Despite advances in armor-defeating weapons, the Main Battle Tank remains the cornerstone of every modern land army's true strength on the battlefield.
The Main Battle Tank (MBT) became a primary battlefield fixture in the years following World War 2 (1939-1945). During the conflict, land forces relied on a mix of light, medium and heavy tank types to fulfill various requirements. The MBT arose out of a need for a 'Universal Tank' concept capable of achieving the same results through a single design. With the advent of lighter composite armor, engineers fashioned a new fighting machine which has remained the mainstay of modern land forces today.
The first true Main Battle Tank came from the British who unveiled their Centurion A41 in 1945. This was then followed by competing designs from the Soviet Union (the classic T-54/T-55 lines) and the United States (through their M60 'Patton'). In more recent years, some land forces have been abandoning the MBT concept in favor of more mobile, lightweight wheeled armored vehicles. Additionally, Anti-Tank Guided Missiles (ATGMs)) have increased their lethality and forced major protection revisions from MBT designers - leading to the thought that the MBT may very well be seeing its last decade of battlefield dominance.
There are a total of [ 83 ] Main Battle Tanks (MBT) entries in the Military Factory. Entries are listed below by initial year of service descending. Flag images indicative of country of origin and not necessarily the primary operator.
The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com.
Part of a network of sites that includes GlobalFirepower, a data-driven property used in ranking the top military powers of the world, WDMMA.org (World Directory of Modern Military Aircraft), WDMMW.org (World Directory of Modern Military Warships), SR71blackbird.org, detailing the history of the world's most iconic spyplane, and MilitaryRibbons.info, cataloguing all American military medals and ribbons.
