While the tech trees of minor nations are often overlooked, they contain some real gems—one of which is Arras, a French aviso designed to integrate into merchant convoys, resemble an ordinary merchant ship, and surprise the enemy with its armament and speed. She is known for being a highly survivable and well-armed vessel, capable of taking out small boats with a single shot from her 138.6 mm guns. However, she remains vulnerable to torpedoes and bombers.
The 36 cm/45 Type 41 is a Japanese 356 mm naval cannon commonly found on many of the nation’s battleships. It is a highly capable primary gun, often able to eliminate enemy destroyers or light cruisers with a single broadside. It also offers a wide selection of ammunition and a few slightly different turret designs.
French 203 mm/50 model 1924 was used by the French heavy cruisers during the Second World War, most notably Colbert and Dupleix. It came equipped with SAP and HE shells, with the latter having a very large explosive filler compared to the SAP shell but poor penetration, while the former having just slightly larger explosive filler than SAP but offering a contact fuse, which might be preferable under some circumstances. Lacking a dedicated AP shell, it struggles to deal with heavily armoured cruisers.
The USS Newport News is a Vietnam War-era heavy cruiser that was introduced into War Thunder during the 2022 Winter Fest event in her 1972 refit. In this article, we will cover how the vessel can be obtained, her auto-loading 8-inch guns, impressive long-range anti-air capabilities aided by radars, decent mobility, and troubled survivability. Finally, we will explore the vessel’s usage in battles, as well as a few features that are present on the ship but not implemented in the game. The Newport News was the last all-gun heavy cruiser to serve in any navy, making her an interesting addition to any player’s collection.
Dunkerque can best be described as a ship that excels in downtiers but struggles significantly in uptiers. While she may be an exciting vessel to unlock, being the ultimate French ship in the game at the time of her release, it is important to moderate expectations. Like all other vessels at BR 6.7, she finds herself in a challenging position, where many top-tier ships can penetrate her magazines, while she cannot retaliate effectively.
Dunkerque's history was not filled with epic victories in combat or spectacular achievements; nonetheless, she participated in two major historic events that changed the balance of power in the Mediterranean, making her an important vessel from an historical perspective, even if she did not sink any hostile vessels in anger.
A mortar is a type of smoothbore cannon that exclusively uses high-angle plunging fire. It is designed for indirect fire, with projectiles, technically known as bombs, that drop onto targets from above. Mortars are typically smaller, lighter weapon systems with a shorter range compared to other cannons.
18-inch Mk.7 was an American lightweight torpedo developed by Bliss-Leavitt in 1911 as the first American torpedo used on submarines and surface vessels alike. By 1917 an airborne Mk.7 Type D variant was developed, but it has never seen serial production. Mk. 7 remained in service until the end of the World War 2, primarily on the O-type submarines.
While hydroplanes were present in War Thunder prior to Update "Winged Lions", all were standalone aircraft present in the tech tree that could be piloted in air battles by the player. Shipboard reconnaissance aircraft allow large bluewater ships to utilize their plane catapults to send scout planes to perform reconnaissance of an area, land on capture zones, and pester enemy ships with their onboard weaponry.