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Panzer 68-88 | |
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![]() Panzer 68 in service, 1991 | |
Type | Main battle tank |
Place of origin | Switzerland |
Service history | |
In service | 1971 – 2003 |
Used by | Switzerland |
Production history | |
Designed | 1960s |
Manufacturer | Eidgenoessische Konstruktionswerkstaette |
Produced | 1971 – 1983 |
No. built | 390 (all versions); 195 68/88; 1 Panzer 68-2000 (prototype) |
Variants | Panzer 68; Panzer 68/75; Panzer 68/88; Panzer 68-2000 (prototype) |
Specifications | |
Mass | 40.8 tonnes |
Length | 9.49 m (31 ft 2 in) |
Width | 3.14 m (10 ft 4 in) |
Height | 2.72 m (8 ft 11 in) |
Crew | 4 |
Armour | up to 120 mm Rolled homogeneous armour |
Main armament | 105 mm Royal Ordnance L7 rifled gun with 52 rounds |
Secondary armament | 2× 7.5 mm Swiss Pz Mg 51/71 machine guns with 4000 rounds 6× smoke dischargers |
Engine | MTU MB 837 Ba-500 V-8 diesel engine 660 hp |
Power/weight | 16.2 hp/tonne |
Suspension | plate springs and hydraulic dampers |
Ground clearance | 400 mm |
Operational range | 200 km (120 mi) |
Maximum speed | 55 km/h (34 mph) |
The Panzer 68 was a Swiss main battle tank developed by the Eidgenoessische Konstruktionswerkstaette in Thun in the late 1960s, and was the main tank of the Swiss Army until the late 1990s.[1]