Heller 81137 AMX 30/105

The first prototypes of the French I-generation AMX-30 main battle tank were created in 1963. Serial production started in 1966, which led to the creation of approx. 3,500 vehicles of this type, both for the use of the French army and for export. The AMX-30 tank was powered by a 720hp Hispano-Suiza HS110 diesel engine. Its main armament was the 105mm CN105-F1 cannon, and its auxiliary armament was one 20mm automatic cannon and two 12.7mm and 7.62mm machine guns.

The AMX-30 was created as a response to the demand of the French army from the mid-1950s, which wanted to replace the various American and German tanks they had so far with one main battle tank of domestic construction. Originally, work on the AMX-30 was carried out in cooperation with the German industry, but this cooperation was withdrawn after a few years. The AMX-30 tanks were introduced to the line in the mid-1960s, and many specialized vehicles were created on their chassis, including the AMX-30D evacuation tank or the AMX-30EBG engineering vehicle. The AMX-30 itself has also undergone numerous upgrades. One of the most important ones was the modernization to the AMX-30B2 standard, implemented since 1979, which involved improving the suspension and the use of a new SKO (fire control system). The tank was quite successful on foreign markets, mainly among the countries of the Persian Gulf region. It was also used in combat, e.g. in the Operation Desert Storm in 1990.