Type 59MII

The Type 59-II, designated industrially as the WZ-120B, is an upgraded variant of the Type 59 main battle tank. While the original Type 59 was a Chinese-produced version of the Soviet T-54A that entered service in 1959, the Type 59-II was developed to incorporate 105 mm armament. Following this, the Type 59-IIA was initiated in late 1984 by the China First Tractor Factory and other production facilities. This project aimed to replace Western-supplied components used in the Type 59-II with domestic technologies. A prototype for the IIA variant was completed in October 1985.

The primary armament of the Type 59-II is the ZPL-81 105 mm rifled gun, a license-built version of the Royal Ordnance L7. The Type 59-IIA utilizes the ZPL-81A, which features a thermal sleeve. Secondary armament consists of a Type 59T 7.62 mm coaxial machine gun and a Type 54 12.7 mm anti-aircraft machine gun. The fire control system in the IIA variant is a domestic light spot system equipped with a 2-axis stabilizer. Protection is provided by a welded steel hull and a cast dome-shaped turret, with the Type 59-IIA variant further incorporating composite armor and an upgraded automatic fire suppression and extinguishing system.

The vehicle is powered by a Model 12150L V-12 liquid-cooled diesel engine coupled to a manual gearbox with five forward and one reverse gear. The suspension utilizes a torsion bar system with five road wheels per side. For night operations, the tank is equipped with image intensification and infrared night sights for the commander, gunner, and driver.

The Type 59-II and its sub-variants were widely operated by the People's Liberation Army (PLA), serving as a primary component of Chinese armored units through the early 2000s. These variants were part of the first generation of Chinese main battle tanks and provided the technological basis for the subsequent Type 79. In current PLA service, the Type 59 series is being supplanted by the Type 96 and Type 99 main battle tanks. Overseas, the Type 59-II has been used as a platform for various modernization programs, including the British Royal Ordnance upgrade package and the Pakistani Al-Zarrar.