New Canadian Leopards roar into Afghanistan

The newly upgraded Leopard 2 A4M battle tanks are delivered to Afghanistan.

February 7, 2011by DND Public Affairs / DEFPRO.COM

Ottawa, Ontario | Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan received five of twenty upgraded Leopard 2 A4M CAN (Leopard 2) tanks between December 2010 and mid January 2011. The new tanks arrived freshly off the production line of Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) as part of the tank replacement project by the Director General Land Equipment Program Management to replace some of the Leopard 2 A6M CAN tanks that have been deployed in theatre since 2007.

The deployment of the upgraded tanks will ensure Canadian soldiers continue to sustain ongoing combat operations and fulfill Canada’s commitment to its coalition partners until the end of the mission in Afghanistan.

Key upgrades on the Leopard 2A4M CAN include a general overhaul of the complete vehicle and 360 degrees of protection afforded by add-on armour. Other modifications include an all-electric digital turret, a digital central logic/main distribution system, a new commander system control unit, enhanced service brakes, an upgraded suspension and driver viewing aids. Environmental enhancements include chilled cooling vests for the crew and new camouflage nets.

The new tanks undergo a commissioning process when they arrive in Kandahar before they are loaded for battle. Some of them have already been pushed forward in support of combat operations.