This is the FV4030/3, designed as an upgrade of the Chieftain tank for Iran. However with no deliveries fulfilled, the FV4030/3 later evolved into the Challenger 1 tank we all know and love.

At a glance:

• 120 mm gun with the L23 APFSDS shell.
  
• 1200 HP engine.
  
• Chobham composite armor.
  
• Lacking thermals.

Vehicle History
[expand type=details]
In the 1970s, the Iranian Government put in an order to upgrade their existing Chieftain main battle tanks, specifically requesting better armor and a new engine. Development of new armor was carried out by the Military Vehicles and Engineering Establishment (MVEE) in Chobham, Surrey. This development produced the FV4030/3 (Shir 2), which featured brand-new, state-of-the-art Chobham armor. This new armor development gave this tank a flat front hull, a completely new turret compared to the Chieftain — featuring flat cheeks instead of a steel cast front — and a new 1200 HP engine. The first prototypes built at ROF Leeds were shown in 1978 with delivery of production tanks ready for Iran in 1980. However, Iran’s order for 1,200 of these tanks was canceled in 1979 due to the Iranian Revolution and the fall of the Shah of Iran.

Having now developed a tank for a country that no longer wanted to purchase them, ROF Leeds found itself in urgent need of a new customer to sustain tank production. In parallel, the MBT-80 project, aimed at developing a new tank for the British Army to replace the Chieftain, was ongoing. Concerned that new Soviet tank designs were getting ahead, and with FV4030/3 production ready for completion but lacking further orders, the British Government decided to shift the FV4030/3 for the British Army, leading to the ultimate cancellation of the MBT-80 project. Further development of this tank was carried out to address the requirements of the British Army, and after a few years, the project resulted in the FV4030/4 Challenger 1 tank which entered service with the British Army in 1983.
[/expand]




Meet the FV4030/3, obtainable in the Enter the Serpent event. What is this tank exactly? Functionally it can be seen as a heavily upgraded Chieftain tank, but with a brand-new turret and hull, specifically designed for Iran. However, with the collapse of the Iran Government in 1979, no orders were taken, which led to the FV4030/3 being developed into the Challenger 1 for the British Army instead. Let’s take a closer look!




The FV4030/3 is a tank that comes between the Chieftain and Challenger 1 in terms of design and development, featuring a new engine (more on that below) and Chobham composite armor. This composite armor covers a range of the front of the tank, including the upper hull, turret cheeks and turret side. The most protected area is the flat turret cheeks, which can withstand the majority of APFSDS shells at its rank — however the upper and lower plate remain a large weakspot.

Did you know? “Shir” is Persian for “Lion”!




Retaining the great 120 mm L11A5 cannon from the Chieftain, the FV4030/3 can fire the L23 APFSDS round as well as HESH and APDS. The APFSDS shell should always be prioritized as the primary round for this tank, so be sure to focus your research efforts towards it! The excellent gun, which lacks a thermal imager, and main shell is complemented by a very handy laser rangefinder, perfect for long-range engagements — additionally, the FV4030/3 also features a coaxial and turret mounted 7.62 mm machine gun, along with smoke grenades.



As typical to most British Cold War tanks, the FV4030/3 doesn’t feature the most powerful engine in the world, with it being 1200 HP. Although, this is far better than the Chieftain’s and offers enough power to get this vehicle moving up to around 56 km/h, but in many cases won’t be as effective as similar contemporary tanks due to its weight. The playstyle of the FV4030/3 will be almost identical to the Challenger 1 Mk.2 — hunker down where possible, avoid showing the hull, and aim to engage at longer ranges. Or brawl if you’re brave!

That’s it for this one! You can obtain the FV4030/3 in the Enter the Serpent event which begins today. Check out the link below for more information!

Click here to find out more details about the Enter the Serpent event

Please note that this vehicle’s characteristics may be changed before it is added to the game.

Meet the M46 Patton that saw service with France! Today, we’ll take a look at the main reward for the next Battle Pass, The Last Legionnaire!

At a glance:

1. Strong HEATFS and APHE shells.
   
2. Good protection at the front of the turret.
   
3. Effective mobility.

Vehicle History
[expand type=details]
In 1945, a program to create a new medium tank for the U.S. Army based on the M26 Pershing was launched. The Detroit Arsenal built 10 prototypes with a new engine, slightly longer chassis and a modernized M3A1 gun with a new muzzle brake. The prototypes were submitted for testing in 1949, but even before being completed, the vehicle was approved for serial production and standardized as the M46 General Patton medium tank. M46 tanks took part in the Korean War and were also supplied to European countries in the 1950s, in particular France and Belgium.
[/expand]




The premium M46 Patton is joining France as the main tank reward in The Last Legionnaire Battle Pass season! This tank is exceptionally versatile, allowing it to be used in any role during battle and will also make for an excellent addition to several French lineups, helping to add some variety and speed up research due to its premium status. Let’s take a closer look!




In general, the M46 is slightly superior to its direct ancestor, the M26, in several key aspects. One area where it has improved is its engine — although the top forward speed hasn’t changed, the horsepower has improved significantly. This extra power means the M46 can reverse slightly faster and can boast greater overall agility, making it fairly effective in this regard.




The M46 uses a functionally identical cannon to the M26, keeping its horizontal and vertical aiming angles, however it offers increased firepower. Aside from a new muzzle break, the most important addition is the new HEATFS shell, featuring high muzzle velocity and good penetration of up to 305 mm at all distances. Since the M46 participates in battles where ERA and spaced armor are rarer, the HEATFS shell is reasonable to use as the main round on this tank. Although the APCBC shell is best used for those side shots!



Moving onto armor now, where the M46 has not undergone any significant changes compared to the M26. The turret front and mantlet area can easily withstand hits from weaker tank guns, and while the hull is relatively unimpressive front-on, when angled it can defeat many of the weaker guns around the rank as well. The internals however are fairly cramped and full of ammo, with a frontal penetration usually resulting in an ammo explosion or the loss of most crew members. The new shell and engine does make the M46 significantly more versatile than the M26, the mobility comfortably allows for rushes and flanks, while the HEATFS rounds make sniping defensively at long range much more viable. There’s rarely a situation the M46 can’t deal with.

That’s it for today! You can get the premium French M46 Patton for completing challenges in the upcoming Battle Pass season, The Last Legionnaire that starts on January 22nd. Stay tuned, we’ll soon announce the full list of details and rewards for this new season!

Please note that this vehicle’s characteristics may be changed before it is added to the game.

Meet the American Helldiver dive bomber in service with the Royal Thai Air Force, joining the game as the aircraft reward in The Last Legionnaire Battle Pass season!

At a glance:

• Excellent range of bombs.
  
• Decent maneuverability.
  
• 20 mm offensive guns.
  
• Air brake.

Vehicle History
[expand type=details]
The SB2C-5 was the last production variant of the Curtiss Helldiver two-seat carrier-based dive bomber. The aircraft was produced in both the U.S. and Canada under license during the final stages of World War II, however did not have time to participate in combat over the Pacific Ocean. In the post-war period, the SB2C-5 modification was actively exported, including to Thailand, where they were used during the suppression of the uprising in the north of the country during the 1950s.
[/expand]




In The Last Legionnaire, a brand-new Battle Pass season, you’ll have the opportunity to get the excellent SB2C-5 premium dive bomber, well known to you if you’ve played the US or French aviation tree. This aircraft is an invaluable assistant in Ground Battles and a classic in War Thunder Air Battles, so let’s take a look!




The SB2C-5 dive bomber is going to offer an excellent choice of bombs for Japan at rank III. There’s two types of torpedoes, rockets, machine gun pods, and most importantly 250 to 1000 lb bombs (high-explosive) and 1000 to 1600 lb armor-piercing bombs. As for guns, the SB2C-5 features two 20 mm autocannons in the wings with a total of 400 rounds. These guns play an important role in tackling enemy aircraft especially at the lower ranks and make this aircraft a worthy choice in any game mode. Despite this, ultimately this aircraft is best in Ground Battles, where it will still be capable of taking out lightly armored vehicles with the cannons!




Despite having a poor rate of climb and lower maximum speed, the SB2C-5 still has the advantage of spawning in the air in Air Battles thanks to its class as a bomber. This allows it to gain sufficient speed to dive on enemy AI ground targets, also being able to use the air brake to avoid ripping the wings. With minimal maneuvering, the SB2C-5’s speed can be maintained for quite a long time, or you can utilize its decent maneuverability, choosing to hunt other bombers and attack aircraft instead of going for ground targets.



The Last Legionnaire Battle Pass season starts on January 22nd and very soon we’ll be letting you know about the other rewards coming in this season. Keep an eye out for that!

Please note that this vehicle’s characteristics may be changed before it is added to the game.

• Kfir C.10 — the maximum weapons load has been increased to 5.5 tons. (Report).
  
• F-15I Ra’am — inability to enable infrared vision mode for the AGM-65D missiles has been fixed. (Report).
  
• MiG-21 Bison (Great Britain), Su-39 — a bug that caused Kopyo-21 and Kopyo-25 radars respectively to be unable to successfully acquire targets in certain conditions from scan modes has been fixed.
  
• A bug that sometimes caused bombs not to explode after impacting water has been fixed.

• A bug where grass could flicker when using DX12 has been fixed.

• A bug that caused free reward levels in the Battle Pass to unlock with a delay, sometimes only after restarting the game, has been fixed. (Report).

• A naming error in one of the missile test missions has been fixed. (Report).
  
• A bug that caused the camera to twitch when switching to the same view in aircraft (for example, in Simulator Battles when activating the “Toggle View” control if the only available view is from the cockpit, or just trying to switch to the current view in any game mode) has been fixed.
  
• A bug that sometimes caused the game to crash when switching to Sensor View in replays has been fixed. (Report).

Patch notes reflect only key changes, meaning they may not include a complete list of all improvements made. Additionally, War Thunder is constantly being updated and some changes may not require an update. Changes reflected in patch notes are formed by taking reactions and requests of the community from the bug reporting service, forums and other official platforms into account. Bug fixes and changes are implemented in order of importance, for example a game-breaking bug will be worked on and implemented sooner.

Swedish Armed Forces Day is celebrated on January 14th. It was on this day in 1521 that the first volunteers signed up for the personal guard of Gustav Vasa, who soon became the first king of Sweden. In the 17th century, during the Thirty Years’ War, the Swedish army became famous as one of the strongest in Europe. Sweden remained neutral during both World Wars.

This vehicle is available for 1,300 Golden Eagles.

• The SAV 20.12.48 features a very high rate of fire, a powerful armor-piercing shell and good maneuverability. Perfect for taking out multiple enemies in quick succession!

Welcome to War Thunder’s first event of 2025! January 29th marks the Lunar New Year, and this year it’s the Year of the Snake! Celebrate it in this event, which features themed decals, a decoration and a camouflage for the new and obtainable British FV4030/3 Shir 2 medium tank.

From January 17th (11:00 GMT) until February 4th (11:00 GMT), earn mission points in Ground Battles, unlock stages and receive rewards!

The FV4030/3 Shir 2 is a modified and modernized Chieftain, designed in Great Britain to meet the needs of Iran. Featuring a 1,200 HP engine, the FV4030/3 can reach speeds of up to 56 km/h and can fire the L23 APFSDS round from its 120 mm gun. Additionally with a laser rangefinder, this tank is good for long-range engagements!



“Year of the Snake” camouflage (screenshot will be added at a later date)

Among the rewards in the event is also this chest. When opened, there is a chance to receive one of the following items:

• 50,000 - 100,000 Silver Lions
  
• Silver Lion and Research Point boosters
  
• Random Wagers and Orders
  
• Universal Backups (1 - 3)
  
• A random camouflage for a vehicle you own
  
• 1 day of Premium Account

Each stage can be obtained for 45,000 mission points, where every new stage obtained will give you a new reward.

Please note: After finishing a stage, you need to collect the reward manually. To do this, click on your name in-game, go to “Enter the Serpent” and click the “Get Reward” button.

You’re able to earn mission points in Ground Battles at Rank III or above in Arcade, Realistic and Simulator Battles. The number of mission points to complete a stage depends on the game mode and the maximum Rank of the vehicle that you use in battle. There’s a multiplier for earning mission points, which is shown in the task description in-game.

You can also earn mission points by using event vehicles that are Rank I and II. Event vehicles that can be used have the name of the event that they were obtainable in on their stat card.

Stages change every two days at 11:00 GMT on January 19th, 21st, 23rd, 25th, 27th, 29th, 31st and February 2nd.

• For 1 Stage: trophy with a random reward
  
• For 2 Stages: one of the decal rewards
  
• For 3 Stages: trophy with a random reward
  
• For 4 Stages: one of the decal rewards
  
• For 5 Stages: trophy with a random reward
  
• For 6 Stages: the “Ouroboros” decoration
  
• For 7 Stages: trophy with a random reward
  
• For 8 Stages: non-tradable coupon for the FV4030/3
  
• For 9 Stages: a unique camouflage and 4 random modifications for the FV4030/3

Please note: You can only receive the modifications if the FV4030/3 is activated on your account.

Unfinished stages can be purchased for Golden Eagles, but if you’re significantly close to completing a stage, its price will now be significantly reduced.

Let’s say you have earned 85% of the required mission points to complete a stage, then the price of purchasing this stage will be halved. If you’re near the finish line for a stage and are at 95% progress, then the price will be reduced by five times. For example, if you’ve scored 39,000 mission points, then the price for unlocking this stage will be 499 Golden Eagles. If you’ve scored 43,000 mission points, then you’ll only need to pay 199 Golden Eagles. Remember to keep this in mind if you cannot complete a stage on time!

When you complete 8 stages, you’ll receive a non-tradable coupon for the FV4030/3, where using it will immediately activate the vehicle onto your account. If you don’t want the vehicle and would like to sell the coupon on the Market, you’ll need the “Upgrade for coupon” item.

The “Upgrade for coupon” item can be earned in parallel with the stages throughout the event from January 17th (11:00 GMT) until February 4th (11:00 GMT) for 750,000 mission points.

After receiving the “Upgrade for coupon” item, you can convert a non-tradable coupon for the vehicle into a tradable one and sell it on the Market. The tradable coupon can be sold after 6 days from the moment it’s created.

To make a tradable coupon, select the “Coupon FV4030/3 (Great Britain)” in your inventory and click the “Modify” button.

The “Upgrade for coupon” item is valid until 11:00 GMT on February 7th. Until this time, you can use it or exchange it for War Bonds. Afterwards, it’ll disappear from your inventory.

You can track the progress of completing stages and receiving the “Upgrade for coupon” by clicking on your Nickname > Achievements > Enter the Serpent. If you don’t manage to complete a stage on time or would like to purchase a stage, until February 7th from the Achievements window, you can purchase each stage with Golden Eagles which will give you the corresponding rewards.

Thank you for capturing and submitting your screenshots last week! Amphibious vehicles are often a bit awkward to use, but their unique abilities can be useful in flanking and taking control of objectives. This week, take a screenshot of a vehicle that is rank 3 or below! The three most popular and three selected by us will get 300 GE. See the winners down below!


Create a stunning screenshot and submit it on the War Thunder Steam Community Hub with the tag #WTscreen154. You have time until the 17th of January to submit your screenshot.

After that date, 6 winners will be selected (3 of which will be the highest rated by the community and 3 selected by our judges), each of which receive a reward of 300GE.

• Your screenshot must feature a vehicle that is rank 3 or lower.
  
• You must add the #WTscreen154 tag (title cannot have any other text in it).
  
• Artists may only win by popular vote once per four screenshot competitions.

[/b]

Screenshots need to be compliant with the War Thunder rules.

You need to be the author of the screenshot.

Screenshot needs to be new. You cannot use those which have previously been published or used in other competitions.

We will only accept raw screenshots from the game. You cannot use any editing software nor any other visual enhancements (like Nvidia Ansel filters).

You can use filters and settings built into War Thunder.

You can use the replay functionality built into War Thunder.

Rewards will be delivered to the author's account within 14 working days.

[/list]


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3400305393
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3400301558
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3400992397

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3400730440
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3402561506
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3404338588

Each winner will get 300GE! Congratulations and see you next week!

On January 9th, 1956, the post-war German Air Force was founded. The first combat aircraft of the newly formed Luftwaffe was the F-84F Thunderstreak in 1957. The backbone of the German Air Force today consists of 138 multirole Eurofighter Typhoon jets.

You can get yourself this themed decal by meeting the criteria written below.

When: From today until January 13th (11:00 GMT).
Task: Play 3 battles using German aircraft at rank III or above to receive the “German Air Force Day 2025” decal!


“German Air Force Day 2025” decal

Additional details:

• Your activity must not be below 70%.
  
• You can complete the task in random battles, except for Enduring Confrontation missions, [Assault] mode and Helicopter PVE battles.
  
• Track your progress in the hangar by clicking Nickname → Achievements → Holidays → German Air Force Day.
  
• You can find the decal in the “Holidays” tab in the Customization menu.

We loved seeing the screenshots that you submitted last week. This week, take a screenshot of a vehicle that can operate on the water! The three most popular and three selected by us will get 300 GE. See the winners down below!


Create a stunning screenshot and submit it on the War Thunder Steam Community Hub with the tag #WTscreen153. You have time until the 10th of January to submit your screenshot.

After that date, 6 winners will be selected (3 of which will be the highest rated by the community and 3 selected by our judges), each of which receive a reward of 300GE.

• Your screenshot must include a naval vehicle, hydroplane or amphibious ground vehicle.
  
• You must add the #WTscreen153 tag (title cannot have any other text in it).
  
• Artists may only win by popular vote once per four screenshot competitions.

[/b]

Screenshots need to be compliant with the War Thunder rules.

You need to be the author of the screenshot.

Screenshot needs to be new. You cannot use those which have previously been published or used in other competitions.

We will only accept raw screenshots from the game. You cannot use any editing software nor any other visual enhancements (like Nvidia Ansel filters).

You can use filters and settings built into War Thunder.

You can use the replay functionality built into War Thunder.

Rewards will be delivered to the author's account within 14 working days.

[/list]


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3395211993
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3394627481
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3394055376

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3399782654
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3396056385
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3398788067

Each winner will get 300GE! Congratulations and see you next week!

As the year comes to a close, we’d like to take a look at the results of both our work and your battles in 2024. We continued to release regular updates for War Thunder — both large, with new vehicles and locations, and small, with corrections and bug fixes. And we don’t plan to slow down in 2025!

But your activity is no less important. Millions of players participated in battles, won spectacular victories, earned achievements and set new records. Let’s see what we achieved together in 2024!