War Thunder News

Meet the Suffren-class Colbert heavy cruiser! Being one of the first rank IV ships it can be equipped with two scout aircraft, wields good gunnery and has a total of 10 torpedoes!

[h2]Colbert, heavy cruiser, France, rank IV[/h2]

Features:

• Mediocre protection
  
• Linear layout of the main turrets
  
• Decent max speed
  
• Scout planes
  

The heavy cruiser Colbert will be one of the first ships in the closed beta testing of the French bluewater fleet in War Thunder. The ship was designed with an eye on the Italian Trento-class cruisers, in comparison with which the French cruisers Duquesne were literally stripped of armor. The increased protection, however, was no match for the Italian cruisers. The magazines and the engine room were covered with plates of a narrow 50mm armored belt; the cruiser also received an upper deck reinforced to 20-25mm. According to the project guidelines, the cruiser had to survive one torpedo hit, as well as destroyer main battery fire, so in general the design was able to meet these guidelines.

The general layout, including main guns, and even the look of the Suffren-class cruisers, to which Colbert belongs, have been preserved from ships of the previous class. The cruiser has four twin main gun turrets armed with 203mm guns. Commanders will have access to high-explosive and semi-armor-piercing shells, classics of the pre-war ships. The mass of explosives in both rounds is approximately the same, so it is advisable to research the semi-AP as soon as possible in order to more effectively damage the internal modules of enemy ships. It is worth noting also that the main gun turrets are located in a linearly elevated layout, which allows Colbert to fire broadside salvo with all main guns at once, which is useful.



The Colbert cruiser is presented in the game in her latest upgrade, during which the AA armament was improved. 8 x 90mm single-barrel mounts are responsible for covering the ship from aircraft at long distances, while an orchestra of 37 mm and 13.2 mm flutes shreds any approaching aircraft to pieces.

Despite the fact that the Colbert will be one of the first ships at rank IV, it can be equipped with two scout aircraft. The ship also boasts torpedo armament, which not every cruiser also has - two three-tube launchers on the sides in the central part of the hull and four more spare torpedoes, a total of 10 available in battle.



The heavy cruiser Colbert and other ships of the French bluewater fleet will appear in closed beta testing with the release of the next War Thunder major update. Get early access packs to be the first to test the French ships, get special bonuses and prepare your sea crews for the toughest battles before anyone else!

Our team is preparing new locations for the upcoming War Thunder update. Meet the "Iberian Castle", new location for mixed battles!

[h2]"Iberian Castle"[/h2]



The new location “Iberian Castle” takes players to a tourist town on the eastern shores of the Balearic Sea. The main attraction of the town is the ruins of an ancient sea castle. Here, amongst the remains of castle walls and ruins of ancient buildings players will find the first zone of control over the location. The middle capture point is located right in the center of the town, in the labyrinth of crooked streets with arches and small squares.



At the edge of the town, where the orchards begin, there is a third capture point surrounded by several buildings that can hide a small group of defending armored vehicles.

[h2]Armoured vehicles[/h2]

• Strela-10M2 — the autopilot of the 9M37M missile has been improved.
  
• M163, Machbet — sight magnification has been adjusted from х1.9-3.5 to х6 (report).
  
• M163, M901, ADATS(M113), SUB-I-II, CM25, M113A1 (TOW), SIDAM 25, SIDAM 25 (Mistral), ASRAD-R, Machbet — material of the bulkhead in xray mode has been changed to aluminium.
  
• Gal Batash, Magach 7C — commander’s camera position has been shifted towards the commander’s cupola (report).
  
• Olifant Mk.2 — a bug has been fixed where the thickness and material of the bulkhead differed from other Centurion tanks.
  
• A bug has been fixed that caused enabling of the night vision in 3rd person view on vehicles without NVD modification on re-spawning.
  

[h2]Aircraft[/h2]

• AIM-54A — calculation of the maximum range has been updated.
  
• A bug has been fixed in the “Take-off and landing” tutorial, where in a “relative controls” setting in SB mode it was unable to proceed the tutorial after taking off.
  

The current provided changelog reflects the major changes within the game as part of this Update. Some updates, additions and fixes may not be listed in the provided notes. War Thunder is constantly improving and specific fixes may be implemented without the client being updated.

Project 56K Braviy destroyer was the first Soviet experimental carrier of the surface-to-air naval missile.

[h2]Project 56K Braviy, destroyer, USSR, rank IV[/h2]

Features:

• Surface-to-air missiles
  
• Multitube mortar
  
• Radar
  
• Poor gunnery capabilities
  

The Project 56K destroyer Braviy will appear in the game with the release of the next major War Thunder update and will become the first researchable ship in the game with SAM on board!

The Braviy shares many familiar characteristics with classic destroyers: Great mobility, and torpedo armament. However, you should not mistake this for any normal destroyer- this destroyer has an additional unique armament among her peers! Its main difference is its powerful rocket and missile armament of two multitube RBU-2500 mortars for unguided rocket launch depth charges and the Volna-M surface-to-air missile system. Mortars are capable of dealing tons of damage in a short time at close range, that’s why the ship is a perfect ambusher in the capture zones surrounded by rocks and small islands. The most unusual armament of the Braviy is her Volna-M SAM system with an ammunition load of 18 missiles. SACLOS missiles are capable of acquiring targets at 16 kilometers and are excellent for destroying aircraft at long and medium distances. Moreover, Volna-M missiles are also capable of hitting lightly armored surface targets, dealing tremendous damage when their 30 kg warheads detonate inside the hull. The mount has launching rails for two missiles, and reloading takes a very long time.



As for the gunnery of the Braviy, it would be most reasonable to also use it to destroy aircraft and high-speed boats. The main guns of the destroyer are a pair of 130mm cannons in one mount with a total ammo of 500 rounds. Radar and radio-fuzed shells make these guns an effective long-range air defense system, while three quadruple 45mm mounts shred to pieces any aircraft at low altitude.



Project 56K Braviy is a very specific ship that can be used in various battle scenarios, especially as an excellent air shield for early dreadnoughts or as an island ambusher. Braviy will appear at rank IV of the Soviet bluewater fleet with the release of the upcoming major War Thunder update - goodness, we can't wait!

The French large destroyer Le Malin of the Le Fantasque class was built to chase and hunt other destroyers.

[h2]Le Malin, destroyer, French. Rank III.[/h2]

Features:

• Hard-hitting main caliber guns
  
• Effective AA guns
  
• Thin-skinned gun mounts
  
• Huge profile
  

We continue to introduce you to the bluewater fleet of France, which will be added to the game with the release of the next major War Thunder update. The destroyers of the Le Fantasque class are among the most famous ships of this type in history. Meet Le Malin, “the malign one", the Le Fantasque-class destroyer with powerful main battery armament, excellent sailing performance and deadly anti-air battery!

Le Fantasque-class destroyers were originally designed as destroyer hunters that operate as part of a group of ships of the same type and fight more like light cruisers. That is why the main armament of the Le Malin besides torpedoes is very powerful artillery. The Mle 1929 138.6mm guns with half-closed 10 mm anti-fragmentation shields are placed along the ship in a linearly elevated layout. Due to their design, the gun mounts are poorly protected from enemy fire, especially from fragments and shrapnel, and have quite low traverse speed. However, the satisfying ballistics and effective semi-AP rounds make the destroyer a very dangerous enemy even for ships of heavier classes.



In our game, Le Malin will be presented in the latest configuration after the upgrade in Boston in 1943. The originally poor anti-aircraft armament, which they tried to strengthen in each of the five ship upgrades, finally turned out to be quite effective, including two twin-barreled and one quad mount of the 40mm Bofors autocannons and 10 20mm Oerlikons. During the same upgrade in Boston, the ship received two additional mortars for 100-kg depth charges, bringing their total number to four. But the torpedo armament had to be reduced, abandoning one of the three triple-tube launchers.



The Le Malin - big, fast and malign - will appear in the game in the next major War Thunder update. Get early access packs to the French Navy СBT and you can be the first to test the amazing ships of one of the most distinctive fleets in the world!