AMX-30B2

AMX-30B2

AMX-30 (1972)

AMX-30B2 BRENUS

AMX-30B2

AMX-30 (1972)

AMX-30B2 BRENUS

France

VI Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
8.7	8.7	8.7

Class:

Medium tank

Research:160 000

Purchase:450 000

Show in game

This page is about the medium tank AMX-30B2. For other uses, see AMX-30 (Family).

Description

The AMX-30B2 is a Rank VI French medium tank with a battle rating of 8.7 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.75 "La Résistance".

The vehicle follows the conventional western tank design of the mid Cold War with four crew members and a 105 mm gun. It has good armour on the UFP that can bounce some weaker shells but the sides, rear and top are very weak, making the vehicle highly vulnerable to air attacks and SPAA fire even from a distance. It has good acceleration, mobility, and firepower. Its turret resembles that of the T-54 series from the sides due to its rounded shape, so be careful in SB and check twice before firing at this tank because you may hit your ally if you do not pay enough attention... This can prove both to be an up and a downside depending on who's actually making the mistake.

This vehicle has the particularity to throw the usual 7.62 or .50 co-axial MG away for a powerful rapid firing 20 mm autocanon that can be elevated up to 40° that fires HEIT and APIT projectiles with a penetration up to 40 mm at close range and against straight armor. This weapon is very useful to deal with light ennemy tanks that are rushing you since this gun will simply wreck them, especially if they show their flanks. This gun is also very effective at taking down attacking aircraft that would be crazy enough to rush straight at you or pass you by at low altitude and low speed. At last, this gun can destroy walls, trees and every obstacles you may encounter. The AMX-30B2 also has an unmatched firepower at it's BR. Its 105 mm gun fires both the OCC 105 G1 shell found on the first AMX-30, but also the dreaded and powerful OFL 105 F1 which is nothing less than the second most powerful APFSDS shell in the battle rating bracket. The AMX-30B2 is also the only medium tank that has access to thermal imaging device at this battle rating. Unlike passive IR sight that can only be used during night times, thermal imaging allows you too see within the infrared spectrum even during bright day conditions! Even though its device is a first generation one, every enemy tanks will be glaring in your sight and all you will have to do is to pick them off with your powerful gun. Thermals Imaging System is a very powerful tool and at this BR, giving its users a tremendous advantage. This particular configuration simply tells you all about this tank, just like in real life where it used it's superior detection and acquisition devices to engage and destroy targets from afar, you should simply do the same in the game by staying back and supporting your team from afar using your laser rangefinder, thermal imaging system and your powerful APFSDS to outrange and delete enemies from a distance.

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 Top - Centre & 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	30-150 mm (0-79°) Gun mantlet 30 mm (61-75°) Turret front top	41.5 mm (19-47°) 41.5 mm )8°) Cupola well	30 mm (1-64°) 20 mm (54-64°) Turret underside	30 mm (19°) Front 20 mm Centre 20 mm (20°) Rear
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	37	1054	1,297	28.49	35.05
Realistic	66	66		601	680	16.24	18.38

Armaments

Main armament

105 mm CN-105-F1					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	47	-8°/+20°	±180°	N/A	28.6	__._	__._	__._	__._	8.7	7.7	7.1	6.7
Realistic					17.9	22.1	25.7	28.4	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
OCC 105 F1	HEAT	400	400	400	400	400	400
OE 105 F1 Mle.60	HE	25	25	25	25	25	25
OFL 105 F1	APFSDS	361	358	350	341	332	322

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%
OCC 105 F1	HEAT	1,000	10.95	0.05	0.1	1,020	62°	69°	73°
OE 105 F1 Mle.60	HE	700	12.1	0.0	0.1	2,000	79°	80°	81°
OFL 105 F1	APFSDS	1,525	3.8	N/A	N/A	N/A	78°	80°	81°

Smoke shell characteristics
Ammunition	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile Mass (kg)	Screen radius (m)	Screen deploy time (s)	Screen hold time (s)	Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)
OFPH 105 F1	700	11.4	20	5	25	50

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the AMX-30B2

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
47	20 (+27)	19 (+28)	9 (+38)	1 (+46)	No

Notes:

• Shells are modeled individually and disappear after having been shot or loaded.
• Rack 2, 3 and 4 are first stage ammo racks. They total 19 shells.
• These racks get filled first when loading up the tank and are also emptied first.
• The depletion order at full capacity is: 2 - 3 - 4 - 1.
• Simply not firing when the gun is loaded will move ammo from rack 1 into rack 4 then 3, then 2. Firing will interrupt the restocking of the ready racks.

Machine guns

20 mm M693
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Coaxial	1,000 (500)	740	0°/+20°	N/A

The 20 mm M693 coaxial autocannon is not just an anti-aircraft gun: with 57 mm penetration at flat angle, it will shred anything from armoured cars and SPAA to lightly armoured medium tanks' sides. In case a vehicle cannot be penetrated, use the autocannon to disable them before using your 105 mm cannon: target the gun barrel or the tracks. The 20 mm can also deal with low-flying aircraft with the extra 20 degrees of elevation. The only drawback is that the autocannon is coaxial, meaning the turret must rotate to track the targets.

7.62 mm AAN-F1
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Commander cupola	2,050 (100)	900	-10°/+55°	±120°

The small calibre of the AAN-F1 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

French AMX-30B2 needs to be played more carefully than its other NATO counterparts such as the M60A1 (A0S) or the Leopard A1A1 due to the lack of a stabilizer, hence making firing on the move and/or after short stop more risky than if you were playing a T-62 in the case of a sudden frontal encounter. As a result the French AMX-30B2 is the best played as a second line support tank, a long range sniper or a flanker. You cannot expect to drive straight into battle and come out victorious in this tank.

This tank is, above everything, a sniper tank. The lack of a stabilizer will restrict your playstyle on most city or clustered maps. In these kinds of environment, you will have to play much more slowly and carefully than the other tanks because most tanks amongst other nations come with a stabilizer such as the Cheiftain, the T-62 or the T-10M. Just advance slowly and try to be as much aware of your surroundings as you can be because this will prove to be a real life saver in this kind of environment. You can also simply lay ambushes to your enemy by patiently waiting for someone to come in front of your gun, destroy this enemy and quickly relocate using the tank's good mobility.

On big maps however, this tank can unleash all of its potential as the lack of a stabilizer won't be a problem on big maps, find a good location with a clear line-of-sight of commonly used routes to the capture zones and use the binoculars, thermal imaging system as well as the laser rangefinder to snipe your enemies from long distance, they simply wont be able to return fire soon or well enough before a final blow (if it's not done already) achieved through a AMX-30B2's perfectly ranged and aimed shot.

To sum it short, this tank plays very differently than other MBTS from all nations. It's not as versatile or flexible as other vehicles, but is extremely good at what it does the best due to top notch gun and ammunition as well as range-finding device.

In terms of enemies: every stabilized tank can prove extremely dangerous to you in CQC. Also due to your lack of armour, any tank you can encounter in your BR bracket can and will penetrate you frontally if they lay their gun on you. The best method is often to avoid direct combat or, if you have to do it, make sure that you will do it where you'll have the advantage also known as range.

German cannon CAS is also the bane of this tank due to its very thin roof armour. If a player decides to hop into their Me 262 A1/U4 for a payback, it'd be very wise to find a hard cover or a very dense forest in the next 30 seconds because 30 and/or 30 mm canons loaded with AP shells will be on their way with the AMX-30B2 as a priority target.

Modules

Tier	Mobility		Protection	Firepower
I	Tracks		Parts	Horizontal Drive	OFPH 105 F1
II	Suspension	Brake System	FPE	Adjustment of Fire	OFL 105 F1
III	Filters		Crew Replenishment	Elevation Mechanism	Smoke grenade
IV	Transmission	Engine		Artillery Support	Laser rangefinder	NVD

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Very powerful 105 mm APFSDS.
• Thermal Imaging System for the gunner
• Fast turret traverse system.
• Big ready rack allowing a good sustained RoF of 9 shots per minute
• Coaxial 20 mm autocannon with 40° of elevation to deal with thinly armoured vehicles and CAS aircrafts.
• Good survivability when being hit in the turret front as the massive 105 breech and the 20 mm breech will absorb a lot of damages.
• Smoke shells and grenades are available.
• Average -8 degree gun depression.
• Laser rangefinder being a great help to snipe over long distances accurately.

Cons:

• No stabilizers, which restricts the play style of the vehicle.
• Inadequate hull armour against other Rank VI vehicles.
• 15-20 mm roof armour can be exploited by aerial attacks.
• high cupola that can be exploited by enemies when behind a cover.

History

The AMX-30B2 is the second and most noticeable version of the AMX-30. Most of the improvements found in these vehicles had first been successfully tested on the AMX-32 export MBT which found no buyers most important changes were:

• Improved firepower with the introduction of the OFL 105 F1 APFSDS
• Improved firing control system with the COTAC digital firing control system
• Improved mobility by replacing the original transmission by a semi-automatic gearbox incorporating a torque converter as well as the installation of reinforced torsion bars and shock absorbers
• Improved night fighting capabilites with the installation of a second generation light intensification device
• A new hydrostatic steering mechanism.

The first vehicles were delivered to the "Armée de terre" in 1981. In 1985, the light intensification device got replaced by a CASTOR thermal camera, the vehicle depicted in the game is therefore an AMX-30B2 as it came out of the factory in 1985. The AMX-30B2 was also meant to receive either a stabilized electro-hydraulic turret and weaponry drive unit designed by the SAMM (Société d'Application des Machines Motrices) or a stabilized commander periscopic panoramic sight interlocked with the turret drive unit through the priority controls of the commander over the turret (This system is what got used on the AMX-32 and AMX-40 to ensure a firing-on-the-move capability). Neither of these two solutions were chosen due to the cost of such systems, coupled to cuts in the defense budget. Therefore, the AMX-30B2 remained one of the rare 1980's MBT that was not able to fire on the move. Despite this, all the improvements incorporated into the design made the AMX-30B2 a formidable 2nd-generation MBT in the early 80's.

AMX-30B2 had the opportunity to fire in anger during the first Gulf War in 1991 where they outperformed Iraqis modified and modernized T-55 and T-62 as well as BMP's. However, at that point in time, even though it performed admirably well, the AMX-30B2 was simply obsolete and was about to be replaced with the AMX Leclerc and even if the latter began to rapidly replace the AMX-30B2 in every cavalry regiments, it's not until the early 2000's that the AMX-30B2 stopped being in active service and fully decommissioned. Most of them were destroyed, but some were still used until very recently by the FORAD whose the point is to simulate enemy tanks during exercises. In 2018, after more than 50 years of service, the AMX-30B2 used by the FORAD got definitely scrapped.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the AMX-30B2 from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

French MBTs discusses the AMX-30B2 at 2:40 - War Thunder Official Channel

The Shooting Range #83 - War Machines section at 00:29 discusses the AMX-30B2.

AMX-30B2 Tank Review - NUSensei

AMX-30B2 - I like It, But ... - Napalmratte

See also

Vehicles equipped with the same chassis

• AMX-30 (Family)

Vehicles equipped with the same 20 mm coaxial MG

• AMX-32
• AMX-40

Other vehicles of similar configuration and role

• M60A1 (AOS)

External links

• [Wikipedia] AMX-30
• [Tanks Encyclopedia] AMX-30