Considered one of the most powerful contemporary instruments of war, tanks have been used since the First World War. At that time, political tension and revanchism between imperialist nations opened doors for the development of combat technologies never seen before. At first, the battle tanks were called by the British only as "tanks", so that the enemy nations did not know the potential for destruction of the technology used in this type of weapon.
One of the most notorious advantages contained in the use of tanks is the possibility of crossing territories extremely injured, shooting at enemy troops and transporting several soldiers to safety, all while Same time. However, until all these advantages were satisfactorily met, the tanks still required enormous work. Mechanical failures, jamming on shaky ground, and the car's slowness were the most common limitations of this weapon.
Over time, the development of new research has turned tanks into a more agile and powerful warfare option. According to estimates, a battle tank now has a ninety percent chance of hitting another tank hard, even if it's on the move. All this efficiency generated a cost that made the maintenance of these machines very expensive. Russia, Israel, USA, England, France and Germany are examples of nations that produce this type of weaponry.
It is interesting to note that the improvement of tanks was not prompted by a natural need to rethink their capabilities. As the tanks became more powerful, they soon had to contend with another arm of weapons technology dedicated to tank destruction. Nowadays, the American missile “Hellfire” can destroy the protection system of any contemporary battle tank.
Usually, the most modern tanks adopt armoring systems made from composites of ceramic or with the use of "Chobham", a resistant compound that still has its formula maintained in secret. In addition to this type of protection, there are reactive armor systems, where the tanks are covered by plates that explode in the opposite direction of the projectile that hits them. Through this explosion, the impact caused by the attacks is considerably reduced.
Even with so many changes and improvements, a battle tank still weighs – on average – something around 60 tons. For the future, it is expected to develop unmanned tanks that weigh about a third of their current value. Instead of missiles, some of the tanks of the future would use laser and microwave fire. Despite such projections, it is difficult to know what modifications the tanks will undergo to meet future military objectives.
By Rainer Sousa
Graduated in History
Brazil School Team
20th century - wars - Brazil School
Source: Brazil School - https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/guerras/os-tanques-guerra.htm