According to information published by the German weekly magazine “Der Spiegel” on March 4, 2023, the German company Rheinmetall will provide Ukraine with 250 tracked armored vehicles, including 100 Marder 1A3 infantry fighting vehicles (IFV) and 150 Leopard 2A4 and Leopard 1A5 main battle tanks (MBT).
On January 14, 2023, the Army Reconnaissance editorial team reported that the German government confirmed the delivery to Ukraine of 40 Marder tracked armored IFVs.
Currently, the German Army has 710 IFVs, including 305 Marder 1A3/A4, 71 Marder 1A5, and 334 Puma.
Citing information from the German company Rheinmetall, more than 40 Marder tracked armored IFVs have been refurbished, and by the end of this year, around 100 more will be fully operational.
The Marder 1A3 is a German infantry vehicle that was introduced in 1984.
It is an upgraded version of the Marder 1A2 with several protection, mobility, and firepower improvements.
Some of the improvements include the addition of thicker armor, a new power pack, and a more powerful main gun.
The Marder 1A3 is a tracked infantry fighting vehicle with a box-shaped hull made of welded steel plates that protect against small arms fire, shell splinters, and some types of mines.
The hull is mounted on a tracked chassis that gives the vehicle good mobility over different types of terrain.
The Marder 1A3 has a crew of three, including a driver, gunner, and commander, and can carry up to seven infantrymen.
The main armament of the Marder 1A3 is a Rheinmetall MK 20 Rh202 20 mm automatic cannon, capable of firing high-explosive and armor-piercing rounds.
Additionally, according to information provided by the German company Rheinmetall, Ukraine will receive 50 Leopard 2A4 main battle tanks, of which about 30 are already operational.
The Leopard 2A4 battle tank was developed in Germany in the early 1980s.
It is an improved version of the original Leopard 2 tank, introduced in the late 1970s.
The Leopard 2A4 features improved armor protection, a more powerful engine, and upgrades to its weapons and sensors.
The tank has a crew of four, including a driver, gunner, loader, and commander.
The Leopard 2A4’s main armament is a 120 mm smoothbore gun capable of firing a wide range of ammunition types, including high-explosive anti-tank and high-explosive rounds.
In addition, there are about 100 older Leopard 1 tanks, of which the German company Rheinmetall can make 88 serviceable again by today’s standards.
On February 8, 2023, the defense ministers of Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands announced the supply of 100 refurbished Leopard 1A5 main battle tanks (MBTs) from private defense company stocks.
The Leopard 1A5 is an upgraded version of the original Leopard 1 tank, developed in the 1960s.
The Leopard 1A5 was first introduced in the late 1980s and had several upgrades to its armor, weapons, and electronics.
The tank has a crew of four, including a driver, gunner, loader, and commander.
The Leopard 1A5’s main armament is a 105 mm rifled gun capable of firing a wide range of ammunition types.
With information from Derecha Diario