The free military simulation MMO game War Thunder, developed by Gaijin Entertainment, recently witnessed another incident of military enthusiasts leaking controlled classified documents on its official forum. This time, the leak involved the U.S. military’s AV-8B Harrier II vertical takeoff and landing fighter jet.
Launched in 2013, War Thunder is renowned for its realistic war simulation experience, featuring over 2,500 vehicles worldwide, covering naval, land, and air forces from World War II, the Cold War, to modern times. However, the official forum has repeatedly seen players revealing military secrets during debates to prove their knowledge of “real settings.”
On June 21, a user named “MatrixRupture” posted in a discussion titled “All Harrier IIs lack extreme max G-force” stating, “We all know the Harrier in the game is simulated too inaccurately. Since the AV-8B flight manual is available, let’s take a look… We just need to fix that unstable maneuver part.” To support the claim, the user cited the U.S. Navy’s NATOPS flight manuals for the AV-8B (single-seat attack aircraft) and TAV-8B (two-seat trainer), which, although accessible through some online channels, remain controlled documents.
Forum admin Smin1080p_WT quickly intervened, deleting the post and temporarily banning the user account, reiterating the official stance: “The source you posted is clearly marked ‘DISTRIBUTION STATEMENT C,’ which is not public information. Any restricted, export-controlled, or classified documents are strictly prohibited on our platforms.” Distribution Statement C is a U.S. Department of Defense marking indicating that technical documents are only authorized for U.S. government agencies and contractors.
Despite clear forum rules forbidding such posts, some players continue to cite classified or restricted military documents to argue that in-game vehicle performance is “not realistic enough.” According to PC Gamer, previous leaked documents include those for the F-16, F-15E Strike Eagle, F-117 Nighthawk, Eurofighter Typhoon, and ground vehicles like the M2A2 Bradley, British Challenger 2 tank, French Leclerc main battle tank, and Chinese ZTZ-99 main battle tank.
Many players respond with humor or self-mockery, while others argue that these documents may not be “classified” but merely restricted. Regardless, once an official restriction is applied, such documents should not appear on public platforms. Gaijin consistently states that unauthorized files are never used in game development and do not affect vehicle simulation design. However, this “truth-seeking” behavior that violates government regulations persists.
A former Royal Air Force engineer told UK Defence Journal: “This incident is not a major leak; similar manuals, especially older versions, are available online, but that doesn’t mean they can be freely reposted. As long as they are marked ‘controlled or restricted,’ War Thunder officials have a duty to manage them.” War Thunder’s high realism attracts many military enthusiasts and former personnel, but discussions often cross boundaries. As the saying goes: it’s just a game, don’t take it too seriously.
