PT-76 (China)

␗PT-76

␗M18 GMC

␗PT-76

␗M18 GMC

China

III Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
5.0	5.0	5.0

Class:

Light tank

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Description

The ␗PT-76 is a rank III Chinese light tank with a battle rating of 5.0 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.91 "Night Vision".

General info

Survivability and armour

Armour type:

• Rolled homogeneous armour
• Cast homogeneous armour (Gun mantlet)

Armour	Front	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	10 mm (80°) Top 13 mm (44°) Bottom	13 mm Top 10 mm Bottom	6 mm (1°) Top 6 mm (46°) Bottom	6 mm
Turret	15 mm (32-35°) Turret front 15 mm (19-32°) Gun mantlet	15 mm (35°)	15 mm (34-35°)	6 mm
Armour	Sides	Roof
Cupola	10 mm	6 mm

Notes:

• Suspension wheels are 10 mm thick.
• Tracks are 15 mm thick.

Almost every tank in the game will be able to destroy the PT-76 with relative ease due to its ultra-thin armour. Avoid tanks with access to heavy machine guns on their turrets such as most American tanks, the IS-2 1944, etc. This vehicle has next to no armor due to its amphibious abilities and can be easily destroyed even by machine guns.

Also, keep well clear of enemy SPAA. 12.7 mm guns and above will absolutely wreck this tank. In particular, the Wirbelwind is a significant threat. It has good penetration at range and will literally saturate the vehicle with autocannon shells. Just a short burst from the quad 20 mm guns will finish the PT-76 off.

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	49	8	14	372	458	26.57	32.71
Realistic	44	7		212	240	15.14	17.14

Armaments

Main armament

76 mm D-56T					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	40	-4°/+30°	±180°	N/A	16.18	__._	__._	__._	__._	11.83	__._	__._	9.1
Realistic					10.12	__._	__._	__._	__._

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10m	100m	500m	1000m	1500m	2000m
BR-354N	APCR	152	148	129	109	92	78
53-BR-354	APHE	98	96	88	79	71	63
OF-350M	HE	10	10	10	10	10	10
BK-354M	HEATFS	200	200	200	200	200	200

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%
BR-354N	APCR	950	3.3	N/A	N/A	N/A	66°	70°	72°
53-BR-354	APHE	662	6.3	1.2	14	49.28	47°	60°	65°
OF-350M	HE	680	6.2	0.05	0.1	621	79°	80°	81°
BK-354M	HEATFS	700	7	0.0	0.1	1,140	65°	72°	75°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the PT-76 (China).

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	Visual discrepancy
40	15 (+25)	3 (+37)	1 (+39)	Yes

Machine guns

7.62 mm SGMT
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Coaxial	1,000 (250)	600	N/A	N/A

Usage in battles

Since the PT-76 doesn't have much armour, avoid directly confronting enemy tanks. In order to defeat heavy/medium tanks, watch them and fire when they are not aiming or focusing on you. Use the light tank's manoeuvrability and fire rate to deliver pin-point hits onto the enemy's flanks, then retreat back in to cover before they can get a fix on the firing location. The PT-76 is also helpful in scouting enemy positions for its allies so they can bring in more firepower. As previously mentioned, this tank does not have the armour nor the crew to take on enemies head-on, so try to remain stealthy. It functions great as a scout tank in Simulator Battles.

While the PT-76 has amphibious capabilities, it is not necessary to use them all the time. Keep in mind that the PT-76 can only go about 10 km/h in the water, so utilize the ability to travel on land as well. Instead, use the water to make an escape or take a shortcut. As an example, drive into the water if an enemy has spotted you, and take cover behind an off-shore rock. Driving through a river to flank the enemy is also possible if a bridge is not nearby. Take caution that reversing in the water is slow, if not nonexistent, which may get the PT-76 stuck if driven into an obstacle. Also make sure to check the map, as some maps like Eastern Europe have rivers with no way to get back onto land, or at least not many.

Otherwise, avoid directly confronting an enemy. Instead, take cover and scout. Another good tactic to use is watching the enemy - find a spot where they can't engage you and watch them. Wait for the right moment; when the enemy is reloading, aiming somewhere else, not noticing the PT-76, is attacking an ally, etc, quickly check to make sure no other enemy can target you and send a shell towards your enemy! Try to snipe at the enemy, but make sure to avoid all enemy fire, as all tanks can penetrate the PT-76's armour (even the GAZ-AAA (4M) technically has enough penetration to get through the tank's rear armour!).

The amphibious capabilities are a huge helper to the vehicle, allowing it to reach unusual sniper areas that vehicles without said capabilities could not reach (e.g. hiding behind the rocks near the jetty on Normandy). The incredible stabiliser also allows the PT-76 to simply sit in the water and blast away at enemies without them even realizing where the shots are from. Make sure to relocate after knocking out enemies or being spotted, however, as they will know the PT-76's location and likely broadcast it to other players, most often resulting in the PT-76 being destroyed.

The HEAT-FS shell is powerful in terms of penetration, but the post-penetration damage is lacking compared to other Soviet shells. Not to say that the BK-350M is weak (It's actually quite amazing for a HEAT shell), but oftentimes, 2 or more shots will be needed to destroy an enemy, particularly the more spacey vehicles like the Tiger 1 and Panther. It would be wise, therefore, to look up crew and module locations on enemy vehicles in order to make your shots as lethal as possible.

Modules

Tier	Mobility		Protection	Firepower
I	Tracks		Parts	Horizontal Drive	53-BR-354
II	Suspension	Brake System	FPE	Adjustment of Fire	Airstrike	BK-354M
III	Filters		Crew Replenishment	Elevation Mechanism
IV	Transmission	Engine	ESS	Artillery Support	Improved optics	NVD

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Good mobility, amphibious
• Powerful HEAT-FS round
• Has access to Scouting
• Low profile
• Much better gun elevation/depression speed than the Soviet PT-76B

Cons:

• Lacks the two-plane stabilizer of the Soviet PT-76B, hard to fire on the move or in water
• Very poor armour, vulnerable to heavy machine gunfire
• Stock APCR round has disappointing angled performance and post-penetration damage
• Slow reload
• Easy target for aircraft
• Can be hull-broken
• Looks very similar to the Soviet PT-76B (gun barrel is slightly different), can be confused for it in Simulator Battles

History

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Media

Videos

Amphibious tanks discusses the PT-76 (China) at 4:38 - War Thunder Official Channel

See also

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• reference to the series of the vehicles;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

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• topic on the official game forum;
• encyclopedia page on the tank;
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