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During the Second World War, Switzerland remained one of the few neutral states in Europe. But preserving that status took more than diplomacy — it required force as well. That force was used more than once, and a key pillar of Switzerland’s defensive strategy became its air force.

When people think of Japanese armored vehicles from World War 2, they often imagine something... awkward-looking. And it’s hard to argue: most Japanese machines of that era were, let’s say, “special.” But among that exotic lineup in War Thunder, there’s a vehicle that can fight Panthers, Shermans, and T-34s on equal terms while still keeping that unmistakable national flavor. Today we’ll prove that the Type 5 Chi-Ri is exactly that kind of tank!

Sweden’s anti-aircraft lineup is full of unconventional vehicles. In the early ranks, you’ll find APCs and trucks packing powerful autocannons. Later on, things get really interesting with IFV-based AA variants, articulated self-propelled guns, and even a vehicle based on the Leopard 2! Today, we’re breaking down how to master Swedish SPAA vehicles and turn them into a genuine threat on the battlefield.

Yakolev and Lavochkin fighters were considered the Soviet Union’s main aerial hunters during World War 2. They were fast, agile, and dangerous, but only at low and medium altitudes. The MiG-3 was destined for a different role: it truly came into its own above 6 km, yet there were simply too few missions where that mattered. Only toward the end of the war did an experimental high-altitude fighter by Mikoyan and Gurevich take to the skies — the I-225.

The Cold War forced the USSR to pour colossal resources into air defense. Drawing on combat experience and intelligence assessments, the country built a flexible, layered system that combined assets of different ranges and roles: from long-range missiles to classic gun-based air defense. A vast fleet of anti-aircraft guns didn’t simply stand guard; it was constantly refined to meet the challenges of a new era. 

In our game, there are tanks with a great balance of stats: solid armor, good speed, decent firepower. Sounds like a universal recipe for success. But the excitement from that kind of vehicle fades fast. And then you start looking toward the “dark side”: machines whose personality is built on extremes — one stat cranked to the max, and everything else seemingly designed to make sure you never get too comfortable. With the Chinese light tank ZTS63, boredom is not on the menu.

The appearance of the Me 262 in the skies drew intense attention from military aircraft designers. The first mass-produced jet fighter proved unmistakably that the piston era was ending. Still, the Germans did not catch the Allies completely off guard: Britain and the United States were already working on their own jets. The Soviet Union tried to join the race as well, but found itself trailing. Domestic turbojets were not ready, and Soviet fighter projects existed largely on paper.

Almost all piston aircraft start a match by climbing because whoever looks down on the enemy gets to set the terms. But there are fighters and interceptors that climb so aggressively that we might jokingly call them “helicopters”. And today we’re taking the controls of exactly that kind of machine: the Japanese Ki-44 II Hei.

For a long time, carrier-based VTOL aviation remained just a dream of Soviet aircraft designers and a distant hope for the Soviet Navy. The USSR’s first production VTOL aircraft, the Yak-38 attack jet, turned out to be an overly complex and accident-prone subsonic aircraft without a full-fledged radar. But in the 1970s, naval commanders envisioned the future fleet in formations approaching the capabilities of U.S. carrier strike groups, and the Yak-38 clearly didn’t fit that vision. The Navy needed an aircraft that could secure air superiority, strike ground targets, and support amphibious landings. All of that — in a single impressive package.

The idea of a universal platform, one that can be adapted to a wide range of missions, has long captivated armored-vehicle designers. Vehicles like the M113 APC and the Marder and Warrior IFVs were conceived from the outset as the foundations for entire families of fighting machines. Their upgrade potential was baked in at the drawing-board stage.