Among the prototypes were Porsche's Model 734 from team A, sporting a cast turret, and that of team B ( Rheinmetall), whose cast turret was somewhat higher. Several prototypes were entered for testing in 1960. In September 1958, Italy joined the development program. Three German ( Arbeitsgruppe A, B and C) and one French design team were included in a competition, with each team producing two prototypes. In June 1957, West Germany and the French Fourth Republic signed an agreement to develop a common tank, designated in German Europa-Panzer. įrance was very interested in the design as its own AMX 50 project had just failed. At the time it was suspected that future conflicts would involve nuclear weapons, which no tank at the time could directly protect from. Armour was seen as less essential, as it was believed that no real protection against hollow charge weapons was possible anyway. Mobility had priority, while firepower came second. The main armament had to consist of a 105 mm caliber weapon (the new British L7A3 105 mm gun was selected), carrying at least as many rounds as current US tank designs. The new design needed to weigh no more than 30 tonnes, have a power-to-weight ratio of 30 horsepower per tonne, be able to withstand hits by 20 mm rapid-fire guns on every side as well as to operate in a battlefield contaminated with chemical weapons or radioactive fallout, the then-standard baseline for combat with the Warsaw Pact. On 25 July 1957, the detailed specifications were released. The Leopard project started in November 1956 in order to develop a modern tank, the Standard-Panzer, to replace the Bundeswehr's American-built M47 and M48 Patton tanks, which, though just delivered to West Germany's recently reconstituted army, were rapidly becoming outdated. Dutch Leopard 1 tank the Netherlands were among the first to accept the vehicle into service in 1969. Most of these vehicles have been upgraded with various improvements to armour, firepower and sensors to maintain their ability to engage modern threats.ĭevelopment history Leopard 1 A Leopard 1 Prototype II Early West German Leopard 1 in 1968. Currently, the largest operators are Greece, with 520 vehicles, Turkey, with 397 vehicles, Brazil with 378 vehicles and Chile with 202 vehicles. The Leopard 2 has replaced the Leopard 1 in service with many other nations, with derived vehicles using the Leopard 1 hull still seeing service. In the German Army, the Leopard 1 was completely phased out in 2003 by the Leopard 2, while Leopard 1-based vehicles are still widely used in utility roles. Since 1990, the Leopard 1 has gradually been relegated to secondary roles in most armies. The Leopard quickly became a standard of many European militaries, and eventually served as the main battle tank in over a dozen countries worldwide, with West Germany, Italy and the Netherlands being the largest operators until their retirement. In total, 6,485 Leopard tanks have been built, of which 4,744 were battle tanks and 1,741 were utility and anti-aircraft variants, not including 80 prototypes and pre-series vehicles. The design started as a collaborative project during the 1950s between West Germany and France, and later joined by Italy, but the partnership ended shortly after and the final design was ordered by the Bundeswehr, with full-scale production starting in 1965. The main armament of the Leopard consisted of a German license-built version of the British Royal Ordnance L7 105 mm rifled gun, one of the most effective and widespread tank guns of the era. This, coupled with a modern suspension and drivetrain, gave the Leopard superior mobility and cross-country performance compared to most other main battle tanks of the era, only being rivaled by the French AMX-30 and Swedish Strv 103. It featured moderate armour, only effective against low caliber autocannons and heavy machine guns, giving it a high power-to-weight ratio. Developed in an era when HEAT warheads were thought to make conventional heavy armour of limited value, the Leopard design focused on effective firepower and mobility instead of heavy protection. The Kampfpanzer Leopard 1 (also styled Leopard I, before the Leopard 2 simply known as the Kampfpanzer Leopard) is a main battle tank designed by Porsche and manufactured by Krauss-Maffei in West Germany, first entering service in 1965.
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