German tankers received Leopard 2 tanks of the latest A7V modification. Yesterday, September 18, the press service of the Bundeswehr reported that the 393rd tank battalion "Thuringian Lion" became the first unit armed with Leopard 2 A7V tanks.
The 393rd Tank Battalion is part of the 37th Panzer Grenadier Brigade Freistaat Sachsen. Starting next year, the battalion of about 500 people will become part of the NATO operational forces of very high readiness (Very High Readiness Joint Task Force, VJTF).
Leopard 2 A7V Tank
Image source: bundeswehr-journal.de
In 2017, Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and Rheinmetall received a contract to upgrade 104 Leopard 2A6 and Leopard 2A6M2 tanks to the Leopard 2 A7V version. The very next year, the first samples of the updated combat vehicles participated in military exercises, but their adoption was not carried out before passing all the stages of testing.
It is known that the Bundeswehr is armed with more than 300 Leopard 2 tanks of three modifications — 2A6, 2A6M and 2A7. Leopard 2 has been mass-produced since 1979, during this time more than 3,000 tanks have been produced in various modifications, which differ significantly from each other. The Leopard 2 A7V differs from its predecessors in improved protection, more comfortable conditions for the crew, as well as advanced electronics.
