Difference between revisions of "Light Tanks"

Light Tanks are fast mobile scouts used to detect enemies for artillery or to destroy enemy artillery.

Light tanks share some general characteristics. The heaviest light tank weighs just under 22 tons, and no light tank has greater than 65 mm of armor plating. The fastest light tanks can reach speeds of up to 72 km/hour, and have mobility unparalleled except by the most maneuverable medium tanks. Due to their lack of weight, light tanks lack much armor and do not generally carry much firepower, so they are not well designed to trade shots with a medium or heavy tank.

The great speed, mobility, and small size of the light tank allows them to have a better probability of avoiding artillery fire, and can take advantage of gaps in the enemy's defenses to locate and destroy enemy artillery. If a light tank can flank enemy tank destroyers, it can use it's mobility to keep out of the TD's firing angle while destroying the helpless vehicle. However, medium tanks will have the mobility to easily destroy light tanks, and heavy tanks will generally have enough armor to ignore light tanks for the most part, so coordination with friendly artillery is required to destroy these vehicles.