Type 96

* Default
* No.215

## Crew

* Commander
* Driver
* Gunner

The **Type 96** is a Tier 6 progression Main Battle Tank under Zhang Feng's dealership.

## History

Class: Main Battle Tank

Developed: 1996

Service: 1997+

Vehicles Built: cca 1000

Operators: China, Sudan (allegedly)

The Type 96 Main Battle Tank is the ultimate evolution of the second generation of Chinese MBTs, which included the Type 80, Type 88 and Type 85 tanks. It is mostly a Chinese domestic vehicle that, however, started with a design called Type 85-III.

The Type 85-III was the last step in the Type 85 export line. The prototype was developed based on the Type 85-IIM export version for Pakistan. It was developed in 1993 by NORINCO and featured a large number of improvements, including but not limited to a more powerful 1000hp diesel engine, a new transmission of the same type the T-72 used and a new ERA kit. It was offered starting from 1994, but the attempt to export it was unsuccessful. In 1995, it was competing against Ukraine's T-80UD MBT in Pakistan but lost due to being a prototype only while the T-80UD was already mass-produced at the time. As a result of this failure, the promotion of Type 85-III was basically dropped. On the other hand, the developers were quite happy with the tank, claiming that in combat value it was on par with the Russian T-80 and T-90 series.

In 1991, the Chinese military underwent a massive shock in the form of the absolute decimation of Iraqi forces by the Americans during the Gulf War. As a result, the development of a new, third generation Main Battle Tank was accelerated, but such things take time. Aware of the increasing delays, the Chinese turned to possibly the best armored vehicle they had developed, the Type 85-III prototype. In 1996, the design was officially approved as the Type 96 Main Battle Tank, although it was somewhat downgraded to ensure the highest reliability possible. Thus, the original Type 96 resembled the Type 85-IIM more than it did the Type 85-III. It did have its welded turret and an automatically loaded 125mm gun, but it lacked ERA and the 1000hp up-tuned engine.

After successfully passing the state tests, the initial production of the Type 96 started in 1997 and ran roughly until 2005 with around 2000 vehicles produced (although a half of it consisted of the modernized Type 96Avariant). At this moment, the People’s Liberation Army is estimated to still operate around 1000 tanks of this older type. As a side note, despite the vehicle being intended for domestic use, an unknown number (perhaps two dozen) of them found its way to Sudan, possibly around 2006 to 2007. There, they allegedly participated in government service in the fighting against South Sudanese forces, knocking out several T-72 tanks.

## Vehicle Traits

* Armored: This vehicle's armor can withstand a lot of punishment, allowing it to survive even serious firefights.
* Heavy Weapon: This vehicle carries one of the largest weapons around with significantly increased damage per shot.
* Engine Boost: This vehicle's engine rev limiter can be overridden to significantly increase speed and acceleration for a short period of time.

## Upgrades

### Armor

Type 96 Stock Armor
 This MBT's front is protected by composite armor. Composite armor consists of combined layers of steel and other material and offers excellent protection against HEAT shells and ATGMs. Its steel sides and rear are considerably more vulnerable.

### Weapon

**Stats:**

* **Depression/Elevation**: -6.0° / 14.0°

## Abilities

**Description:**Temporarily improves your vehicle's acceleration and maximum speed. This ability also makes you lose less speed during sharp turns.

## Footnotes

1. ↑ 695 mm at 150m;
522 mm at 500m
2. ↑ 265 for Partial Penetration;
67 for Non-Penetrating Hits
3. ↑ 18 mm at 100m;
9 mm at 1000m

CATTB  •
Centurion AVRE  •
KPz 70  •
Leopard 1  •
Leopard 1A5  •
Leopard 2  •
Leopard 2A5  •
Leopard 2A6  •
Leo. 2A6 Hades  •
Leopard 2AV  •
Leopard 2AX  •
Leopard Evo  •
Leopard Revo  •
M1 Abrams  •
M1A1 Abrams  •
M1A1 Storm  •
M1A1 AIM  •
M1A2 Abrams  •
M1A2C  •
M1A2C Hades  •
M48  •
M60  •
M60-2000  •
M60A1  •
M60A2  •
M60A3  •
M60A3 SLEP  •
MBT-70  •
Panzer 87-140  •
Strv 2000  •
XM1  •
 Marat Shishkin | Al-Hussein  •
Challenger 1  •
Chall. 1 Falcon  •
Challenger 2  •
Chall. 2 ATDU  •
Chall. 2 Hades  •
Chall. 2 SFII  •
Chief. 900  •
Chief. Mk.10  •
Chief. Mk.11  •
Chief. Mk.2  •
Chief. Mk.6  •
IS-7  •
Object 187  •
Object 195  •
Object 225  •
Object 279  •
Object 430  •
Object 490  •
Object 640  •
T-14 152 Armata  •
T-14 152 Hades  •
T-14 Armata  •
T-55  •
T-55M1  •
T-62  •
T-62M  •
T-64A Mod.1969  •
T-64A Mod.1976  •
T-72 Ural  •
T-72A  •
T-72B  •
T-72B3  •
T-72M1  •
T-80  •
T-80B  •
T-80U  •
T-80UM-1 Bars  •
T-90  •
T-90A Burlak  •
T-90A  •
T-90MS Hades  •
T-90MS  •
 Zhang Feng | 9910  •
Arjun Mk.IA  •
BM Oplot  •
M-95  •
T-55 Enigma  •
T-72M2 Wilk  •
T-72M4CZ  •
TR-85M1  •
Type 59  •
Type 59-IIA  •
Type 69  •
Type 79  •
Type 80-II  •
Type 85-IIM  •
Type 90-II  •
**Type 96**  •
Type 96A  •
Type 96B  •
Type 99  •
Type 99A  •
Type 99A2  •
Type 99A2 Hades  •
Type 99A2-140  •
Type 99B  •
VT4  •
WZ-1224  •
 Oscar Faraday | Altay  •
 Sol Schreiber | M50  •
M51  •
Magach 5  •
Magach 6B  •
Magach 7A  •
Magach 7C  •
Merkava 1  •
Merkava 2B  •
Merkava 2D  •
Merkava 3 Baz  •
Merkava 4  •
Merkava 4M  •
Sabra Mk.2  •
Sho't Kal Dalet  •
 Francine De Laroche | AMX-30B2  •
AMX-30B2 Brenus  •
AMX-40  •
AMX-50  •
C1 Ariete  •
K1A1  •
K2  •
Leclerc  •
Leclerc Proto  •
Leclerc T4  •
OF-40  •
Osório  •
Seon'gun-915  •
Type 10 Hitomaru  •
Type 74  •
Type 90