A fan of the video game WarThunder, the free-to-play vehicle combat simulator, has published secret Chinese military documents on the game’s online forum. Corresponding defense analysts, while the details of the anti-tank weapon in question were already known, this is the first time authenticating documentation has been seen outside of China. How do we know that the documents are authentic? Well, they’re pictured next to the gun itself.
The weapon in question is the DTC10-125, an anti-tank missile used by the modern Chinese military. Also known as a kinetic energy penetrator, its job is to pierce through metal and breach the inner compartments of a tank, incapacitating it. As such, his abilities are a closely guarded secret. Or at least they were up to someone on the WarThunder
The information was quickly removed from the forums but is still available online. Polygon has looked at the original image and can confirm that it is a fairly comprehensive photo that includes an annotated diagram of the ammunition itself as well as its casing, called a sabot.
The UK Defense Journal, a volunteer organization that covers issues related to militaries around the world, reports that while the DTC10-125’s specifications have previously been posted online in multiple places, this leak appears to corroborate them with official government documents . They also claim that the photo includes a close-up of the gun, giving added credence to its authenticity.
This is not the first time secret information about modern weapons systems has been leaked WarThunder forums In July 2021 details of the British main battle tank Challenger 2 were released leakedand then in December also information on the French Leclerc main battle tank ended up on the internet.
WarThunder is not the only simulation game to suffer from such incidents. In 2019, an employee of flight sim developer Eagle Dynamics was charged with conspiracy and smuggling for allegedly trying to get someone in the United States to buy manuals for the F-16 on eBay and then ship them overseas for analysis .
