Germany’s Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and France’s Nexter Defense Systems (KNDS) pitched a cross between a Leopard 2A7 chassis and a AMX-56 Leclerc turret at the Eurosatory 2018 expo in Paris on June 11. Officially dubbed the European Main Battle Tank, or EMBT, the vehicle is meant to showcase that German and French companies can work together on the path toward an envisioned Main Ground Combat System pursued by both nations, which is slated to see the light of day in the mid-2030s. Additionally, the developers believe that this “Frankentank” meets a real-life demand, and they hope a paying customer might take the idea and run with it. For now, the EMBT is a demonstrator project funded by the two companies’ joint venture, KNDS.
The benefit of the hybrid machine lies in the Leopard 2 MBT’s “very-high capability” chassis, which can carry up to 68 tonnes, and merging it with the lightness of the Leclerc’s turret, which needs only a crew of two to operate.As a result, potential customers get 10% of the weight, or 6 tonnes, to install additional kit on the EMBT as they see fit. In essence, the EMBT is a 62-tonne hybrid comprising a modified fuselage, a 7-axle chassis, a Leopard-2A7V propulsion unit and a twin, lighter version of the Leclerc’s turret with an ammunition autoloader and a 120mm CN1120-26 smoothbore cannon.
The crew thus comprises three members (commander, gunner and driver). The biggest challenge for the constructors was the foundation of the French turret on the German hull. Engineers struggled not only with incompatible drives, but also had to meet the requirements of German legislation that limit the transfer of military technologies abroad. The next stage in the EMBT project is to develop a prototype and launch pre-series production. To date, raction and firing tests of the EMBT demonstrator have been successfully carried out in the south of France.
KNDS was founded on December 15, 2015 in Amsterdam. It is worth noting that the German and French governments are intensely eyeing the concept disclosed by Rheinmetall in February 2016, named MGCS 2030+ (Main Ground Combat System) with a new 130mm gun. In turn, Nexter is working on a modernised AMX-56 Leclerc MBT as part of a wider Scorpion programme.
In terms of new revolutionary trends, MBT developers worldwide are now gravitating towards the construction of MBTs with weight-saving High-Nitrogen Steel (HNS), and the adoption of turret-bustles containing ammunition stored in autoloaders. In terms of both trends, the pioneer was Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which has since developed the HNS-built 48-tonne Type 10 MBT, which is powered by a four-strike V8 diesel engine developing 1,200hp, thereby offering a power-to-weight ratio of 27hp/tonne.
The 57.4 tonne AMX-56 Leclerc from Nexter Systems comes powered by a 1,500hp V8X SACM 8-cylinder diesel engine that offers a power-to-weight ratio of 27.52 hp/tonne.
To date, the French Army has acquired 406 Leclercs of which 320 of them make up four armoured regiments each with 80 Leclercs.
The UAE has ordered 390 Leclercs and 46 ARVs. These are all powered by 1,500hp MTU 883 V-12 diesel engines, coupled with the Renk HSWL295 TM automatic transmission. All Leclercs have autoloaders in the turret-bustles.
Even Russia has abandoned the hull-mounted horizontal carousal autoloader and by the mid-1990s the Omsk-based KBTM OKB and Omsktransmash JSC developed the Ob'yekt 640 Black Eagle MBT, whose turret rear contained the horizontal autoloader-cum-ammunition stowage compartment withblow-out panels.
Russia’s Uralvagonzavod JSC-built 48-tonne Ob’yekt 148 Armata MBT, however, has rejected the turret-mounted autoloader-cum-ammunition stowage compartment and has instead gone for a hull-mounted vertical autoloader.
The Armata, powered by a 1,350hp A85-3AX-diesel engine, has a power-to-weight ratio of 31hp/tonne (the highest among all present-day MBTs) and its 125mm 2A82-1M smoothbore cannon fires the Vacuum-1 APFSDS round that has a 900mm-long KE penetrator, which is said to be capable of penetrating 1 metre of RHA at a distance of 2km.
In order to maintain the effectiveness of their respective MBT fleets until 2040, both France and Germany have embarked on stepped life-extension programmes (SLEP). Nexter Systems had unveilled its Leclerc XLR variant at the Eurosatory 2016 expo. This “Scorpionisation” provides for the delivery of 200 Leclerc XLRs and 18 Leclerc DCL armoured recovery vehicles between 2020 and 2028m which will allow the Leclerc to remain operational beyond 2040.
The Leclerc XLR project has three main objectives: to integrate the Leclerc into the “Scorpion bubble”, adapt it for operations in urban environments, and improve its ability to attack. The first two prototypes will be delivered later this year and will be directly followed by the notification of production tranches. Destined to operate in a joint tactical “Scorpion” group, the Leclerc will get a new open vetronics architecture, the CONTACT radio being developed by THALES, the future Scorpion information and communication system (SICS), and an upgraded AZUR (urban environment) kit both on the hull and turret.
The chassis receives new side protection blocks in composite armour, which run from the front tip of the glaze turret. Propulsion block and the back are covered with slat-armour grids. These shields protect against infantry-fired RPGs and LAWs.The rear of the turret undergoes the same treatment. Nexter’s engineers have taken advantage of grid supports to add two integral horizontal plates of the turret of the neck to cover the propulsion block ventilation louvres.These plates prevent Molotov cocktails from breaking the propulsion compartment at the most vulnerable spot.The same type of plate protects the air-conditioner, which is located on the turret roof.The rest of the MBT’s frontal arc and turret side is already protected against other forms of projectiles.The Leclerc’s ‘Azur’ kit will thus be a difficult beast to touch and neutralize in complex areas.The armour is the ultimate bulwark behind which the crewtake refuge after all other forms of protection have failed, especially the most basic form of active protection.The AZUR sees its DRI suit (detection, recognition, identification) completed by a panoramic vision device mounted on the turret roof.The Israel-born ODR system gives a 360-degree picture of the situation around the MBT.With this panoramic view, the crew can detect the presence of hostiles by eliminating many blind spots that typically exist on any MBT.The thus-detected enemy infantry can be neutralised using either launchers firing the Galix 4, or the new 7.62mm remote-controlled machine gun (RCWS) mounted on the turret roof.
This is an adapted version of one that equips the UAE’s Leclercs. The machine gun is equipped with a CCD camera that allows shooting via a video screen in the delousing mode. Delousing means shooting at a friendly MBT to remove enemy infantry which would have climbed on it. The 7.62mm rounds wouldn’t cause damage to the structure of the MBT in question, unlike other larger calibres.The choice of the cupola was made for practical reasons (time reduction and availability).For the production version, Nexter has sought better alternatives from various suppliers.The RCWS also allows shooting at high targets (roof tops).It should be recalled that the Leclerc now has 120mm HE explosive shells with parametrizable fuse (impact/delay), which enables the destruction of fortifications, trenches and buildings.
The last function of the French configuration is communications, in particular with dismounted infantry.MBTs of the previous generation were usually provided with an infantry phone in the form of a box attached to the back of the MBT and containing a handset connected to the MBT intercom system by a wire. This allowed an infantry group leader to communicate with the crew to designate, for example, a target to destroy.But this solution had three major drawbacks. First, the infantryman had to activate the handset while the MBT was stopped. This could be very dangerous for humans because of the movements of a MBT, which ignores his presence nearby. Second, the soldier would have to leave cover to reach the MBTs. Finally, the operating range gets limited by the length of the telephone wire.
For all these reasons, Nexter’s engineers simply adapted WiFi technology, which allows establishing communications with the infantry-carried FELIN digital soldier system, while maintaining great freedom of action with the MBT that supports them.One of the most interesting features is undoubtedly the fuelling baskets attached to the back of the MBT. The trick is to use the fuel cage door for hanging boxes where the infantrymen find ammunition, water, food and miscellaneous small equipment. Supply is thus delivered without the MBT crew having to dismount, and this also allows supplies to be delivered closer to the line of contact, where other less protected armoured vehicles will never venture.
In Germany, Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and Rheinmetal have co-developed the Leopard Advanced Technology Demonstrator that contains both appliqué armour panels as well as active protection systems. In addition, Rheinmetall has developed a new 130mm L-51 tank cannon that should be in production by 2025. The 130mm/L51 weighs (without mounting components) 3,000kg, while the current barrel length is 6,630mm.
As the standard NATO smoothbore gun for MBTs like Leopard 2 and M-1 Abrams, Rheinmetall’s L-44 cannon had proved its superiority to all its rivals in the 120mm arena. This smoothbore cannon was also the precursor of Rheinmetall’s L-55 and L-47 cannons.In the L 55cannon barrel, a larger share of the energy resulting from a round being fired is converted into greater velocity.
(to be concluded)