War Thunder News

The Chengdu J-7 is the Chinese reverse-engineered counterpart to the Soviet MiG-21F-13, which first appeared in the mid 1960s. In upcoming update 1.91, pilots in War Thunder will have the chance to fly the later J-7II version - the crowning jewel of the brand new Chinese aviation tree also coming as part of the next update!

In the early 1960s, the Sino-Soviet relationship was quickly deteriorating. In an effort to improve relations, the USSR invited top Chinese military officials to Moscow to oversee the production of the state-of-the-art MiG-21 interceptor and to negotiate possible licence-production. However, further deterioration of relations had a negative impact on the agreement, but in the end, technical documentation and components of the MiG-21 were eventually shared with China.





The J-7II will appear in player hangars following the release of upcoming update 1.91 and will represent the top machine available to pilots in the brand new Chinese aviation tree, also coming to the game as part of the next major update. Until then, clear skies and happy hunting pilots!

Check out the full Dev Blog here!

Mogami is the lead ship of her class of four Japanese heavy cruisers, initially designed as light cruisers around the limits set by naval armament treaties at the time. Docking at player ports with the release of the upcoming update 1.91, Mogami will soon become the new crowning jewel of the Japanese cruiser line in War Thunder!

Development of the Mogami-class cruiser dates back to the early 1930s, when the IJN launched its development as part of a naval rearmament program. Wishing to substantially strengthen their navy’s cruisers, the IJN high command ordered for a new design to be drawn up which would practically reach the very limits of the London Naval Treaty in effect at the time.





Despite its impressive displacement of over 14,100 tons, Mogami is still able to reach a very respectable top speed of 34.7 knots (64 km/h). The ship is able to achieve such speeds, despite its sizeable displacement, mainly thanks to the 152,000 horsepower generated by its four geared turbines, powered by 10 steam boilers.

For more information, read the full Dev Blog article here!

We’re pleased to announce a new nation making their entry into War Thunder update 1.91 - China! One of the oldest civilizations in the world, with a rich and dramatic historical background, especially during the 20th century.





The initial line-up of Chinese vehicles available in War Thunder features tanks, fighter aircraft and bombers which were used during World World II and shortly thereafter, and will show just how turbulent the history of the country’s military in the 20th century was. Players will be able to pilot aircraft employed by foreign volunteers from the Flying Tigers regiment which helped China fight against Imperial Japan, make use of captured Japanese vehicles, and command military imports from the USSR, as well as local variants of Soviet MiG jets and American Patton tanks (which formed part of China’s military).

Each vehicle in War Thunder’s initial Chinese vehicle tree was historically used by the nation of China at some point. The Henschel Hs 123A-1, for example, was imported by the Chinese Nationalist forces from Germany, and was used against the Imperial Japanese Navy during battles at the Yangtze river.

Immediately after the release of update 1.91 “Night Vision”, all players will gain access to an initial selection of Chinese ground-force vehicles and aircraft.

Check out the full Dev Blog article here!

In War Thunder, the F-4C Phantom II will be the first aircraft coming to the game, capable of surpassing speeds twice that of sound. This new American top tier aircraft, coming soon to War Thunder with update 1.91, will also be among, if not the most heavily armed machine of its class in the game thanks to the sheer number and variety of its weapon loadouts!

One of the first things that made the F-4 Phantom II stand out from contemporary, and indeed upcoming aircraft designs, was its outstanding flight performance. Namely, the F-4C could reach a maximum top speed of 1460 mph (2350 km/h, Mach 2.1) at an altitude of 37,000ft (11,300 m), while still managing to get up to a more than respectable speed of 845 mph (1360 km/h, Mach 1.1) at sea level. The ‘Phantom’ is able to reach such mind-boggling high speeds mainly thanks to its two General Electric J79-GE-15 turbojets


Speaking of onboard ordnance, there is a double dose of news for WT pilots. First, there is no pre-built directional offensive armament at all, no cannons, no machine guns. Second, the Phantom II carries the greatest payload of different types of armament amongst all fighter aircraft in the game! Just listen to this: up to 228 Mighty Mouse rockets, or 48 Zuni rockets, or bombs available in sets 12x750 lb, 18x500 lb, 18x250 lb or 8x1000 lb! 3 gunpods with rapid-fire 20mm Vulcan cannons are also available for nailing down light targets or helicopters, and of course missiles - AGM-12B and much more devastating AGM-12C Bullpup for ground targets, and Sidewinder air-to-air missiles for anything that flies.


The tactics are obvious - use your speed to reach any target, use your mounted weapon to kill any target, do not engage with a target you are not prepared for. And of course - have fun with this perfect lightning-fast jet fighter!

Check out the full Dev Blog article on the official War Thunder website!

In War Thunder, the MiG-21F-13 will be the new top jet fighter awaiting seasoned pilots at rank VI of the Soviet aviation tree. The MiG-21F-13 is the first standard production version of the MiG-21 to be produced in significant numbers and brought with it, among other minor improvements, the ability to mount K-13 air-to-air missiles - a familiar weapon system to War Thunder pilots.





The MiG-21F-13 is powered with a single R-11F-300 turbojet engine, thanks to this, the MiG-21F-13 is able to accelerate up to a maximum speed of 1300 km/h (Mach 1.06) near the ground and up to 2200 km/h (Mach 2.1) at an altitude of 13 kilometers. In addition, the MiG-21F-13 has a good climb rate - 120 m/sec which is one of the best climb rates in the game.

ТHowever, while the MiG-21F-13 can certainly go very fast in a straight line and also climb to altitude very quickly, its performance does come with a substantial caveat. Namely, being an aircraft with a delta wing design does give the MiG-21F-13 stability during supersonic flight, but it also negatively impacts the aircraft’s maneuvering capabilities and is responsible for massive speed losses during sharp, high-speed maneuvers. As a result, the MiG-21F-13 is best off utilized in boom-and-zoom style attacks, while any sort of extensive maneuvering engagements are best to be kept well clear off.





Compared to earlier variants, the MiG-21F-13 weapon loadout was changed but not at the cost of lethality. As such, the MiG-21F-13 features only a single 30mm cannon with 60 rounds of ammunition. Additionally, pilots may choose to outfit their MiG-21F-13 with a pair of K-13 air-to-air missiles, thus greatly bolstering their effectiveness against aerial targets.

Complementing the primary offensive armament is also a host of secondary ordnance options which may be used to engage enemy ground units. To do so, pilots will have access to 57mm rocket pods, containing 16 projectiles each, as well as conventional unguided bombs of 250kg and 500kg, or two unguided air-to-ground S-24 rockets.

Check out the full Dev Blog article on the official War Thunder website!