Iran Tanks
Not to be outdone by the global powers-that-be, Iran has continually developed or purchased comparable systems behind its veil.

1 Chieftain The British Chieftain main battle tank appeared in the 1960s and quickly established itself as the most powerful tank on the market, that is, until the arrival of the West German Leopard 1 series. A replacement for the aging ... 1963

2 DIO Zulfiqar The Iranian designed and built Zulfiqar main battle tank is said to be an upgraded version of the Soviet-built T-55 main battle tank. The difference being that the Zulfiqar features an updated powerplant, a computerized fire ... 1999

3 M47 Patton (Patton 1) The M47 Patton tank saw a short life in frontline service, being replaced promptly by the M48 Pattons as early as 1953 (the M47s entered service in 1951. Because of their short life, they did not see any combat service in the... 1951

4 M48 Patton The M48 Patton Main Battle Tank was effectively the first tank engineering design in post-war America. The M46 and M47 Patton versions were merely developments of the World War Two M26 Pershing, which in itself, was a develop... 1952

5 T-54 The T-54 series of Soviet main battle tanks came about with development after World War 2, ending with the system becoming operationally available by 1949. It can be said that no other Cold War or post-Cold War tank has seen ... 1949

6 T-55 The T-55 Medium Tank is probably the most internationally prolific piece of tracked armor as it can be found in dozens of military inventories across the globe. It has seen military frontline service from the invasion of Hung... 1958

7 T-62 The T-62 tank represented an update to the T-54/55 series of Soviet-produced main battle tanks. Conventional systems include a 115mm main gun, self-defense machine guns from aircraft (12.7mm machine gun) and enemy infantry an... 1961

8 T-72 The Soviet-era T-72 Main Battle Tank is closely related to the T-64. The T-72 features a low-profile and is arguable one of the most recognizable of the Soviet-post war designs ever made. The weapon system as a whole is also ... 1974

9 Type 59 The NORINCO-produced Type 59 was actually based on the purchase and subsequent local licensed production of the Soviet T-54 main battle tank (just redesignated as the Type 59 in Chinese service). The system, at least external... 1959

10 Type 69 The NORINCO-produced Type 69 is a further indigenous development based on previous Soviet hardware purchases. The Type 69 is crewed by four personnel and comes in a type I and type II model flavor with the main difference bei... 1969