Magella Attack Tank

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In the fictional world of the anime Mobile Suit Gundam, the Magella Attack Tank was the main battle tank of the Principality of Zeon's ground forces throughout the One Year War.

Magella Attack Tanks used a powerful 175mm cannon for their main purposes. The Magella Attacks also used a 3-barreled 35mm machine gun for attacks against infantry, the Earth Federation's Type 61 Tank, and enemy mobile suit forces. The Magella Attack also has a very large canopy-style cockpit, very similar to fighter aircraft, which is very unusual for a tank but gives the men inside a more open view of the battlefield.

In case the body was destroyed, the Zeon forces actucally gave the Magella Attack Tanks a detachable cockpit, called the Magella Top. The Magella Top was little more than an escape vessel with a cannon, lacking the fuel to stay afloat for more than a few mere minutes.

Magella Attack Tanks, as other weapons that preceded mobile suits, were ineffective in the age of mobile suits during the One Year War. They were slower and their cannon had a slow rate of fire compared to the weapons used by mobile suits. Lastly, their 35mm machine gun was just too small to be effective against a mobile suit with Luna-titanium alloy armor. However, unlike some other out-of-date weapons employed during the One Year War, the Magella actually scored victories against mobile suits, since its 175mm cannon was capable of destroying enemy mobile suits with a well placed shot, even mobile suits with Luna-titanium alloy would be destroyed or suffer heavy damage from a direct hit. One other good use came out of the Magella Attack Tanks: The Magella Top Cannon. This weapon was basically a jery-rigged hand-held cannon for the Zeon's MS-05 Zaku Is and MS-06 Zaku IIs, when they could not get ahold of their standard 280mm Zaku Bazookas ,ammo for their bazookas, or when they needed the additional punch of this weapon.

Finally, Zeon engineers also found another use for the base of the Magella Attack Tanks when they fused it with the torso of a Zaku. The result was the Zaku Tank, which came as a blessing to many Zeon forces who were lacking mobile suits. Since they were made of destroyed units and spare parts, abandoned magella bases were more than welcome for their construction. These units also proved that the 35mm machine gun could be replaced by other equipment according to the situation, such as a dozer blade or missile launchers.