Difference between revisions of "Merkava Mk.3C"
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== Usage in battles == | == Usage in battles == | ||
<!-- ''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).'' --> | <!-- ''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).'' --> | ||
| − | + | ||
| + | The Merkava Mk.3C is virtually the same vehicle as the previous Mk.3B aside from the new commander optics and can be used identically. With sluggish mobility, inconsistent protection, and a punchy gun, the Merkava is best used as a sniper in entrenched positions where its good damage control makes it difficult to dislodge and its high-velocity, high-mass APFSDS can make short work of exposed targets. Be careful of sustained combat because the ready rack can be depleted very quickly and the Merkava's large size and unmistakable profile tend to attract attention. The quartet of machine guns and time-fused HE shell offer a measure of anti-helicopter capability against rushing and hovering helicopters, respectively. | ||
| + | |||
| + | The commander sight doesn't have a thermal imager and can't be considered a major improvement in itself, but it does open up some new opportunities in combat. With two-plane stabilization and improved fields of view compared to the previous basic periscope, the commander's ability to override the main gun becomes much more viable. It also helps that the commander sight is placed very close to the gunner's sight, reducing the amount of added parallax in Sim battles. Though it's not a very common situation to lose the gunner from incoming fire but not the commander, having a credible way to fire back when damaged further improves the Merkava's survivability. | ||
| + | |||
| + | A small quirk worth noting with the increased relevance of the commander override is that using the laser rangefinder in the commander's sight does not prime the time fuse of the M339 HE-TF shell. This means that the commander override can't take advantage of the airburst feature, but makes it slightly easier to use M339 as a direct-impact weapon at long distances. In exchange for lower optical zoom and a bit of uncertainty due to parallax, there is no need to switch to a different shell type and back (which might be forgotten in the heat of battle or impossible if APFSDS and HEAT are depleted) after ranging to clear the time fuse as would be required in the gunner's sight. | ||
=== Pros and cons === | === Pros and cons === | ||
| Line 142: | Line 147: | ||
* Overall armor layout is vulnerable to APFSDS, able to be penetrated with ease from most places | * Overall armor layout is vulnerable to APFSDS, able to be penetrated with ease from most places | ||
* Mediocre mobility | * Mediocre mobility | ||
| − | |||
* Large/tall profile, easily spotted | * Large/tall profile, easily spotted | ||
Revision as of 23:53, 26 May 2024
| This page is about the Israeli medium tank Merkava Mk.3C. For other versions, see Merkava (Family). |
Contents
Description
The Merkava Mk.3C is the second subvariant of the Merkava Mk.3, which is the third variant of the Merkava main battle tank family. The Merkava Mk.3C received the new Barak Zoher fire control system, which can be distinguished by the inclusion of a commander-independent sight on the turret roof, beginning in 1995. This adds hunter-killer capabilities to the Merkava Mk.3C, a trait that is desperately needed in modern conflict. The new fire control system can now automatically track targets and even low-flying helicopters. Other small upgrades, such as the insertion of composite screens into portions of the hull, were also implemented, mostly to defend the tank from rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) and anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs) launched from elevated positions.
Introduced in Update "Drone Age", the Merkava Mk.3C received yet another important upgrade: the commander's independent sight. With the addition of hunter-killer capabilities, players can search for possible adversaries while remaining behind low obstacles and rocky terrain. Furthermore, the commander can override controls for the main gun, allowing players to engage opponents more effectively. Together with the Merkava Mk.3B's improved weaponry, the Merkava Mk.3C is a truly modern main battle tank that combines outstanding situational awareness, protection, and firepower.
General info
Survivability and armour
Describe armour protection. Note the most well protected and key weak areas. Appreciate the layout of modules as well as the number and location of crew members. Is the level of armour protection sufficient, is the placement of modules helpful for survival in combat? If necessary use a visual template to indicate the most secure and weak zones of the armour.
Armour type:
| Armour | Front (Slope angle) | Sides | Rear | Roof |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hull | ___ mm | ___ mm Top ___ mm Bottom |
___ mm | ___ - ___ mm |
| Turret | ___ - ___ mm Turret front ___ mm Gun mantlet |
___ - ___ mm | ___ - ___ mm | ___ - ___ mm |
| Cupola | ___ mm | ___ mm | ___ mm | ___ mm |
Notes:
Mobility
| Game Mode | Max Speed (km/h) | Weight (tons) | Engine power (horsepower) | Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | Reverse | Stock | Upgraded | Stock | Upgraded | ||
| Arcade | 67 | 29 | 65 | 1,860 | 2,290 | 28.62 | 35.23 |
| Realistic | 60 | 26 | 1,061 | 1,200 | 16.32 | 18.46 | |
Modifications and economy
| Mobility | Protection | Firepower | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Armaments
Main armament
| 120 mm IMI MG251 | Turret rotation speed (°/s) | Reloading rate (seconds) | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mode | Capacity | Vertical | Horizontal | Stabilizer | Stock | Upgraded | Full | Expert | Aced | Stock | Full | Expert | Aced |
| Arcade | 46 | -7°/+20° | ±180° | Two-plane | 32.4 | 44.8 | 54.4 | 60.2 | 64.0 | 7.80 | 6.90 | 6.36 | 6.00 |
| Realistic | 20.2 | 23.8 | 28.9 | 32.0 | 34.0 | ||||||||
Ammunition
| Penetration statistics | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm) | |||||
| 10 m | 100 m | 500 m | 1,000 m | 1,500 m | 2,000 m | ||
| M325 | HEATFS | 480 | 480 | 480 | 480 | 480 | 480 |
| M339 | HE-TF | 65 | 65 | 60 | 58 | 53 | 50 |
| M322 | APFSDS | 589 | 586 | 577 | 565 | 553 | 541 |
| Shell details | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Velocity (m/s) |
Projectile mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (m) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (kg) |
Ricochet | |||||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | ||||||||||
| M325 | HEATFS | 1,078 | 15.81 | 0.05 | 0.1 | 2.36 | 65° | 72° | 77° | |||
| M339 | HE-TF | 900 | 17 | 1.5 | 3 | 3.66 | 79° | 80° | 81° | |||
| M322 | APFSDS | 1,705 | 5.6 | - | - | - | 78° | 80° | 81° | |||
Ammo racks
| Full ammo |
1st rack empty |
2nd rack empty |
3rd rack empty |
4th rack empty |
5th rack empty |
6th rack empty |
Visual discrepancy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 46 | 45 (+1) | 43 (+3) | 42 (+4) | 24 (+22) | 6 (+40) | 1 (+45) | No |
Machine guns
| 12.7 mm M2HB | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount | Capacity (Belt) | Fire rate | Vertical | Horizontal |
| Coaxial | 1,000 (200) | 577 | N/A | N/A |
| 7.62 mm FN MAG 60-40 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount | Capacity (Belt) | Fire rate | Vertical | Horizontal |
| Coaxial | 6,000 (200) | 600 | N/A | N/A |
| Pintle (loader) | 1,800 (200) | 600 | -10°/+50° | ±120° |
| Pintle (commander) | 1,800 (200) | 600 | -10°/+50° | ±120° |
Usage in battles
The Merkava Mk.3C is virtually the same vehicle as the previous Mk.3B aside from the new commander optics and can be used identically. With sluggish mobility, inconsistent protection, and a punchy gun, the Merkava is best used as a sniper in entrenched positions where its good damage control makes it difficult to dislodge and its high-velocity, high-mass APFSDS can make short work of exposed targets. Be careful of sustained combat because the ready rack can be depleted very quickly and the Merkava's large size and unmistakable profile tend to attract attention. The quartet of machine guns and time-fused HE shell offer a measure of anti-helicopter capability against rushing and hovering helicopters, respectively.
The commander sight doesn't have a thermal imager and can't be considered a major improvement in itself, but it does open up some new opportunities in combat. With two-plane stabilization and improved fields of view compared to the previous basic periscope, the commander's ability to override the main gun becomes much more viable. It also helps that the commander sight is placed very close to the gunner's sight, reducing the amount of added parallax in Sim battles. Though it's not a very common situation to lose the gunner from incoming fire but not the commander, having a credible way to fire back when damaged further improves the Merkava's survivability.
A small quirk worth noting with the increased relevance of the commander override is that using the laser rangefinder in the commander's sight does not prime the time fuse of the M339 HE-TF shell. This means that the commander override can't take advantage of the airburst feature, but makes it slightly easier to use M339 as a direct-impact weapon at long distances. In exchange for lower optical zoom and a bit of uncertainty due to parallax, there is no need to switch to a different shell type and back (which might be forgotten in the heat of battle or impossible if APFSDS and HEAT are depleted) after ranging to clear the time fuse as would be required in the gunner's sight.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Good armor against most HEAT and some APFSDS rounds
- Excellent post-penetration survivability with good ammo storage and crew layout
- Generous quantity of smoke grenades
- APFSDS round is one of the best sabot rounds for the battle rating
Cons:
- Overall armor layout is vulnerable to APFSDS, able to be penetrated with ease from most places
- Mediocre mobility
- Large/tall profile, easily spotted
History
Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).
Media
- Skins
See also
Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:
- reference to the series of the vehicles;
- links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.
External links
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- other literature.
| Israeli Ordnance Corps (חיל החימוש) | |
|---|---|
| Medium Tanks | M-51 · M-51 (W) |
| MBTs | |
| Magach | Magach 1 · Magach 2 · Magach 3 · Magach 3 (ERA) · ▃Magach 3 (ERA) · Magach 5 |
| Magach 6 · Magach 6A · Magach 6B · Magach 6C · Magach 6R · Magach 6M · Gal Batash | |
| Sho't | Sho't · Sho't Kal Alef · Sho't Kal Gimel · Sho't Kal Dalet · ▄Sho't Kal Dalet |
| Tiran | Tiran 4 · Tiran 4S |
| Merkava | ▃Merkava Mk.1 · Merkava Mk.1B · Merkava Mk.2B · ▃Merkava Mk.2B · Merkava Mk.2D |
| Merkava Mk.3B · Merkava Mk.3C · ▃Merkava Mk.3D · Merkava Mk.4B · Merkava Mk.4M | |
| Tank destroyers | Zachlam Tager |
| See Also | Chrysler Defense · Department of Tank Design · Morozov Design Bureau |
| Israel medium tanks | |
|---|---|
| M-51 | M-51 · M-51 (W) |
| Magach | Magach 1 · Magach 2 · Magach 3 · Magach 3 (ERA) · Magach 5 · Magach 6 |
| Magach 6A · Magach 6B · Magach 6B Gal · Gal Batash · Magach 6C · Magach 6M · Magach 6R · Magach Hydra · Magach 7C | |
| Tiran | Tiran 4 · Tiran 4S · Tiran 6 |
| Sho't | Sho't · Sho't Kal Alef · Sho't Kal Gimel · Sho't Kal Dalet |
| Merkava | Merkava Mk.1B · Merkava Mk.2B · Merkava Mk.2D · Merkava Mk.3B · Merkava Mk.3C · Ra'am Sagol |
| Merkava Mk.4B · Merkava Mk.4M · Merkava Mk.4 LIC | |
