AMX-30 ACRA
Contents
Description
The AMX-30 ACRA is a rank VI French medium tank with a battle rating of 8.3 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.93 "Shark Attack".
In the 1960s, a proposal was made to mount a 142 mm gun system firing the ACRA (Anti-Char Rapide Autopropulsé), English: Anti-Tank Rapid Self-guided Missile. A single prototype was finished in 1967 with a unique cast turret built around the gun, but due to the unreasonably high cost of the missiles, the project was scrapped. However, in War Thunder, it is a formidable tank to play with play styles similar to the M60A2.
General info
Survivability and armour
Armour type:
- Cast homogeneous armour (front glacis, turret, cupola)
- Rolled homogeneous armour (hull sides, rear & roof)
| Armour | Front (Slope angle) | Sides | Rear | Roof |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hull | 50 mm (76-79°) Upper glacis - Top 79 mm (68°) Upper glacis - Bottom 79 mm (45°) Lower glacis - Top 30 mm (75°) Lower glacis - Bottom 57 mm (35°) Hull over the tracks |
35 mm Top - Front 57 mm (35°) Top - Hull widening 35 mm (35°) Top - Centre 35 mm Top - Rear 30 mm Bottom 25 mm (70°) Belly |
30 mm (10°) Upper plate 30 mm Hull over the tracks 30 mm Lower plate 25 mm (70°) Belly |
79 mm (22°) Front glacis - Front 50 mm (11-14°) Front glacis - Rear 15 mm Rear 8 mm Radiator vents |
| Turret | 57-79 + 60 mm (19°) Gun mantlet 60 mm (19-24°) Turret front 30 mm (cylindrical) Telemeter |
41.5 mm (19-47°) 30 mm Telemeter 41.5 mm Cupola well |
30 mm (spherical) 20 mm (54-64°) Turret underside |
30 mm (2-20°) Gun mantlet 20 mm (2-21°) Turret |
| Cupola | 60 mm (cylindrical) | 60 mm Outer ring 20 mm Centre | ||
Notes:
- Suspension wheels are 15 mm thick while tracks are 20 mm thick.
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 | 73 | 73 | 38 | 1,085 | 1,374 | 28.55 | 36.16 |
| Realistic | 66 | 66 | 619 | 720 | 16.29 | 18.95 | |
The gun is mounted on the well-proven AMX-30 chassis, providing adequate mobility slightly slower than the Leopard 1.
Modifications and economy
| Mobility | Protection | Firepower | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Armaments
Main armament
The AMX-30 ACRA mount as we saw before a 142mm laser guided gun, capable of launching ACRA missile and High Explosive round. It can carry 36 rounds, 16 in the turret and 20 in the hull, next to the driver, so you have the possibility to get a higher survivability from hull shots by removing these 20 rounds. The gun reload is 15.6 seconds with a level 1 crew and can be upgraded to 12 seconds with a max crew.
The ACRA missile is pretty fast, making the tank very useful on large maps and sits at a battle rating where nothing will be able to resist the missile. Be careful when shooting at the sides of enemy tanks, the missiles function like a HEAT round and tends to be absorbed by the tracks if hit directly. Also like a HEAT round, don't try to shoot missiles through walls, fences, big bushes, or trees.
Another good point with the gun is that you don't need to stop the tank to fire. However, the missile is guided with a laser mounted with the gun, which is not stabilized. This means your missiles will bounce up and down as you guide them if you are moving. This also means you cannot fire over obstacles like you can with wire guided missiles, as the laser needs constant line-of-sight to the back of the missile.
| 142 mm ACRA | Turret rotation speed (°/s) | Reloading rate (seconds) | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mode | Capacity | Vertical | Horizontal | Stabilizer | Stock | Upgraded | Full | Expert | Aced | Stock | Full | Expert | Aced |
| Arcade | 36 | -8°/+20° | ±180° | N/A | 28.6 | 39.5 | 48.0 | 53.1 | 56.5 | 15.60 | 13.80 | 12.72 | 12.00 |
| Realistic | 17.9 | 21.0 | 25.5 | 28.2 | 30.0 | ||||||||
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 | ||
| MP ACRA | ATGM | 700 | 700 | 700 | 700 | 700 | 700 |
| MUC | HE | 38 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 38 | 38 |
| Shell details | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Velocity (m/s) |
Projectile Mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (m) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g) |
Ricochet | ||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | |||||||
| MP ACRA | ATGM | 500 | 25 | 0.05 | 0.1 | 3,280 | 80° | 82° | 90° |
| MUC | HE | 700 | 23 | 0 | 0.1 | 3,580 | 79° | 80° | 81° |
Ammo racks
| Full ammo |
1st rack empty |
2nd rack empty |
3rd rack empty |
Visual discrepancy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 36 | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ (+__) | __ |
Machine guns
| 12.7 mm M2HB | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount | Capacity (Belt) | Fire rate | Vertical | Horizontal |
| Coaxial | 700 (200) | 577 | -10°/+20° | N/A |
The M2HB coaxial heavy machine gun is a good anti-aircraft asset, it will shred any low-flying aircraft thanks to the extra 20 degrees of elevation. The only drawback is that the MG is coaxial, meaning the turret must rotate to track the targets. The .50 cal can also deal with armoured cars and SPAA vehicles when they're up close.
| 7.62 mm A-A-F1N | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount | Capacity (Belt) | Fire rate | Vertical | Horizontal |
| Pintle | 2,050 (100) | 900 | -10°/+45° | ±120° |
The small calibre of the A-A-F1N machine gun makes it largely ineffective against all armoured vehicles but the ones with an open compartment. It still can be used to ping targets as a rangefinding help or to mow down minor obstacles blocking your line of sight.
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).
Pros and cons
Pros:
- The maximum speed of this tank's ATGM eclipses even the TOW's - if ACRA fires first and enemy tank does not use cover, then it is next to impossible to just dodge it
- Can fire ATGM on the move
- Mobility is equal to most medium tanks of other factions
- Decent survivability with 4 crew members
- Can use HE shells, if necessary
Cons:
- Unlike M60A2, does not have heavy frontal armour nor adequate side hull armour, so most medium tanks will penetrate it in single shot and it will not scare away light tanks
- Gun scope is not stabilized, bumps on a road if firing on the move may ruin the ATGM guidance in realistic game modes (in AB it is less of a problem and can be automatically compensated with aim assist)
- No access to kinetic-energy AP shell
- While ACRA ATGM is unquestionable the one of the fastest missiles available, but this also means that guiding it into targets over a hill at close to medium range is next to impossible, requiring the user to use HE or to move around the map a lot
- No heavy secondary weapons like with the light tanks or secondary launchers like with specialized ATGM tanks
- Reload is around twice as long as most tanks of this battle rating, so it is recommended to retreat into cover for the duration of your reload after firing
History
The AMX-30 ACRA was a prototype modification of the AMX-30 main battle tank developed in the late 1960s for the French army. Similar to the American M551 Sheridan, the prototypes were fitted with a 142 mm cannon to fire the prototype missile "Anti-Char Rapide Autopropulsé" (Self-Propelled Rapid Anti-Tank Missile), or ACRA in short. The vehicle was also fitted with an enlarged turret capable of fitting larger-calibre cannons of 120 mm. The prototypes were cancelled in 1972 due to rising development costs for the ACRA missile, which was later replaced by the HOT ATGM.
The AMX-30 was a highly successful French main battle tank (MBT) of the 1960s and 1970s with over 3,000 vehicles built in total. The AMX-30 family served as the main French MBT until the introduction of the Leopard 1 MBT in the 1980s; as well, a myriad of variants were created including anti-tank and anti-aircraft versions (such as the AMX-30R Roland missile battery). One of the most unique anti-tank variants was the AMX-30 ACRA, centered around the ACRA ATGM.
The ACRA, or Anti-Char Rapide Autopropulsé (Self-Propelled Rapid Anti-Tank Missile) was a prototype French anti-tank missile system designed to destroy enemy tanks. The missile was fired from a 142 mm smoothbore gun and accelerated to a speed of over 2520 km/h during flight. The weapon could be fitted with a 2 kg shaped charge warhead or a similar high-explosive warhead for use against personnel.
An AMX-30 was specially-modified with an enlarged turret to fire the ACRA missile, along with a 142 mm smoothbore cannon that could also fire HE ammunition. The vehicle's enlarged turret could've also accommodated larger cannons such as a 120 mm cannon. Despite this, the weapon system had key limitations - primarily, the cost of the ACRA missile had skyrocketed to over 1 million francs per shot. As well, the missile could not be fired from helicopters, further limiting its effectiveness in battle. As a result, the ACRA missile system was cancelled in 1972, marking the demise of the AMX-30 ACRA. The role of the ACRA missile system would be fulfilled by the HOT, a more versatile ATGM fired from both ground vehicles and helicopters.
Media
- Skins
- Videos
See also
- Other comparable gun/launcher tanks
External links
| France medium tanks | |
|---|---|
| M4 Derivatives | M4A1 (FL10) · M4A4 (SA50) |
| AMX-50 | AMX M4 · AMX-50 (TOA100) · AMX-50 (TO90/930) |
| AMX-30 | AMX-30 · AMX-30 (1972) · AMX-30B2 · AMX-30B2 BRENUS · AMX-30 ACRA · AMX-30 Super |
| AMX-32/40 | AMX-32 · AMX-32 (105) · AMX-40 |
| Leclerc | Leclerc · Leclerc S2 · Leclerc SXXI · Leclerc AZUR |
| Other | D2 · S.35 · Lorraine 40t |
| Germany | Panther "Dauphiné" |
| USA | ▄M4A1 · ▄M4A3 (105) · ▄M4A4 · ▄M26 |
