The Sudanese ground forces are armed with Soviet, American and Chinese-made tanks, most of which are considered obsolete. In the first decade of the XXI century, attempts were made to start producing their own samples.
So, with the help of specialists from the Middle Kingdom, the main battle tank Al-Zubair 2 was created, which was a deep modernization of the Type 59 medium tank. Instead of the old rifled 100-mm gun, he received a long-barreled 105-mm stabilized smoothbore gun with a protective casing. A 7.62-mm machine gun is paired with it, and a 12.7-mm clone of the Soviet anti-aircraft DSHKM is mounted on the tower.
The fire control system is equipped with a laser rangefinder, a ballistic computer with various sensors. The presence of a night thermal imaging channel was also reported.
The frontal reservation of the tower and hull is reinforced by dynamic protection developed by the PRC. Anti-accumulative grilles are mounted in the stern of the tower. The sides are covered with ordinary screens.
There are facilities for installing aerosol curtains and automatic fire-fighting equipment.
The 12-cylinder engine is the same as on the main battle tank Type-85-IIM-730 hp. The exhaust pipes are directed to the right side.
The maximum speed on the highway is 57 km / h. The fuel reserve is 350 km. The crew consists of four people.
The assembly of the Al-Zubair 2 was carried out very slowly, since 2011, about six dozen units have been produced.
Currently, China exports to Africa more advanced versions of the "fifty-ninth" - VT-3. Such tanks have already been seen in Tanzania and Chad. They are armed with 125-mm guns and have more powerful armor.
Pictures of sudanese ?? made "Al Zubair -2'' main battle tanks,local production of the chinese made Type 59D tank. with FY series of explosive reactive armor blocks on the turrets and the hulls.
1/2 : pic.twitter.com/YiYCTZMjIx
— Hammer Of War (@HammerOfWar5) August 9, 2021
Alexey Moiseev
