Panzer 61 – Photos & Vidéo

Le Panzer 61 était un char moyen suisse de l’époque de la guerre froide reclassé plus tard comme char de combat principal de deuxième génération. Le char avait un poids de 36,5 tonnes et était propulsé par un moteur diesel de 630 ch, ce qui lui donnait une vitesse maximale sur route de 31 mph (50 km / h). L’armement principal du Panzer 61 était un canon principal de 105 mm.

Source: Panzer 61 sur Wikipedia

The Panzer 61 was a medium tank developed by Switzerland in the 1950s and 1960s as a response to the threat of a possible Soviet invasion of Western Europe. The tank was based on the earlier Panzer 58 prototype, which was fitted with a British 105 mm L7 gun as its main armament. The Panzer 61 had a four-man crew and a weight of 39 tons. It was powered by a Mercedes-Benz V-8 diesel engine that gave it a maximum speed of 55 km/h. The tank had a conventional layout, with the driver in the front hull, the turret in the center, and the engine and transmission in the rear. The turret had a commander’s cupola with a machine gun mount and a loader’s hatch on the left side. The tank had a coaxial 7.5 mm machine gun and another one on the hull front. The armor of the Panzer 61 was up to 120 mm thick on the front and could withstand hits from most Soviet tank guns of that era.
The Panzer 61 entered service with the Swiss Army in 1965 and was produced until 1967, with a total of 150 units built. The tank was later upgraded with some features from the more advanced Panzer 68, such as improved fire control and communication systems. The Panzer 61 served as the main battle tank of Switzerland until the late 1980s, when it was replaced by the Leopard 2-based Panzer 87. The Panzer 61 never saw combat, but it was an important milestone in the development of Swiss armored vehicles. The chassis of the Panzer 61 was also used for other variants, such as a self-propelled gun and an armored recovery vehicle.