Capabilities of the Upgraded KNDS Primary Battle Tank Required:
In the gossip among specialists, there's been quite a buzz: At the upcoming defense expo Eurosatory in Paris, the German-French manufacturer KNDS is set to showcase an upgraded version of the Leopard 2 tank. Insiders are calling it a "game-changer."
The German primary combat tank, the Leopard 2, might soon have a successor contender: Apart from the Leclerc XLR, KNDS will reveal, at the upcoming defense expo Eurosatory, a prototype of a drastically redesigned version. Preliminary details about this have already leaked to the public before the planned unveiling in Paris.More and more information is coming to light: This new weapon system, known as "Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0," is said to differ significantly from its predecessors and competing models in crucial equipment aspects.
Manufacturer KNDS is reportedly taking a "revolutionary approach," as a preliminary assessment in the professional magazine "European Security & Technology" (ES&T) states. This overhauled version is not only to be perceived as a new, tech-packed evolution of the Leopard-2 series but also as a departure from the traditional Leopard design.
Sleek Turret, New Cannon
Thanks to the new arrangement, the manufacturer can forgo some of the expensive additional armor plating. "The turret is exceptionally slim in design and does not jut into the hull," pen the ES&T experts. This results in a less noticeable silhouette, better protection for the crew, and potential weight reduction.
The manufacturer has yet to comment on the "technical reliability" of the new Leopard concept. However, the entire system is said to be fully backward-compatible. This means damages to wear parts such as the track, drive, and transmission should be repairable using existing tools and spare parts. "Each of the currently serviceable Leopard-2 variants can be upgraded to the new standard," promises KNDS.
In the turret, KNDS plans to install the new "Ascalon" tank gun, which can fire both traditional 120-millimeter tank ammunition and programmable high-tech grenades that can detonate precisely in front of, above, or in the target. The loading mechanism is expected to enable an unusually rapid rate of fire with minimal wear. The caliber is customizable depending on the customer.
Precision-tuned Tank Engineering
In brief: With the new design proposal, KNDS seems to be targeting a negotiating platform to discuss with procurement authorities in various customer countries. The manufacturer itself promotes the new model as a "bridge solution" on the way to the planned German-French "Main Ground Combat System" (MGCS).
The new tank system of the future is not expected to deploy with the military before the year 2040. Interim solutions like version "A-RC 3.0" could at least serve as demonstration vehicles for new technologies in the meantime. However, the "technical reliability" of the discussed innovations, as reported by ES&T, there are still no details available.
The company KNDS must not only grapple with technical, but also diplomatic challenges: A few years after the merger, German and French tank developers are cautiously combining their previous main product lines Leopard and Leclerc.
Just how delicate the diplomatic dance of Franco-German tank manufacturing can be is evident from the "peculiar version designation" alone. With the stubborn designation "Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0," KNDS seems to be aiming to "avoid a naming conflict" and the Leopard-3 debate, according to ES&T. The new design would be a transitional step from Leclerc to Leopard towards the future jointly built MGC-System.
In the order book of the manufacturer, the latest available tank version of the Leopard series is running under the designation "Leopard 2 A8". Germany has already ordered examples of this: The Bundeswehr is scheduled to receive the first of a total of 18 planned Leo A8s from next year - as a replacement for the older Leopard-2 versions given to Ukraine.
