The fourteenth International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition will kick off in Zhuhai on Tuesday in south China's Guangdong Province. More than 740 companies from 43 countries and regions will take part in the exhibition, and more than one hundred aircraft will be on display. Modern weaponry and military equipment are returning to the Airshow China for another year. The VT4 tanks have been a frequent visitor to the airshow. And a brand new model is making its public debut at Airshow China 2022. Xu Xinchen takes a closer look.
XU XINCHEN Zhuhai, Guangdong "This is China's best-selling main battle tank to overseas customers."
"The VT4 is a China-made battle tank with a 125mm main fire cannon. Development of the 50 plus ton tank can be traced back to 2007. The latest model – VT4A1 – is being made public at the AirShow China."
It has its predecessor's power plus modern technologies – an onboard drone that can be shot up to the sky for surveillance and an active defense system.
CHENG ZIHENG Weaponry specialist China North Industries Group Corporation "We can see that this is an unmanned aerial vehicle carriage. The UAV is stored in the loading box. If we have to send it to the sky, the drone will be pushed out, open its wings and take off.
"The tanks' reconnaissance range is about 4-5 kilometers. But if we encounter an enemy attack 10 kilometers away, we cannot detect it. Or people in tanks cannot tell if there is any special terrain 10 kilometers away nor do we know if there is a better path. Now, we have this UAV. When it flies, we have the view from the sky, just like another eye in the sky. Then the tank can see a wider range."
The next generation technology makes this China-made battle tank a strong contender to compete in advanced warfare.
