The ocean flooded cargo terminal, vehicle overpasses and the downtown of an Asian seaside metropolis. It is here, with the roar of engines and the clang of machine-gun belts, boats and patrol ships from the War Thunder coastal fleets will clash in battle! We present a new location for naval battles “Drowned City”, that will appear in the game with the release of the upcoming major update “Red Skies”!

We originally created this location specifically for the mosquito fleet of War Thunder - there are many shelters made from containers scattered by flooding, ship skeletons, heaps of garbage, road junctions and trees shrouded in sea mud. Aviation will maneuver between tall skyscrapers, looking for an obvious boat whilst hiding from anti-aircraft guns.



To create this location, we were inspired by the views of the coastal cities of South-East Asia, especially Hong Kong. Its an amazing location between the mountains and the sea, as well as characteristic skyscrapers with holes (“dragon gates” - according to Feng Shui, through these openings in buildings dragons from the mountains descend to the sea) largely determined the appearance of the “Drowned City”.

In this digest we would like to tell you about our continuing work on improvements and fixes in the game. You can find information about all updates that have been released in War Thunder on the website special section.


Did you ever find a thousand good reasons to cancel from a ‘queue for battle’ search and to instead remain in the hangar after clicking the “Battle” button but clicking on the “Cancel” button didn’t work and instead put you in a battle?

Let us not go into the peculiarities of session selection and instead just let you know that we have worked on this mechanic. Now, if the game session hasn’t been compiled, you will be able to leave the queue and you will not enter a battle after hitting the cancel button.




Engineers working on an aircraft’s offensive weaponry regularly faced a difficult task - how to avoid the parts of their own aircraft being hit by gunners. In the heat of the battle it was more than possible that a careless gunner might easily sever the tail or create extra ventilation in the aircraft’s surfaces.

When recreating aircraft in War Thunder we take into account the characteristics of such restraints. This time we have clarified the no-firing sectors for vehicles with an overhead turret. The machine guns of such aircraft will no longer “somehow strangely” bend around the tail and the gunner will be able to fire much more confidently.




The engine of your ground vehicle can be switched off. Such an insignificant feature is very useful in combined realistic battles where players can be guided among other things by their own ears. But a muffled (or broken!) engine on wheeled vehicles somehow stopped the rotation of the steering.

Very strange… Incomprehensible… But fixed! Now the strength of the driver will be enough to turn the wheels without the aid of power steering and in case of opening up your tactical position you will be able to depart quickly in the direction you want to go.


A major update is on the way. With new maps, game mechanic improvements and other features. Therefore the sixth digest includes mostly what the “It’s fixed” was designed for - fixing bugs!

Even before our update, we have paid attention to such improvements and want to invite you to check out the many fixes in Naval Force, aircraft and ground vehicles! These fixes will improve your game experience.

Once again, many thanks for all your bug reports that you submitted in our bug report section on the War Thunder forums.

• “Cancel” button function has been improved. If a session is not complete yet, the “Cancel” button will immediately cancel the queue.
  
• A bug has been fixed that caused the bomb sight to bind to a point when rockets are selected in the weapon selection menu.
  
• A bug has been fixed that prevents wheeled vehicles from moving the steering when the engine is turned off.
  
• A bug has been fixed that changed the firing sound on helicopters by activating the option of changing the rate of fire for those helicopters that don’t have it equipped.
  
• Error in hit sounds for the M919 and M791 rounds have been fixed.

• F-104S / F-104G — the incorrect operation of the ballistic calculator in some cases has been fixed.
  
• F6F-5, F6F-5N — radar cone has been corrected to 7.5 degrees.
  
• Yak-38, Yak-38M —a bug has been fixed with the UPK-23-250 gun pods being designated as “High caliber guns” instead of “Additional guns”.
  
• Harrier GR.1 — the display of the gun has been fixed for some weapon presets in x-ray mode.
  
• A bug has been fixed on some bombers that prevented a turret aiming past the tail, trying to arc it instead. Changes implemented for:
  • Blenheim Mk.IV
    
  • Beaufighter (all series)
    
  • Ju-87 (all series)
    
  • Tu-2 (all series)
    
  • Su-2 (all series)
    
  • B6N (all series).

• Begleitpanzer 57, T32, T32E1, T95 - a bug has been fixed that prevented a part of the ammo rack from exploding, even if those parts were destroyed (“blackened”).
  
• Jagdpanther, Bfw. Jagdpanther - sight magnification has been reduced from x10 to x5.

• Prinz Eugen — missing tip of the right side torpedo launcher at the stern has been fixed.
  
• Comandante Margottini — all-round aiming has been added to the third main calibre turret.
  
• IJN Kuma — depth charges have been removed from the x-ray view of the torpedo preset.
  
• USS North Dakota — aiming limits of the 127mm guns on the ship sides have been fixed.
  
• HMS Enterprise — traverse aiming limits of the main calibre turrets have been fixed in order to not fire through the superstructure.
  
• Kirov, Voroshilov — armour thickness on the roof of the conning tower has been fixed.

The current provided changelog reflects the major changes within the game as part of this Update. Some updates, additions and fixes may not be listed in the provided notes. War Thunder is constantly improving and specific fixes may be implemented without the client being updated.

The first Italian dreadnought type battleship featuring impressive main battery firepower.

In War Thunder, Dante Alighieri will be the first battleship to join the ranks of the Italian navy with the arrival of the next major game update “Red Skies”. Sporting among the heaviest primary battery armament among comparable ships of its class, the highly anticipated Dante Alighieri will soon dock in player ports as the new crowning jewel of the Italian naval tree in the game!

Dante Alighieri’s primary armament consists of four triple 12’’ (305 mm) turrets, similar to the Russian Poltava and Imperatritsa Mariya battleships, thus giving the warship one of the most powerful broadsides in the game. As a result, Dante Alighieri has the ability to severely cripple if not outright destroy even larger enemy vessels with just a few well-aimed salvos. However, their long reload time places emphasis on good marksmanship as every poorly aimed shot can be used by the enemy!





Dante Alighieri will join the top ranks of the Italian naval tree in War Thunder with the release of the next major update coming soon. In the meantime, make sure to stay tuned to the news as we continue showcasing more interesting new features awaiting you in the upcoming update. Until then, calm seas captains!

Check out the full Dev Blog article here!

A Finnish SAM vehicle developed during the 1990’s and fitted with the advanced French Crotale NG missile system.

In War Thunder, the ITO 90M will be a new SAM vehicle arriving in the top rank of the French and Swedish ground forces trees with the release of the next major update, Red Skies. Equipped with the Crotale NG launcher and firing the deadly VT-1 surface-to-air missile which some unlucky pilots may already had the misfortune of encountering in battle, the ITO 90M is destined to soon make the skies a lot safer for its allies on the ground with its arrival as part of the upcoming update!

As already mentioned, the ITO 90M is equipped with the French Crotale NG missile complex, which exclusively uses the highly capable VT-1 SAM’s already familiar to some tankers from the FlaRakRad, introduced in a previous update. Unlike its German counterpart however, the ITO 90M features a twin quadruple missile launcher and only carries the eight missiles already loaded in the launcher. Although this means that tankers won’t have the ability to independently reload their weapon during combat, the high effectiveness of the VT-1 missiles should ensure that commanders of this machine will have the chance to down a number of hostile airborne targets before running out of ammunition!





The ITO 90M is coming to the top rank of the French and Swedish ground forces tree with the arrival of the next major War Thunder Red Skies. In the meantime, be sure to stay tuned to the news as we continue unveiling more interesting features awaiting all players in the upcoming update. Until then, happy hunting tankers!

Check out the full Dev Blog article here!

The tracked infantry fighting vehicle Marder A1- will appear in our game at rank V of the German ground vehicle tech tree with the release of the next major update Red Skies in War Thunder.

The vehicle with an automatic 20mm cannon and an ATGM MILAN will become an excellent addition to the setup of German armoured vehicles from the mid-20th century. Marder has a typical IFV layout - the engine compartment and the driver's area are located in the front of the hull to make room for the troops in the rear part. The location of the machine gun looks rather unusual - it is located in a separate armoured cover at the stern of the IFV, and has a firing angle of 90 degrees to both sides.





Marder A1 and dozens of other new vehicles are waiting for you in the big War Thunder update Red Skies very soon. Follow us to know everything about the more interesting new items in the upcoming update!

Check out the full Dev Blog article here!

• Battle Rating changes (see the full table).

Other changes for ground vehicles:

• VFM5 - M735 round has been changed to the C76A1 and the C76A1 has been changed to the DM33 round.
  
• PT-76B, PT-76 (China) - fire rate has been increased from 7 to 8.5 rpm (balance change).

The current provided changelog reflects the major changes within the game as part of this Update. Some updates, additions and fixes may not be listed in the provided notes. War Thunder is constantly improving and specific fixes may be implemented without the client being updated.

In the upcoming Red Skies update we are presenting a new location for War Thunder mixed battles that we are calling "Red Desert".



This is a sandstone plateau surrounded by the dunes of a great desert. A small river sources here to quickly dry up under the hot African sun. The life-giving moisture, however, is sufficient for several palm groves and majestic acacias. A small village is located In the centre of the oasis- a couple of dozen houses and a mosque.



This location was inspired from the views of North and Central Africa, and especially the Ennedi Plateau in Chad, formed from sandstone cliffs in the Sahara desert.



The “Red Desert” location will appear in the game with the release of the major update Red Skies very soon!

Take a fresh look at ground battles in War Thunder - through a functional commander sight!

In the upcoming War Thunder major update, we will introduce commander sights for ground vehicles, primarily tanks. The commander's sight is not only an optical observation device, as on tanks of the mid 20th century, but also a complex fire control system, which includes night vision devices, a laser rangefinder, and so on. In order to make ground battles in the game more authentic and atmospheric, we plan to transfer some of the functions that are now implemented in ground vehicle binoculars and in the camera control menu to a specialized device - the commander's sight.



So, the commander's sight is a separate module under the control of the vehicle commander. It has its own rotation axis - for example, the simplest commander's sight in a Soviet T-54 or an observation device on the turret of modern tanks. The commander's sight has its own reticle and magnification, which corresponds to the vehicles in reality. On modern tanks, the commander's sight has its own night vision device or thermal imaging channel, and can also be equipped with a laser rangefinder. In addition, with the view from the commander's sight on some vehicles, a player is able to control an the AA machine gun on the turret.

Using the commander's sight, you can even fire at enemies using ocular refraction, if the vehicle has an eyepiece on the gunner's sight, or is equipped with an independent commander's fire control system. In addition, in Realistic battles we’re adding an automatic input measured distance from the laser rangefinder into the scope, which has already been implemented in Simulator battles - now, with the advent of the commander's scope, this function becomes logical.



Since the commander's sight is a tool at the commander's workstation, if they are wounded, the commander's sight functionality will become unavailable to the rest of the crew. If the gunner or mechanic does not have dual control systems, the vehicle goes blind at night or in bad weather. So for maximum effect, hit the commander in an enemy tank!

What about the binoculars? We plan to leave the binoculars as a purely optical device - with its help it will no longer be possible to use the night vision and thermal imaging channels. In the next updates of the game, we will move the rangefinder functionality from binoculars to the commander sights.

Of course, the commander's sight does not affect third-person view, the view from the gunner's sight or from the binoculars - this is a new type of view to control the vehicle's fire control system. In the control settings menu, there will be new options to assign buttons to turn on/off the commander's sight and related devices and weapons - for example, an IR searchlight, a dual control mode for a cannon and a coaxial or anti-aircraft machine gun, and so on.



We hope that the new feature will please War Thunder tankers. We really like the commander sights and will definitely try to make them more diverse and functional.

The War Thunder Team

A highly versatile early Cold War British naval jet fighter boasting impressive payload capacities.

In War Thunder, the Sea Vixen FAW.2 will be a new jet fighter awaiting pilots at rank V of the British aviation tree in the next major update. The Sea Vixen will be the first aircraft of its kind in the game to feature only guided weapons as its primary means of combating hostile aircraft. However, the Sea Vixen FAW.2 has a lot more to show and some of these things we’ll cover in today’s devblog, so let’s get started!

The Sea Vixen FAW.2 is fitted with a pair of Rolls-Royce Avon Mk.208 turbojet engines which veteran British pilots may already be accustomed to from the well-known Hawker Hunter. Despite featuring no afterburner, resulting in slower acceleration than some other aircraft found at its rank, the Sea Vixen FAW.2 can still produce enough thrust to reach a respectable top speed of about 1,000 km/h at sea level while also managing to maintain a decent climb rate.





The Sea Vixen FAW.2 will be available in the Premium section of the Royal Air Forces with the release of the next major update. In the meantime, be sure to stay tuned to the news as we continue unveiling more great new features awaiting you in the upcoming update. Until then, clear skies pilots!

Check out the full Dev Blog article here!

An early 2000’s Chinese SPAA unit, featuring a combined cannon and missile anti-air arsenal coupled with a radar system.

In War Thunder, the PGZ04A will be a new SPAA vehicle awaiting tankers at the top ranks of the Chinese ground forces tree in the next major update coming soon to the game. Armed with a quadruple 25 mm turret and backed by IR missiles and a radar system, the PGZ04A will substantially bolster the Chinese SPAA lineup at the higher ranks and provide its comrades in arms with some truly effective cover from hostile aircraft!

The PGZ04A’s primary armament consists of a quadruple 25 mm turret, equipped with the PG87 cannons which some tankers may recognize from the ZSD63 SPAAG, introduced in a previous update. PG87 cannons are highly regarded for their excellent rate of fire and good ballistic properties, ammo comes in separate belts.





The PGZ04A is soon arriving to the top ranks of the Chinese ground forces tree with the release of the next major War Thunder update. In the meantime, make sure to stay tuned to the news to catch all the latest developments surrounding the upcoming update. Until then, happy hunting tankers!

Check out the full Dev Blog article here!