AlexKall said:Didnt Koz post a number of 5000 metre with some type of challanger?
godofthunder9010 said:I wonder if that record-setting long range tank vs tank kill is more attributable to luck or to the fact that the UK's Challenger II is the only MBT left in the world (that I can think of) that still uses a rifled barrel for their main 120mm gun. I suppose there should be enough hard data to sort it out since the UK and USA have worked together very closely in numerous recent conflicts/wars.
Mohmar Deathstrike said:Saudi Arabia has M1A1s. If the tyranny there collapses, the next leadership wouldn't be too friendly toward the west.
The solution is sortof built in: The USA, UK, France, Germany, etc, all will generally only sell versions of their equipment that is 1 step or more out of date. The USA, for instance, would be willing to sell off M1-A1's to nations that may potentially become a threat. Nations that are not likely to ever be hostile are handled differently. I'm unaware of any potentially hostile nation that is being sold Top of the Line military hardware (talking about big items, not assault rifles and the like.) Mind you, that doesn't exactly make us all feel better, but its something. The most tightly kept secrets: The latest and greatest armor and the latest FCS are unlikely to be sold off to any foreign nation under any circumstances.Doppleganger said:It's clear to me that all 3 tanks are so close as to be practically indistinguishable from each other. The only worry for me is that in any future conflict Western Armies come up against these tanks in combat. ATM I'm not aware of any of these tanks having being sold to potentially unstable nations but you never know. For example, US or UK armies having to deal with Leopard 2s, M1s or Challengers on the field of battle would be a nightmare.
Yes, I believe that the Challenger's record tank kill is 5100m, rather then 4000m. 4000m is too low to be the "record" tank kill because a US tanker in the Gulf war made a kill at 4120m using his auxilary sights. He described the process in detail on tank-net.
It is true that the Challenger's rifled barrell is more accurate then other guns. Spin stabilized projectiles are inherently more accurate then fin stabilized ones. The 5100m kill came about by a combination of luck, the rifled barrell, the crew's skill, the fact that both the Challenger and target were stationary, and the crew had plenty of time to aim. There is also the fact that having targets at 5100m is EXTREMELY rare, most battefields don't have visible ranges exceeding 2000m.
My opinion is that the winning tank will have the best logistics, supply, CSS and ISR capabilities supporting it. I don't care what you drive, you'll be worth two thirds of f**k all if you haven't got the support to make it work.