Heller 1/35 AMX30/105 Tank

Following a 1956 agreement between Germany, Italy, and France, a working group developed the specifications for a European standard tank. Germany and France collaborated on the same project, and after a series of tests, each of the participating countries was to receive a prototype. However, in 1963, after trilateral testing, the agreement was rescinded, and each country decided to build its own tank. Germany developed the Leopard 1, and France its AMX30. The first tanks rolled off the production line in Roanne (state-owned industry) in 1966 and entered service the following year to gradually replace the American M47. The AMX30 is a cast and finished steel assembly. Its turret is cast in a single piece. It is powered by a 720 hp Hispano-Suiza engine. The crew consists of four men. The driver sits in the front left, while the other three crew members are in the turret (the tank commander, the gunner, and the gunner).