The M1 Abrams is manufactured by Chrysler and has been the main battle tank of the US Army since 1980.
The AMX–30 was replaced by the Leclerc as France's main battle tank in 1992.
The Tiger I and Tiger II were used by the German Army during World War II. The Leopard, designed by Porsche, entered service as Germany's main battle tank in 1965. Since the introduction of the Leopard 2 in 1979, the original Leopard has been referred to as the Leopard 1.
The Churchill was the infantry tank used by the British Army during World War II. The Centurion was introduced in 1946, and the Conqueror in 1955. The Chieftain, introduced in 1967 to replace both the Centurion and the Conqueror, was a development of the Centurion. The Challenger entered service in 1983, and was an improved version of the Chieftain; the Challenger 2 was introduced in 1998, and is due to be replaced by the Challenger 3 from 2027 onwards.
The IS series (named from the anglicised version of the initials of Josef Stalin) were Soviet tanks in use in the years following the end of World War II. The IS designation was replaced by T following Stalin's death in 1953, and the T series remains in use to the time of writing; the T–72, first introduced in 1973, has been used in the Russian invasion of Ukraine which began in 2022.
© Haydn Thompson 2023