![]() ![]() Cross-country travel is aided by the torsion bar suspension system common to all modern Soviet / Chinese tanks. Amphibious travel is possible by way of a snorkel. The running gear includes six double-tired road wheels to a track side with a rear-mounted drive sprocket and front-mounted track idler. Forty-four 105mm projectiles are carried. The vehicle seats the driver at front-left with the remaining three crew in the powered turret. Power is served through a single 12150L-7BW diesel-fueled engine located at the back of the hull which provides the vehicle with a maximum road speed of 60 kmh and an operating range out to 430 kilometers (the latter can be extended by mounting fuel drums over the rear hull ). The Type 80 showcases an operating weight of 38 tons and overall length of 9.3 meters with a width of 3.4 meters and height of 2.3 meters. The Type 80 became the first "Second Generation" quality Chinese Army tank and its manufacture was handled by local defense powerhouse China NORth INdustries COrporation (NORINCO). Smoke grenade dischargers are fitted in two banks of four launchers along the frontal turret sides. The crew remains four - driver, commander, gunner and loader - while secondary armament consists of a 7.62mm co-axial machine gun in the turret and 12.7mm Anti-Aircraft (AA) Heavy Machine Gun (HMG) on the turret roof. The Fire Control System (FCS) (with laser rangefinder) is taken from the Type 69-II model while side steel skirt armor protect the important upper components of the running gear (which were left exposed on the Type 69). Changes to the Type 80 over the Type 69 include an all-new, lengthened hull design with composite armor support as well as the turret system of the Type 79 MBT series with its 105mm L7-based rifled main gun. The Chinese Army Type 80 Main Battle Tank (MBT) is a further development of its Type 59/69 MBTs, the Type 59 itself an outgrowth of the hugely successful Soviet-era T-54A model series. ![]()
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