Krauss-Maffei Wegmann has started preparing the Leopard 1A5 for Ukraine

The German defense company KMW (Krauss-Maffei Wegmann) starts preparing Leopard 1A5 tanks to be delivered to Ukraine.

Nicholas Drummond, the company’s consultant, announced this on Twitter.

He published a photo that captured one of the vehicles being prepared for transfer in the KMW workshops.

“Although an older main battle tank, its 105 mm gun remains a potent weapon that will defeat most Russian tanks, as well as providing invaluable fire support for Ukrainian infantry,” Drummond wrote.

Previously, Oleksii Reznikov, Minister of Defense of Ukraine, shared that in spring, about 25 Leopard 1 tanks should arrive in Ukraine.

“There will be 20 to 25 of these tanks by the summer, about 80 by the end of the year, and over 100 Leopard 1 tanks by 2024. This is at least three battalions, along with the materials that will need to be purchased, spare parts, ammunition, and training,” said Oleksii Reznikov, Minister of Defense of Ukraine after the meeting with his German counterpart Boris Pistorius.

Leopard 1A5 is a modernized version of the German tank created in the 1980s. The tank received a new EMES 18 fire control system (comparable to the one used on Leopard 2 tanks). It includes the gunner’s thermal sight and laser range finder. The ballistic and main control computer were also adopted from Leo2.

New DM23 and DM33 feathered armor-piercing sub-caliber projectiles were developed for the Leopard 1A5 105-mm gun.