The main combat vehicle in Germany is the Leopard 2. The tank was created in 1979 and by the current time already has several modifications. In the process of its development, concepts of cannon and missile weapons were worked out. The version with the classic gun won. The German tank Leopard is in service in different countries of the world. Since the beginning of production, 3,500 armored vehicles have been produced.
The design of the tank has a classic design. In the control sector are: filtration equipment, part of the ammunition and driver.
"Leopard" - a tank with high performance. When developing the machine, the creators paid maximum attention to firepower. The issue of choosing a gun was very acute. Designers argued for a long time, choosing between a 105 mm rifled gun and a 120 mm smoothbore gun. As a result, it was the smooth-bore weapons that the designers installed on the Leopard. The tank was the first vehicle in the West to receive a 120 mm smoothbore gun.
A welded triple tower is mounted on the machine’s body, where the loader, gunner and commander are located. Using sector thread technology, the articulation of the trunk and breech made quick-release. This is one of the advantages of the Leopard combat vehicle. The tank is a structure in which the gun is mounted and removed through the embrasure, without dismantling the tower itself. The gun is equipped with two symmetrical reliable compensators. The greatest force absorbing the recoil of the gun when firing is concentrated at the tank level. This is done in order to reduce the load on the tower. Due to the fact that the gun has a large weight (about 4.3 tons), the negative impact of the consequences of a shot on its accuracy is minimized. This is a big plus of the Leopard combat vehicle. Tank on this indicator is considered one of the best in the world.
The barrel of the gun is equipped with a heat-protective fiberglass casing. Closer to the breech, an ejector is installed to remove powder gases. The internal barrel surface of the gun is chrome plated. Her survivability is 500 shots. For firing from a gun, a sub-caliber armor-piercing projectile with a tungsten alloy core (DM23) and fragmentation-cumulative ammunition (DM12) are used.
The designers supplied the Leopard combat vehicle with a very reliable chassis and engine. The tank is equipped with a V-shaped four-stroke diesel engine for 12 cylinders with a capacity of 1,500 horsepower. This engine is a pre-chamber type unit with liquid cooling, as well as two air coolers. They are included in the cooling system. The air mixture enters through the air intakes that are on the roof.
The fire control system of a combat vehicle is represented by the following components: periscope sight, gun synchronization system, primary laser and telescopic auxiliary sights, analog ballistic computer, control system for the OMS functions and the weapon stabilizer.
"Leopard-2" is a reliable and powerful machine that is capable of performing modern combat missions.