Chinese state broadcaster airs rare Type 99B tank training footage; expert sees combat readiness, more demanding drills ahead

China's state broadcaster CCTV News on Wednesday released footage of Type 99B main battle tanks conducting live-fire drills, offering a rare official look at the new model in training since its appearance at the massive V-Day military parade on September 3, 2025. A Chinese military affairs expert said the footage indicated that the tanks had entered service with the army's armored troops and have developed combat capability. Their improved information systems should support more complex operations, while further training is expected to develop new tactics against emerging battlefield threats. The video from CCTV News military channel showed a brigade of the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) 80th Group Army conducting a live-fire assessment for the main combat elements of a combined-arms battalion at a field training ground in East China's Shandong Province. The assessment simulated complex battlefield conditions, with fixed targets placed at different ranges and in different directions. Crews had to assess the situation and select targets independently, the broadcaster reported. Four Type 99B tanks were shown during the training. The footage included tanks manoeuvring, ammunition being prepared and views inside the vehicles as crews loaded and unloaded rounds, operated sighting equipment and fired their guns. Following an order to engage a target with an armor-piercing round at 1,200 meters, a tank fired from a stationary position. Another sequence fired on the move against a simulated enemy tank 1,000 meters ahead. Three-person crews were assessed on their ability to engage designated targets within a set time, both while stationary and on the move, CCTV News reported. For stationary firing, assessors used the mountainous terrain to create different combat scenarios, requiring crews to search for, identify and select targets according to the battlefield situation. Observers at the command post monitored the targets and reported where rounds landed to help correct firing deviations. When firing on the move, commanders directed their crews and maintained communications with higher command, while drivers negotiated bridges, water-filled pits and craters. Gunners rapidly identified the targets posing the greatest threat and engaged them on command. All targets were destroyed, according to CCTV News. A service member at the exercise said the assessment had added multiple lateral routes, obstacles and restricted passages, as well as sideways and rearward firing, to bring training closer to battlefield conditions, per the report. "We must closely integrate target search and identification, selection of the correct direction of advance, rapid decision-making and efficient command to strike targets accurately," the service member said. The footage showed that the Type 99B has formally entered service with tank formations and has developed its combat capabilities, Song Zhongping, a Chinese military affairs expert, told the Global Times on Thursday. Its performance in stationary and moving fire, including sideways and rearward firing, demonstrated its ability to conduct missions under different conditions, Song said. He described its combat capabilities as a substantial improvement over those of the earlier Type 99A. That improvement was particularly important in its information systems, Song said. The tank serves as a node in a wider information network, allowing it to carry out a range of combat orders from higher command more effectively, he explained. Although the exercises shown were conventional, they tested the fundamental skills on which armored formations depend, Song said. Mastering those skills is necessary before crews can cope with more complex battlefield conditions, including extensive disruption from drones. "The introduction of a new tank model does not mark the end of training, but its starting point," Song said, adding that more complex training tasks lie ahead for the Type 99B, while also calling for the development of new tactics to address both existing and potential future challenges.