HOME | DD

Description
The Chinese long focused on swift maneuverable vehicles. Rather than ploughing all their resources into building heavier and heavier vehicles like the western nations, they instead opted to pack as much punch into light skirmishing vehicles as possible. The Type 59 proved to be a success in this regard, and so the Chinese engineers started to look for ways to evolve the concept even further.
The Type 62 was the next generation of Chinese skirmishing vehicles. Several variants were produced – one of the more successful versions was known as the WZ-131.
The Type 62 was basically a cut down version of the Type 59. It had lighter armour, a smaller size and an 85 mm gun. The aim was for it to be a modern flexible machine capable of taking on infantry and other light vehicles.
Production began in 1958 and continued right up until 1989. Nearly 1,400 vehicles were produced during this time.
The tank first saw combat during the Vietnam War and were widely used by the Vietnam People’s Army. However, problems were encountered – the tank’s thin armour was simply too weak to withstand attacks, particularly by rocket-propelled grenades.
The tank was successfully exported to numerous nations across eastern Asia and Africa. Many Type 62 / WZ-131 tanks are still in service today, although in China, they are currently in the process of being decommissioned.

Description
The Chinese long focused on swift maneuverable vehicles. Rather than ploughing all their resources into building heavier and heavier vehicles like the western nations, they instead opted to pack as much punch into light skirmishing vehicles as possible. The Type 59 proved to be a success in this regard, and so the Chinese engineers started to look for ways to evolve the concept even further.
The Type 62 was the next generation of Chinese skirmishing vehicles. Several variants were produced – one of the more successful versions was known as the WZ-131.
The Type 62 was basically a cut down version of the Type 59. It had lighter armour, a smaller size and an 85 mm gun. The aim was for it to be a modern flexible machine capable of taking on infantry and other light vehicles.
Production began in 1958 and continued right up until 1989. Nearly 1,400 vehicles were produced during this time.
The tank first saw combat during the Vietnam War and were widely used by the Vietnam People’s Army. However, problems were encountered – the tank’s thin armour was simply too weak to withstand attacks, particularly by rocket-propelled grenades.
The tank was successfully exported to numerous nations across eastern Asia and Africa. Many Type 62 / WZ-131 tanks are still in service today, although in China, they are currently in the process of being decommissioned.