War Thunder — patch notes and updates
Stored observation / content update:
Dated developer announcements recorded from Steam. Open the source for the complete update.
| Update | Date | Excerpt / source |
|---|---|---|
| Screenshot Competition – Between the Buildings! | 2026-05-02 | Welcome to the 222nd War Thunder Steam Screenshot Competition! Thanks for all of your submissions from last week! This week, the theme is moving to urban battlefields with towns and bridges. Capture a screenshot with at least one vehicle and a building or bridge in the background! The three most popular and three selected by us will get 300 GE. See the winners down below! Let’s begin the 222nd edition of our competition! Create a stunning screenshot and submit it on the War Thunder Steam Community Hub with the tag #WTscreen222. You have time until the 8th of May to submit your screenshot. After that date, 6 winners will be selected (3 of whic |
| A Trophy with Decals in Honor of Polish Constitution Day! | 2026-05-01 | In May, Poland celebrates several holidays in a row! May 1st is Labor Day, May 2nd is Flag Day, and May 3rd is Constitution Day, one of the country’s most important holidays. It was on this day in 1791 that one of the world’s first “modern” constitutions was adopted, ensuring the separation of powers and expanding the rights of citizens.Open the “The Polish Constitution Day” trophy! When: From May 1st (11:00 GMT) until May 4th (11:00 GMT).Task: Earn 3,000 mission points in battles where you used any vehicle at rank III or higher to receive the “The Polish Constitution Day” trophy!Inside this trophy, you’ll receive one of four decals:“Winged H |
| Anti-Cheat, Privacy, and Fair Play: Clarifying the Facts | 2026-04-30 | Anti-Cheat, Privacy, and Fair Play: Clarifying the FactsHey everyone! Today, we’d like to go into the topic of anti-cheat as there have recently been concerns regarding data privacy. This is entirely understandable, especially in situations where there is limited information available and a lot of speculation.With that in mind, we’d like to shed some light on how anti-cheat protection works in War Thunder, how it collects and processes data, and how it helps keep the game fair and enjoyable for all honest players. While we will deliberately avoid going into specific technical details that could be useful to cheat developers, we will outline t |
| War Thunder’s May Sale Is Here! | 2026-04-30 | As per tradition, we’re holding a big sale at the beginning of May, featuring vehicles, upgrades, consumables, and Premium Account time. It’s time to find great deals! After this sale ends, new discounts will be available in the Gaijin store.When: From April 30th (11:00 GMT) until May 7th (11:00 GMT)To get to the Gaijin Store through Steam, go to the in-game hangar > Shop > Online Store.Discounts on vehicles30% discount when purchasing vehicles from all nations with Golden Eagles and Silver lions. The discount is valid on all vehicles throughout the entire sale period.Discounts don’t apply to the purchase and upgrade of Squadron vehicles and |
| Pages of History (May): To Berlin! | 2026-04-30 | In Pages of History this month, you will find yourself at the center of events that took place in various theaters of war. From Berlin to Tunisia, Madagascar to Crete: participate in battles while using vehicles linked to these historic battles and get some prizes! From May 1st until May 31st, you will be able to participate in 8 tasks consecutively. Completing each task will grant you a trophy with a reward, completing all of the tasks will earn you a unique profile icon! Ivan Stepanovich KonevIvan Konev started as a Lieutenant General in the Second World War. He participated in the defense of Moscow and the Battle of Kursk, and in 1944, he |
| A Decal Trophy for Golden Week in Japan! | 2026-04-29 | What a week! April 29th is Showa Day, May 3rd is Constitution Day, May 4th is Greenery Day, and May 5th is Children’s Day. We’ve created a decal for this festive week every year, and now’s your chance to get some you might have missed through the Golden Week decal trophy!Open the “Golden Week” trophy! When: From April 29th (11:00 GMT) until May 6th (11:00 GMT).Task: Earn 3,000 mission points in battles where you used Japanese vehicles at rank III or higher to receive the “Golden Week” trophy!Inside this trophy, you’ll receive one of three decals that were previously available for this event so you can complete your collection:“Golden Week 202 |
| War Thunder Infantry: Testing Continues! | 2026-04-29 | Hello everyone! War Thunder Infantry Closed Beta Testing is in full swing, and today we’d like to share some information relating to the second phase of testing. We’ll be covering the new features and improvements awaiting testers in the near future, and reveal some plans for the future of the closed beta. Let’s get started!The goal is stabilityDuring the second phase of testing back in March, we encountered some technical limitations that prevented us from maintaining the 64v64 mode for an extended period without the use of bots. To address this issue, we optimized the server code and network interactions. Our primary goal of the next phase |
| It’s fixed! №115 | 2026-04-29 | Today, we’ve rounded up and will be covering some of the fixes and improvements that we’ve made to the game today and over the past two weeks. If you’d like to catch up on every fixed bug, then be sure to check out the changelog section on our website. If you’ve found a bug that you’d like to report, you can do so on our community bug reporting platform.Secondary Weapons Menu CategorizationSome aircraft have such a vast array of available external ordnance that we’ve decided to categorize it for your convenience thanks to your feedback! Now, in the ordnance selection pop-up window for a specific hardpoint, ordnance is grouped into eleven cate |
| Update 2.55.1.84 | 2026-04-28 | Battle RatingsThe Planned Battle Rating changes have come into effect. Ground VehiclesA bug where switching from a UAV back to a tank would disable cruise control has been fixed. (Report). InterfaceA bug that caused an extra cell element to display in the skill progress bars in the crew training window when on 67% interface scale has been fixed. Patch notes reflect only key changes, meaning they may not include a complete list of all improvements made. Additionally, War Thunder is constantly being updated and some changes may not require an update. Changes reflected in patch notes are formed by taking reactions and requests of the community f |
| Screenshot Competition – Tried and True! | 2026-04-25 | Welcome to the 221st War Thunder Steam Screenshot Competition! We loved getting to see all of your captures from last week! We’ve had quite a few themes in a row, so this week your submission only has to include a vehicle that you enjoy playing, whether that is a plane, tank, or ship. The three most popular and three selected by us will get 300 GE. See the winners down below! Let’s begin the 221st edition of our competition! Create a stunning screenshot and submit it on the War Thunder Steam Community Hub with the tag #WTscreen221. You have time until the 1st of May to submit your screenshot. After that date, 6 winners will be selected (3 of |
| Fair Play: April 2026 | 2026-04-24 | We keep fighting cheaters using your reports and the BattlEye anti-cheat system, and as usual, today we’re sharing a bit of info on bans that we’ve distributed over the past month. If you’d like to help keep War Thunder free from cheating, you can find out how to file a report and how our anti-cheat system works on our Wiki.Banned accountsSince our last fair play update, we have banned 5,320 accounts that were found to have violated the rules, specifically paragraph 3.2.3 of the EULA, namely the automation of gameplay (use of bots) and cheat software.Additionally, 210 temporary bans (up to four months) and 19 permanent bans were issued for br |
| A Decal Trophy for the 81st Anniversary of the Liberation of Italy! | 2026-04-24 | Every year on April 25th, Italy celebrates Liberation Day in memory of the 1945 uprising that led to German forces leaving the country, the collapse of the fascist regime of the Republic of Salò, and the end of the civil war that had been raging since 1943. Let’s join in the congratulations and sing Bella Ciao! Open the “Italian Liberation Day” trophy! When: From April 24th (11:00 GMT) until April 27th (11:00 GMT)Task: Earn 3,000 mission points in battles where you used Italian vehicles at rank III or higher to receive the “Italian Liberation Day” trophy!Inside this trophy, you’ll receive one of three decals that were previously available for |
| Server Update 23.04.2026 | 2026-04-23 | AircraftPL-12, PL-12A, SD-10A — missile autopilot parameters have been adjusted, the missiles are now more stable on the trajectory.PL-12A — missile mass has been increased from 198 to 214 kg, thrust and engine burn time has been increased. (Report).SD-10A — the maximum missile speed in the stat card has been increased from 4.0 M to 5.0 M. (Report). Patch notes reflect only key changes, meaning they may not include a complete list of all improvements made. Additionally, War Thunder is constantly being updated and some changes may not require an update. Changes reflected in patch notes are formed by taking reactions and requests of the communi |
| Get England’s Flag for St. George’s Day! | 2026-04-23 | Happy St. George’s Day!April 23rd marks St. George’s Day, a big day in English culture, celebrating patron saint St George. This day is celebrated with street food, music, dances and activities in Trafalgar Square in London and all across the country.England’s flag decal is temporarily available to purchase for Golden Eagles! This flag is available for 500 Golden Eagles over the next three days.When: From April 23rd (10:00 GMT) until April 27th (10:00 GMT).Where: You can find this decal by going to Nickname → Decals → Common → World Flags.“England” flag decal |
| Update 2.55.1.72 | 2026-04-21 | AircraftA bug that prevented threat names from being displayed on RWR indicators that identify radars while playing on the minimal client has been fixed. (Report).MiG-25PD — a bug that caused the aircraft to constantly roll to the right has been fixed. (Report).Z.1007 bis serie 3, Z.1007 bis serie 5 — a bug that caused the torn off wings to incorrectly impact the flight model has been fixed. (Report).A bug that caused the cockpit view switch button on the aircraft with the gunner 3rd person view to first switch to the gunner view instead of the cockpit view has been fixed. (Report).F-4J Phantom II, F-4S Phantom II, Phantom FGR.2, Phantom FG.1 |
| Battle Pass Season 23: Apollo’s Chariot and Its Warbond Shop! | 2026-04-20 | Season 23 of the Battle Pass celebrates Greece! Get decals featuring Air Force unit emblems, the Royal Hellenic Navy flag, decorations featuring an ancient Greek sword and helmet, and a profile icon of Steve Pisanos, a Greek pilot who flew Spitfires in the Second World War with the American Volunteer Squadron. The main vehicle reward is a premium Spitfire LF Mk IXc with a clipped wing in the Royal Hellenic Air Force livery, along with the Japanese destroyer Suzutsuki. As always, the Battle Pass offers War Bonds, boosters, Silver Lions, Premium account days, wagers, and much more.The Canadian Ram II tank in the British ground forces tree is no |
| Screenshot Competition – Silent Approach! | 2026-04-18 | Welcome to the 220th War Thunder Steam Screenshot Competition! Thanks for all of your great submissions last week! For this weeks competition, you can capture any engagements from the battlefield. Your screenshots can capture the action as it begins, or as the battle is in full swing. The three most popular and three selected by us will get 300 GE. See the winners down below! Let’s begin the 220th edition of our competition! Create a stunning screenshot and submit it on the War Thunder Steam Community Hub with the tag #WTscreen220. You have time until the 24th of April to submit your screenshot. After that date, 6 winners will be selected (3 |
| The A-6E Intruder is Back with a Discount on its First Flight Anniversary! | 2026-04-17 | The Grumman A-6 Intruder first flew on April 19th 1960, and served in the U.S. Navy for over 35 years. It participated in most conflicts of its time, including the Vietnam and Persian Gulf Wars. In 1979, the aircraft received a major upgrade — the TRAM Target Recognition/Attack Multi-sensor system, significantly expanding its arsenal and increasing its accuracy. The A-6E Intruder is temporarily available to purchase at a 30% discount for 6,489 Golden Eagles, and will remain available after the promotion at the regular price! When: From April 17th (11:00 GMT) until April 20th (11:00 GMT).Where: USA > Aviation > Premium vehicles. The A-6E Intru |
| The AMX A-1A Returns with a Discount for Brazilian Army Day! | 2026-04-17 | Brazil celebrates Army Day on April 19th, the anniversary of the First Battle of Guararapes, where in 1648 the Portuguese repelled a Dutch force twice their size. The modern Brazilian army has over 200,000 active personnel, with over a million in reserve. The AMX A-1A is temporarily available to purchase at a 30% discount for 6,615 Golden Eagles, and will remain available after the promotion at the regular price! When: From April 17th (09:00 GMT) until April 20th (09:00 GMT).Where: Italy > Aviation > Premium vehicles.The AMX A-1A will return to being available to purchase at full price for 9,450 Golden Eagles after the promotion ends. About t |
| Go Esports with the New WTCS 2026 Season Pack! | 2026-04-16 | Ready to become a War Thunder Esports player, with style, precision and flair?Whether you’re a seasoned veteran or a true ace in the skies, the WTCS Season 2026 packs are here to take you to the next level.Step into the arena, forge your identity, and dominate the battlefield like never before.The War Thunder Championship Series: Your rise starts now.Winter Warrior Esports Pack - Season 2026To get to our online Store through Steam, go to the in-game hangar > Shop > Online Store.This pack includes:Unique decal: "Winter Warrior" SnailUnique camouflage: Su-30SM2 "Winter Warrior"Profile frame: "Winter Warrior"Unique title: "Winter Warrior"Profile |