List of main battle tanks by generation


s are often classified as belonging to a particular generation, although the actual definition and membership in these generations is not clearly defined. Soviet and Russian military planners organize tanks with first generation of tanks up to 1945, and four generations of main battle tanks while Canadian strategists organize main battle tanks into three generations. The military of the People's Republic of China also recognizes three generations of its own tanks.
In 1983, Rolf Hilmes saw three tank generations and three "intermediate generations", which consisted mainly of upgraded vehicles. The first generation of main battle tanks were based on or influenced by designs of World War II, most notably the T-34 and the Panther tank. The second generation was equipped with NBC protection, IR night vision devices, a stabilized main gun and at least a mechanical fire control system. The third generation is determined by the usage of thermal imagers, digital fire control systems and special armour.
However, Hilmes acknowledged that tanks cannot be definitively grouped by generations, as each tank-producing country develops and introduces its tanks in tune with its own ideas and needs. He also states that breakdown of postwar tanks by generations is based on timeframe and technical factors, as a basis for further discussion.''

First generation

The first generation consists of the medium tanks designed and produced directly after World War II that were later redefined as main battle tanks.
NameEntered service inOriginNumber BuiltNotes
Centurion1946United Kingdom4,423First "Universal Tank" Culmination of the WWII cruiser tanks.
T-541949100,000 USSR's First Generation of MBT.
M47 Patton19528,576A development of the M46 Patton and M26 Pershing tanks.
M48 Patton195312,000A further development of the M47 Patton tank.
T-551958100,000 Improved T-54.
Type 59195910,000A further development of the T-54 tank.
Sho't1960N/AIsraeli designation of the 105 mm L7 armed Centurion tank.
Type 611961560Used by the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force.

Second generation

The second generation had enhanced night-fighting capabilities and in most cases NBC protection. Most western tanks of this generation were armed with the 105 mm Royal Ordnance L7 tank gun or derivatives of it.
NameEntered service inOriginNotes
T-621961A further development of the T-55.
M60 Patton1961United StatesA further development of the M48 Patton tank. Later models are considered as the first intermediate generation.
Leopard 11965A main battle tank designed and produced in West Germany that first entered service in 1965.
Panzer 611965SwitzerlandA further development of the Panzer 58 tank.
MBT-701965United States / FRGAn American-West German joint project to develop a new main battle tank. Never entered service.
T-641966USSRWorld's first composite armored tank, later versions of the T-64 may be considered as third generation.
AMX 301966The AMX 30 served as the principal Main Battle Tank for the French Army.
FV 4201 Chieftain1966Armed with the British 120 mm Royal Ordnance L11A5 gun.
Vickers MBT1963British private venture design for export.
Vijayanta1965Indian license built version of British Vickers MBT
Stridsvagn 1031968Turretless design developed and employed solely by Sweden. Double engine feature; both diesel and gas turbine.
Panzer 681971SwitzerlandSwiss Main Battle Tank based on the Panzer 61.
T-721973Hilmes puts the T-72 in the first intermediate generation.
Olifant Mk 11974A further development of the Centurion Tank.
Type 741975Hilmes puts the Type 74 in the first intermediate generation.
Merkava Mark I1979First Main Battle Tank developed and used by Israel Defense Forces.
Ch'onma-ho1980USSR / Copy of the T-62; later versions include upgrades.
OF-401981Main Battle Tank used by United Arab Emirates.
Merkava Mark II1983Improved Merkava Mark I.
T-55AM1985 / T-55 with new engine, FCS computer, BDD composite armor, equipped with new APFSDS ammunition. Frontal protection of T-55AM with BDD add-on equals first T-72s.
Lion of Babylon1985Ba'athist IraqLicensed copy of the T-72.
Type 881988Variants include the Type 80, Type 85 and Type 88C.
CM-111990Variant from M48 Patton.
CM-121990Variant from M48 Patton.
Type 72Z1997A highly modernized version of the Type 59 and T-54/T-55 tanks with upgrades carried out by the Iranian Defense Industries Organization.
Type 961997Domestic version of Type 85-IIM later known as Type 96.
M60-20002001 / Prototype never entered service.
Olifant Mk 22003Improved Olifant Mk 1 Tank.
Al-Zarrar2004 / An upgrade of Pakistan's aging Chinese Type 59 tanks, developed with Ukrainian assistance and manufactured by the Heavy Industries Taxila, featuring a 125 mm smoothbore gun as primary weapon.
Ramses II2005A heavily modernized T-55 main battle tank designed for and used by the Egyptian Armed Forces.
Tifon 2a2010 / Main battle tank based on the Soviet T-54/55 tank, developed and manufactured jointly by the Peruvian company DICSAC and the Kharkiv Morozov Machine Building Design Bureau, Ukraine. Trials/Development only to date.
Type 59G Durjoy2015An upgraded variant of the Chinese Type 59 tank for the Bangladesh Army.

Third generation

The third generation of main battle tanks is characterized by composite armour and computerized stabilized fire control systems, which allow firing on the move as well as very high first hit probability on targets up to 2,000 meters away.
NameEntered service inOriginNotes
T-801976World's first turbine engine equipped tank. Though the Swedish Stridsvagn 103 that entered service in 1960s used a turbine engine alongside a diesel. However, T-80 in Hilmes's book is very different to a T-80 in real world, and early models of the T-80 offer no big differences compared to T-64A in overall performance. So models prior to the T-80B should be regarded as Second generation intermediate.
Leopard 21979Replaced Leopard 1.
MBT-80N/APrototype, never entered service.
M1 Abrams1980Replaced M60 Patton.
FV4030/4 Challenger 11983Replaced FV 4201 Chieftain.
AMX-401983Prototype, never acquired by the French Army.
M-841984A Yugoslav variant of the Soviet T-72.
EE-T1/EE-T2 Osório1986 BrazilPrototype, never acquired by the Brazilian Army.
M1A1 Abrams1986Improved M1 Abrams.
TR-851986Main battle tank based on the TR-77-580, designed for the Romanian Land Forces.
K1 88-Tank1988First Main Battle Tank in use with the Republic of Korea Armed Forces, developed by Hyundai Precision.
Merkava Mark III1989As of 2016, the Merkava III is by far the most numerous tank in frontline IDF service. Compared to the Merkava II, it has upgrades to the drivetrain, powertrain, armament, and electronic systems. The most prominent addition was the incorporation of the locally developed IMI 120 mm gun.
Type 901990Replaced Type 74.
M-91 Vihor1991Prototype, never entered service.
Ch'onma-ho 215/2161992A further development of Ch'onma-Ho.
M1A2 Abrams1992Improved M1A1 Abrams.
AMX Leclerc1993Replaced AMX 30.
Zulfiqar I/II/III1993Iranian tank derived from T-72 and M60 Patton. Zulfiqar III is the most advanced variant.
T-901993Updated version of the T-72; originally introduced into service on October 1992 as T-72BU, but simultaneously renamed as the T-90
PT-91 Twardy1995A development of the T-72M1.
C1 Ariete1995Replaced American tanks.
TR-85M1 "Bizonul"1997First built in 1985, the modernised TR-85M1 "Bizonul" variant was updated in 1996, as an effort to bring it up to date with other NATO countries. The project was a cooperative effort between Aerospatiale-Matra, Sagem, Kolmorgen-Artus, Racal and Romanian factories, such as ROMARM, METRA, I.O.R. and Aerostar
Stridsvagn 1221997Based on the German Leopard 2.
M-95 Degman1997Croatian development of the prototype Yugoslav M-91 Vihor. Only 2 prototype, never entered service.
FV4034 Challenger 21998Armed with the British 120 mm Royal Ordnance L30 gun. A future life upgrade is in the planning phase.
T-841999Upgraded Ukrainian version of the T-80 tank.
K1A12001Upgraded version of the K1 88-Tank.
Al-Khalid/MBT-20002001 / Exported by China as VT-1A/MBT-2000
Type 98/992001Replaced Type 88.
Tank EX2002Prototype, Never entered service.
C2 Ariete2002Improved C1 Ariete.
M-20022002Outside parties codename the tank M-2002 because the tank went through performance trials on February 16, 2002, although the tank may have been in existence since 1992.
T-72M4 CZ2003Upgraded Czech version of the T-72 tank.
Leopard 2E2003 / A derivative of the Leopard 2A6, with greater armour protection, developed under a programme of co-production between the defence industries of Spain and Germany.
Arjun MBT2004Replaced Vijayanta.
Merkava Mark IV2004Improved Merkava Mark III.
M-84AS2004Upgraded Yugoslav version of the M-84 tank. M-84AS is sometimes referred to as M-84AB1 and M-2001.
Type 96A/B2005Upgraded version of the Type 96.
Mobarez2006A domestically upgraded version of the British Chieftain tank by Iran.
Challenger 2 CLIP2006Challenger Lethality Improvement Programme was a programme to replace the current Royal Ordnance L30A1 rifled gun with the smoothbore Rheinmetall Rh-120 mm gun currently used in the Leopard 2A6.
Sabra2007 / An extensively upgraded M60 Patton tank developed by Israel Military Industries. The Sabra is known as the M60T in Turkish service.
T-84 Oplot-M2009The newest and most sophisticated version of the T-84 is an upgraded version of the "T-84 Oplot" mounting more advanced armor, new electronic countermeasure systems, and others. One visible feature is the new PNK-6 panoramic tank sight. The T-84 Oplot-T is an export version for Thailand.
T-952009Prototype, Never entered service.
T-72B32013Upgraded Russian version of the T-72. T-72B3M is the most advanced variant.
PT-162016A further development of PT-91 Twardy. Upgrades include improved armor, armament, and mobility.
M-84D2018Upgraded version of the M-84 with improvements to its armor, armament, mobility and electronics. 75 to be upgraded, possibly replacing the 125mm 2A46 gun with a NATO 120mm gun.

Modernized

These are third-generation tanks modernized with fourth-generation technology.
NameEntered service inOriginNotes
T-80um21997Modernized version of the T-80. It has a 7 wheel hull and was cancelled in 2001. Technology from the T-80um2 was used for the T-14 Armata.
Merkava IVm Windbreaker2011
T-90M2011
Type 99A2011
Arjun MBT MK 22012
Leopard 2A7+2014
VT-42014Developed from Type-90-II tank
Karrar2017
M1A2C Abrams2017
Leclerc XLR2020
Leopard 2PL2020A modernized version of the Leopard 2A4 tank first acquired by Poland in the 2000s. The modernisation is currently being carried out in cooperation with Rheinmetall and the Polish Armaments Group.
M1A2D Abrams2021

Fourth generation/Next Generation

Next Generation or Fourth generation tanks are still under development or at early stages of their generation. While the term ' Next generation' has no formal basis, these main battle tanks are using the latest technology and designs to compete with the current advanced warfare environment.
NameEntered service inOriginNotes
Type 102012Next Generation
K2 Black Panther2014Next Generation
T-14 Armata2015Next Generation
Altay2017 / Next Generation