Today we’re going to be talking about and showcasing two brand-new Premium Battleships that have been added to the Air Superiority major update — the French Courbet and the Italian Leonardo da Vinci.

Meet the Courbet!

Vehicle History

The Battleship Courbet became the lead ship in a series of the first French Battleships that were built shortly before the outbreak of the First World War. Courbet saw action in two World Wars, but was grounded during the Allied landings in Normandy and used as a breakwater and stationary air defense battery. This ship is the sistership of one of the best French ships already in War Thunder, Battleship Paris.

Courbet is ambiguous but that makes this ship an even more interesting dreadnought! Featuring 6 turrets that house 305 mm main caliber guns, they’re arranged in such a way that only five can fire from the port or starboard side at one time. In addition to this if you want to be cheeky, the Courbet can fire four of the six main turrets directly from front, instead of two like on most other Battleships. Like most early Battleships, Courbet has mediocre defense against aircraft, however the auxiliary weapons consist of 22 x 138 mm guns, with 11 of them having the capability to fire simultaneously from one side which is excellent!

Now present in the game after being added in the recent Air Superiority major update, the Courbet is a premium Rank V Premium Battleship for France’s Bluewater fleet tree, purchasable for Golden Eagles. An overall excellent reason to start researching the tree.

Meet the Leonardo da Vinci!

Vehicle History

The Battleship Leonardo da Vinci was laid down in 1910 as one of the ships of the Conte di Cavour class. This ship did not have a chance to take part in combat, as in 1916 while stationed in Taranto, its ammunition detonated with the explosion claiming the lives of 248 sailors. The rescue operation to raise Leondardo da Vinci took two years, however it was later decided to abandon further use of the ship due to the high cost of restoration.

Leonardo da Vinci has arrived to War Thunder in the Air Superiority major update as a Premium Rank V Battleship. Featuring 305 mm main guns that were originally installed on the Conte di Cavour class of ships, these guns can fire two types of main caliber shells — a Semi-armor piercing shell (SAP) that has a large explosive mass of 31 kg of TNT and fairly good armor penetration, and a Armor-piercing capped ballistic capped shell (APCBC) that has excellent armor penetration but a small explosive mass. This gives you options and allows you to pick and choose which shell is best for each combat situation.

Something to keep in mind are the dangerous 9 x torpedoes present on this ship can be useful against cruisers and Battleships at close ranges, and in addition to this, alongside the port and starboard side are a total of 18 x 120 mm auxiliary caliber gun turrets which are good against small boats. This ship also features some anti-aircraft weaponry in the form of 13 x 76 mm guns that are located on top of the main caliber turrets — these guns lack a good rate of fire, but are still fatal to any aircraft that gets in their way!

You can get the formidable Leonardo da Vinci right now in War Thunder for Golden Eagles. Overall this Battleship will be useful for researching Italy’s Bluewater fleet tree thanks to its Premium bonuses!