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Hobby Master 1/72 T-55 Battle Tank North Vietnam Army Vietnam War (HG3304)
A good model of the Russian designed T-55 battle tank in service with the North Vietnamse
army during the Vietnam war.
1945 saw the introduction of the T-54 and produced in large numbers from 1947 on. In 1958 after major
improvements the T-54 was reborn as the T-55. The improvements consisted of a thicker turret casting,
an added NBC protection feature and a more powerful engine. The production of the Soviet built T-55
lasted from 1958 to 1981 with tens of thousands being built. License to build was given to
Czechoslovakia, Poland and China where it was designated the Type 59. The Chinese modified and
improved the Type 59 and renamed it the Type 69. When the Type 69 is given a 105mm main gun it is
called the Type 79. Approximately 95,000 tanks of all variants of the T-55 have been produced. The T-
55 has been used in over 40 countries and after almost 50 years many are still in use.
In the late 1960s the North Vietnamese Army began to receive T-54A, T-54B and T-55 tanks from the
Soviets and China contributed their Type 59 tank, a much better built version of the T-55. It wasn t until
February 1971 before the NVA tanks entered combat during encounters into Laos. By 1972 the there
were enough tanks for the NVA to create 3 tank regiments and a few independent tank battalions. The
tanks had several encounters with the South Vietnam Army who were better trained and better
equipped with the M48A3 Patton and much better trained. At the battle for the city of An Loc the NVA
suffered heavy losses to the newly developed TOW wire-guided missile. In 1972 the NVA lost over 400
tanks but were re-supplied with enough Chinese Type 59 tanks to create nine tank regiments. In 1975
the war went from the commonly perceived jungle warfare to assaults on South Vietnam spearheaded
by T-55 type tanks. The NVA also learned to use their tanks in jungle warfare which was not expected.
In 1979 North Vietnamese tanks were used to support infantry when a brief border war broke out with
its former ally China. Direct tank on tank encounters didn t take place because of the rugged terrain.
Any further fighting in Indochina saw limited usage of the T-55 and Type 59 tanks and was basically in
support of the infantry.
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Stock: Website: 1 (explain)
(Prod Ref #73594)
Price: £11.99
We regret that this product is no-longer
available. Our current product range can
be found at www.anticsonline.co.uk
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