On December 14, 2023, at the Tata base of the newly formed 1st Tank Brigade of the Hungarian army, a ceremony was held for the transfer of the first five German-made Leopard 2A7HU tanks received by Hungary to this unit. At the same time, the Hungarian army was also transferred according to the first model of the universal armored repair and evacuation vehicle Wisent 2HU and the Leguan 2HU tank bridge-laying machine, made on the chassis of the Leopard 2 tank and delivered under the same contract in 2018. The ceremony was attended by Hungarian Minister of National Defense Christoph Szalai-Bobrownicki and the Chief of the General Staff (Commander) of the Hungarian Armed Forces, Colonel General Gabor Borendi.
One of the first German-made Leopard 2A7HU tanks received by the Hungarian army. Tata, 12/14/2023 (c) Honvédelm.hu
Recall that in December 2018, the Hungarian Ministry of Defense signed a contract with the German company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW, now KNDS) for the purchase of 44 Leopard 2A7+ main tanks (designated Leopard 2A7HU in Hungary), 24 self-propelled howitzers PzH 2000 caliber 155 mm/52 new construction, as well as 12 Leopard 2A4 tanks (Leopard 2A4HU) from the availability for use as training, eight newly built armored vehicles based on the Leopard 2 tank (five universal armored repair and evacuation vehicles Wisent 2HU and three Leguan 2HU tank bridge pavers) and 13 Rheinmetall RMMV HX and TGS heavy military vehicles. The official value of the contract was announced as more than 160 billion Hungarian forints (about 500 million euros), but actually amounts to 1.5 billion euros.
12 Leopard 2A4HU training tanks purchased under this contract were delivered to Hungary during 2020. In August 2023, "reference" samples of the Leopard 2A7HU tank and the Wisent 2HU universal armored recovery vehicle ordered by Hungary were temporarily delivered to Hungary, which, after approval by the Hungarian Ministry of Defense, were sent back to KNDS. The supply of tanks of the new Leopard 2A7HU production and vehicles based on them has now begun and should be carried out by the beginning of 2028. At the ceremony of receiving the first five tanks at Tata, it was reported that from January 2024, the rate of tank deliveries should be two units per month. Deliveries of the newly built PzH 2000 ACS were started in August 2022 and all of them should be received by the beginning of 2024.
The production of Leopard 2A7+ (Leopard 2A7HU) tanks and PzH 2000 self-propelled guns for Hungary is carried out by KMW in cooperation with Rheinmetall Group, the latter manufactures the main armament (120 mm Rh120 L55A1 tank guns and 155 mm/52 howitzers), fire control systems, as well as armored hulls for Leopard 2A7HU tanks ordered by Hungary and self-propelled howitzers PzH 2000. Rheinmertall Group also manufactures running gear for the PzH 2000 ACS. The assembly of the PZH 2000 is carried out at the KMW plant in Kassel.
For KMW, the contract for the supply of Leopard 2A7+ tanks and PzH 2000 self-propelled guns in Hungary became the first contract for the production and supply of new tanks of the Leopad 2 family and these self-propelled guns after the 2013 contract for the supply of 62 Leopard 2A7+ tanks and 24 PzH 2000 self-propelled guns to Qatar, implemented in 2015-2017. Thus, the Hungarian contract made it possible for the German industry to maintain production lines for the production of Leopard 2 tanks and PzH 2000 self-propelled guns.
Wisent 2 brems are manufactured on the chassis of Leopard 2 tanks of new construction by the German company FFG (Flensburger Fahrzeugbau GmbH) in Flensburg, although the same KMW (KNDS) acts as the main contractor for their supply to Hungary. As you know, Wisent 2 machines can also be used as engineering with the installation of additional equipment.
The Leopard 2 tanks of both modifications received by Hungary should form a match (three linear companies and one training) of the only deployed 11th tank battalion in the Hungarian army, which is part of the 1st Gyorgy Klapka Tank Brigade stationed in Tata (Magyar Honvédség Klapka György 1. Páncélosdandár), which was from January 1, 2203 It was formed from the former 25th Infantry Brigade. Until 2023, the 11th Tank Battalion consisted of 15 T-72M1 tanks. According to the latest publications of the Hungarian media, the 1st tank Brigade now, in addition to the 11th tank battalion, includes the 1st Infantry battalion (equipped with BTR-80 and BTR-80A), the 101st artillery division (ACS PzH 2000), the 36th anti-tank missile division (equipped with Turkish armored vehicles Ejder Yalçın / Gidran vehicles), the 57th Reconnaissance and Control Squadron, the support battalion and the rear of the brigade. Subsequently, it is assumed that the brigade will have motorized infantry battalions equipped with new KF41 Lynx infantry fighting vehicles. In general, during the reorganization and increase of the Hungarian army from January 1, 2023, three brigades were created in its composition - the 1st tank and the 11th and 30th mechanized.
The first German-made Leopard 2A7HU tanks received by the Hungarian army. Tata, 12/14/2023 (c) Hungarian Armed Forces
The first universal armored repair and evacuation vehicle Wisent 2HU and the German-made Leguan 2HU tank bridge-laying machine received by the Hungarian army. Tata, 12/14/2023 (c) Hungarian Armed Forces
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