A single design combining the firepower of the Conqueror's 120 mm gun with the mobility and general usefulness of the Centurion would be ideal. However, the introduction of the Soviet IS-3 heavy tank along with Soviet T-54/T-55 forced the introduction of their own Conqueror heavy tank, armed with a 120 mm (4.7 in) gun. Its predecessor, the Centurion Main Battle Tank, is widely considered to be one of the most successful of post-war MBT designs. The Chieftain was an evolutionary development of the successful cruiser line of tanks that had emerged at the end of the Second World War. 6.3 Tanks of comparable role, performance and era.3.1 Kuwait and the Battle of the Bridges.It remained in service until replaced by the Challenger 1. Faster than the Centurion, able to maintain its speed longer than the Leopard 1 and out-gunning its contemporaries, the Chieftain was also the first tank to enhance its (already superior) armour with composite armour add-ons, beginning with Chobham developed in the UK. The Chieftain also introduced a supine (reclining backwards) driver position, enabling a heavily sloped hull with reduced height. It was the "most formidable main battle tank in the world" with, at the time of its introduction in 1966 the most powerful main gun and most effective armour of any tank yet made. A development of the Centurion and therefore a continuation of the British cruiser series, sharing a substantial commonality of parts with both its predecessor and successor. The Chieftain FV4201 was the main battle tank of the United Kingdom during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.
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