Tankkanon

Tankkanon, sometimes written as tank cannon, is the primary artillery piece mounted on a tank or other armored fighting vehicle. It is designed for direct-fire engagement at ranges typically up to several kilometers, to defeat armored targets, fortifications, and infantry positions. The term can be found in some non-English contexts as a transliteration of "tank cannon."

Most modern tank cannons are large-caliber, crew-served weapons that may be rifled or smoothbore. Common calibers include 75–105 mm in older or light tanks, and 105, 120, or 125 mm in contemporary main battle tanks. Rifled guns, such as the L7 105 mm, historically used armor-piercing rounds, while modern smoothbore guns, such as the 120 mm Rh-120 and 125 mm systems, use fin-stabilized projectiles. The weapon fires a variety of ammunition, including armor-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS), armor-piercing high-explosive (APHE), high-explosive (HE), and, in some systems, guided munitions.

Fire-control systems, fuzes, and ballistic computers enable accurate fire at moving targets. The gun is typically mounted in a turret and operated by a crew of two to four; some designs employ autoloaders to increase the rate of fire. Recoil is managed by a complex suspension and recoil system.

Historically and in modern warfare, the tank cannon is central to armored combat, providing direct-fire capability against armored threats and fortifications. Development priorities have included higher muzzle velocity, improved stabilization, and compatibility with advanced ammunition and fire-control technologies.

Notable examples include the American M256 120 mm, the German 120 mm Rheinmetall gun, and the Russian 125 mm 2A46. In English, the term most commonly used is "tank gun," while "tankkanon" appears in some linguistic contexts.