how powerful is germany's newest kf-51 panther main battle tank
germany has unveiled a new main battle tank its first in more than 40 years
the kf-51 also known as the panther is bristling with new technology including a larger main gun
a digital computer backbone and a full suite of defensive features the panther even has the
ability to counter so-called top attack munitions like the american-made javelin missile that are
decimating putin's army in ukraine on monday dusseldorf germany-based rhine medal an arms
manufacturing firm unveiled the kf-51 panther at france's eurosatori arms show the show held
every two years is a showcase for europe's arms manufacturers to advertise their latest equipment
brine metal unveiled the panther featuring a gray black and neon yellow digital camouflage pattern
if the name panther is familiar that's because it is the panzerkampfwagen v
also known as the panther was designed in 1942 to counter russian tanks including the t-34
medium tank the panther was one of the best tanks of the war but was severely hobbled by
mechanical and reliability issues the panther made its debut in the battle of kursk in 1943
and served on both the eastern and western fronts including d-day in the battle of the bulge
the kf-51 is the successor to the leopard 2 a contemporary of the american m1 abrams tank
the leopard 2 debuted in the early 1980s and is still in service today with over a dozen
armies worldwide the leopard 2 has been steadily upgraded for decades with the latest version being
the german army's leopard 2a7 unfortunately like many upgraded systems eventually there
comes a point when it becomes impractical to keep adding new stuff to the old system
the only way to move forward is to design something completely new
panther is that new tank it appears to use the basic hull design of the leopard too though
the shape of the hull suggests newer thicker armor along the front and sides the panther
keeps the leopard two's lines over the engine compartment but with a pronounced bulge despite
this the panther reportedly still has a 1 100 kilowatt 1 500 horsepower engine the same amount
of power available to the leopard too so there might not be much difference to the power pack
the panthers turret is bigger with sharper angles and a much larger overhang over the
engine compartment the latter to both store larger heavier main gun ammunition
and to act as a counterweight to the new 130 millimeter main gun
the kf-51 is the first production tank equipped with a 130 millimeter main gun a break from the
current 120 millimeter standard although the nato countries particularly the united states
germany and france experimented with the larger 130 millimeter caliber in the 1990s
the end of the cold war and relatively good relations with russia made that unnecessary
the new gun named future gun system is largely in response to the new russian t14 ramada tank which
was first unveiled in 2015. brine metal claims future gun system has a 50 percent longer kill
range than the older 120 millimeter guns according to europa situate and technic the new gun is a 130
millimeter l52 gun meaning the barrel length is 52 times the diameter of the barrel that comes
out to 6760 millimeters or 22.1 feet long the barrel is also fitted with a futuristic looking
shroud but it's not clear how it contributes to the efficiency or effectiveness of the tank
the kf-51 like the leopard 2 uses an auto loader for the main gun this results in a three-man crew
consisting of the tank commander gunner and driver the american m1 abrams tank uses a human loader
instead of an autoloader resulting in a crew of four kf-51 however has room for a fourth crewman
according to rheinmetall acting as either a company level commander or a drone operator
the kf-51 is equipped with a 12.7 millimeter 0.50 caliber coaxial machine gun mounted next
to the main gun this is a larger and heavier gun than coaxial machine guns on older tanks which
typically mount a 7.62 millimeter machine gun the larger machine gun gives the gunner the ability
to engage softer less protected targets such as trucks light armored vehicles artillery pieces and
ground troops without wasting 130 millimeter gun rounds on less heavily armored targets
the panther is equipped with a number of other new features the tank includes outward-facing digital
cameras giving the crew 360 degree visibility without exposing themselves to enemy fire
a second 7.62 millimeter machine gun can be remotely operated from inside the tank to
target drones and ground targets the kf-51 can launch four reconnaissance quadcopters
from the turret allowing the tanks to conduct their own local reconnaissance
a drone launcher is built into the turret capable of launching four hero 120 loitering munitions
the israeli-made hero 120 has a flight time of 60 minutes and packs a nine pound warhead
hero 120 will allow panther tanks to engage targets beyond their line of sight such as
behind hills and tree lines top attack weapons like the swedish end law and american javelin have
proven devastatingly effective in ukraine firing an explosive charge down into a tank's thin roof
armor most western tanks are similarly vulnerable and panther's top attack defense system is the
first known system devoted to tackling top attack weapons it's not clear how the new defense system
works with rumors it may involve the quadcopters moving to intercept incoming rockets and missiles
one of the most interesting things about kf-51 is that it weighs just 59 tons
that's relatively spelt by modern standards and will make for an agile sprightly tank
the latest version of the m1 abrams weighs 73.6 tons without features like a larger gun
loitering munitions and drones grind metal states that the tank uses active defenses
active protection systems that shoot down incoming anti-tank rockets and missiles reactive defenses
explosive tiles that deform a molten anti-tank shaped charge and passive defenses steal composite
armor to protect the tank kf-51 could lean more heavily on lighter active and reactive defenses
than heavier passive defenses lowering the overall weight of the vehicle the big question is whether
anyone needs a new tank like the kf-51 russia's armored forces have performed abysmally in their
invasion of ukraine with dated tanks and poorly trained crews russia's tank core has been badly
decimated and poses less of a threat than ever before then again kf-51's new innovative features
in bigger gun are beyond what the west's current crop of tanks first developed in the 1970s and
1980s can bring to the battlefield overmatching the threat is a safe bet but an expensive one
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