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Since the first article on the Chinese Type 98 MBT appeared in the May-June 2000 issue of ARMOR ("The Chinese Type 98 Main Battle Tank: A New Beast from the East"),[1] there has been additional information available regarding the tank's firepower, armor protection, and production-deployment status. This additional information actually confirms initial assessments and solidifies the serious threat posed by the Type 98.

Since it was first seen during the rehearsals for the massive 50th Anniversary parade held in Beijing on October 1, 1999, observers have tried to piece together the small bits of available information concerning the Type 98. Photographs and video footage from the parade confirmed that the tank is armed with a 125mm smoothbore main gun, but very little was known about the ammunition it fires. Now there have been a series of unconfirmed reports that the Type 98 (and other Chinese 125mm-armed MBTs) use Israeli-designed APFSDS ammunition and that the Chinese have developed depleted uranium (DU) rounds for their tanks. As far as the Israelis are concerned, they are certainly marketing their M711 125mm APFSDS round to somebody, and the Chinese are a likely customer. The solution to the DU part of this equation was apparently displayed during a recent military exhibition in China that included Chinese 100mm DU ammunition. Although not specifically intended for the Type 98, this DU development clearly indicates that DU ammunition is available to the PLA. Interestingly enough, published reports have also recently confirmed that Pakistan is currently marketing at least two DU tank rounds. Pakistan is a close Chinese ally and currently employs both the Chinese 125mm-armed Type 85-IIAP MBT as well as the new limited production Al-Khalid MBT.

Some of the most heated discussions relating to the Type 98 involve the tank's turret frontal armor protection. External examination confirms a major change in frontal armor, incorporating composite armor arrays and armor cavities on each side of the main gun. Similar in many ways to the turret armor cavities used on the Russian T-80U, T-72B, and T-90S MBTs, the Type 98's armor cavities are easily accessible through two cover-plates fitted flush with the turret roof and held in-place by eight bolts. These two composite armor cavities apparently evolved from a design seen on early prototypes of the Type 98. Unlike the two large cavities used on the production Type 98, these prototypes were fitted with two small cavities on each side of the main gun. According to published reports, these smaller cavities provided access to the mounting bolts that attached the composite armor arrays or modules to the turret base armor. This would allow damaged or obsolete armor arrays to be replaced by the tank crew while in the field. In fact, the Type 98 is also fitted with six lifting "eyes" which could be used with a T-shaped lifting sling to facilitate the replacement of the turret frontal armor modules under field conditions.