CM11 Brave Tiger
Summary
| Origin country | 🇹🇼 Taiwan |
| Category | Main Battle Tank |
| Sub-type | Heavy Main Battle Tank |
| Manufacturer | Detroit Tank Plant |
| Number built | None units |
Technical specifications
| Crew | 4 personnels |
| Range | 463 km |
| Mass | 52.0 tons |
| Height | 3.05 m (10.0 ft) |
| Width | 3.39 m (11.1 ft) |
| Length | 9.33 m (30.6 ft) |
| Max. speed | 48 km/h (30 mph) |
| Engine | Continental AVDS 1790 V-12 Diesel Engine with 690 hp |
| Weapon 1 | 1 M68 105mm rifled barrel (54 shells) gun |
| Weapon 2 | 1 M-2HB 12.7mm machine gun (3000 rounds) |
| Weapon 3 | 1 7.62mm M73 coaxial machine gun (10,000 rounds) |
Further Reading
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Historical operators
Description
The CM11 Brave Tiger is a main battle tank developed through a collaboration between General Dynamics and the Republic of China Army Armored Vehicle Development Center. Development began in 1984 to provide the Republic of China Army with second-generation armored platforms while navigating the constraints of the 17 August Communique. Two prototypes were completed in 1988, and the vehicle was publicly introduced on April 14, 1990. The United States designated the platform M48H, with the "H" denoting its hybrid design.
The vehicle utilizes an M60A3 hull integrated with an M48A3 turret. Primary armament consists of an M68A1 105mm gun. Secondary armament includes a 12.7mm M2 Browning machine gun mounted on a low-profile Urdan cupola, an M240 7.62mm machine gun for the loader, and a coaxial M240 machine gun. The turret features M239 smoke grenade launchers on both sides. The CM11 is equipped with a digital/analog hybrid ballistic calculator equivalent to that used in the M1A1 Abrams, a two-dimensional sighting and gun stabilization system, an AN/VSG-2 thermal imager, an AN/VVS-2 image intensifier, and an AN/GVS-5 Nd-YAG laser rangefinder. These systems enable night combat and fire-on-the-move capabilities.
Protection is provided by rolled homogeneous armor. Initial efforts to integrate explosive reactive armor (ERA) from the French company GIAT were suspended because the weight caused excessive stress on the torsion bar suspension. The Republic of China later developed an angled ERA package through CSIST to reduce projectile penetration probability; this configuration was first displayed during a combat readiness drill in 2012. The tank is powered by a Continental AVDS-1790-2C air-cooled twin-turbo diesel engine.
The CM11 is operated by the Republic of China Army and has been in service since 1990. The vehicle was produced in large numbers for domestic use. In 2017, the Taiwanese Ministry of National Defence indicated that the CM11 fleet would undergo an upgrade program following the modernization of the country’s M60A3 TTS tanks.