchange between vehicles.
The technology demonstrator conducting laser countermeasures against an airship.
Spefications
Crew: 4
Mass: ~36.7 t
Length: 6.24 m
Width: 3.30 m
Height: 2.80 m
Main armament: 100 mm Type 69-II cannon
Secondary armament: 7.62mm Coaxial Machine Gun
Engine: 580hp
Maximum speed: 50 km/h
Accessories:
24x 76mm Smoke Grenade Launchers
Laser Rangefinder
hard-kill APS
Laser Countermeasure System
In War Thunder
As mentioned at the beginning, the Type 69 technology demonstrator shares many similarities with the T-55AMD. The former has better APFSDS ammunition, while the latter offers superior mobility and missile capability. As a result, their performance in-game could be relatively comparable.
However, the Type 69 technology demonstrator’s laser countermeasure system gives it considerably more potential. Just as this vehicle served as an early testbed for the laser countermeasure technology that would later be used on China’s ZTZ99 tanks, it could also serve as a special vehicle for introducing a dedicated laser countermeasure mechanic to the game.
How to implement such a mechanic while maintaining game balance has always been an interesting topic for discussion. Possible effects could include damaging enemy optics, forcing thermal imaging systems to shut down, or even directly interfering with the player’s view. Feel free to discuss possible implementations further in the comments below this suggestion.
Regardless of how such a mechanic might eventually be implemented, adding this historically significant vehicle alongside it would be an excellent choice.
Pictures
Sources
69式中型坦克(69-Ⅱ主戰坦克):發展沿革,歷史背景,研製歷程,技術特點,總體布_中文百科全書
https://baike.baidu.com/item/69式主战坦克/4330521
祝榆生·揭秘99式坦克_CCTV节目官网-CCTV-10_央视网(cctv.com)
59式中型坦克反装甲弹药(100mm炮)极简史 - 哔哩哔哩
https://www.secretprojects.co.uk/threads/chinese-type-69-variant.37612/
https://xinwen.bjd.com.cn/content/s63853c16e4b0450519f5d4a3.html