October 2008
 

A milestone in tank development

Fifty years ago: First Bundeswehr vehicle equipment order goes to Rheinmetall

Fifty years ago, in the summer of 1958, Rheinmetall first began developing tank main armament for the German Bundeswehr. This set a process into motion at Rheinmetall' then development and production centres in Düsseldorf und Unterlüß which the company continues to profit from a half a century later. Today, the Leopard main battle tank is the most advanced and powerful vehicle of its kind.

Rheinmetall was involved in developing the tank right from the start, as were Henschel and MaK, two of the companies which now form Rheinmetall Landsysteme. Founded in 1956, the Bundeswehr initially had to make do without a domestic defence industry and without German armoured vehicles. At first, West Germany' new military was equipped with the US-built M47 and M48 Patton tank. But it was not long before voices were heard calling for German troops to be equipped with a German tank.

The concept envisaged a vehicle that would meet the requirements of a medium-weight tank while simultaneously performing the tasks of a light tank in armoured and mechanized infantry formations, i.e. reconnaissance and security. An earlier heavy tank was deemed to be expendable, since its only salient feature was heavier armour, and this was no longer capable of withstanding modern shaped charge ammunition, a situation which seemed unlikely to change in the near future.
 

Much in demand: Armed with a Rheinmetall L55 gun and accompanying DM63 KE ammunition, the latest version of this legendary tank is the Leopard 2 A6, which now forms the backbone of many NATO armies.

In defining the requirements, the procurement authorities oriented themselves to the main potential opponent. The Soviet Union possessed a relatively new heavy tank, the Joseph Stalin 3. A modernized version, in service since 1952, was armed with a 122 m gun. Moreover, despite a combat weight of 48 tons, it could attain a maximum speed of 40 kilometres per hour. The Western Allies were taken completely unawares by the existence of this tank, which the Soviets did not deploy until the final phase of the Second World War. To destroy it, a new Western vehicle would have to be able to engage it a longer range than the Joseph Stalin 3 was capable of attaining. It would thus have to be low, fast and agile – and possess massive firepower.

The M48 A2C Patton tank, 3,000 of which the Bundeswehr received from the US in 1955, was only half as fast as required. Under pressure to achieve quick results, the Federal Agency for Defence Technology and Procurement (BWB) demanded that West Germany be able to field a tank of its own by 1961. Rheinmetall chief Carl Waninger considered this to be impossible, objecting that "the German defence industry won't be able to make the best tank in the business given the relatively short period of time available to it."

As it was, the German defence industry took an extra two years to develop the new Standardpanzer. Dubbed the Leopard even during the prototype phase, it was indeed destined to become "the best in the business". Although Rheinmetall did not take part in developing the vehicle, it was in charge of the turret and main armament. Waninger belonged to an advisory committee of experienced specialists which took up its duties on 14 March 1957, tasked with producing a prototype tank. Franz Etzel (CDU), the Federal Minister of Finance, provided the committee with a budget of DM 50 million – hardly a princely sum even at the time, especially given the ambitious task at hand. None of the companies involved could expect to make a profit from producing the prototype. The best Rheinmetall could hope for was an adequate utilization of capacity.

The German government put three working groups in charge of developing the prototype. One group consisted (among others) of Porsche and MaK; Wegmann was to design the turret. Rheinmetall developed the tank turret for a rival consortium made up of vehicle makers Ruhrstahl, Rheinstahl-Hanomag and Henschel. The company also developed the turret for the third prototype, which was designed by Borgward. In addition, Rheinmetall was responsible for developing the Leopard's 105 mm main armament.

However, the German government decided to adopt an already existing British gun, which the British intended to use in upgrading their Centurian tank, and the Americans for arming the M60. In this way, the Federal Republic of Germany took an important step toward standardization of tank ammunition in Europe, which would reduce costs and simplify logistics.  At the end of 1958, Rheinmetall contracted with the German Ministry of Defence to develop a turret that would incorporate a 105 mm gun with the British barrel.

In January and September 1961, the working groups presented their respective prototypes; after numerous trials the Porsche/MaK design was finally selected. The Leopard met most of the German government's original requirements. Weighing just 42 tons, it was considerably lighter than the Joseph Stalin 3; with a top speed of 65 km/h, it was also substantially faster and a lot more agile. As early as the prototype trials, BWB decided to select a general contractor to coordinate manufacture and delivery of this complex weapon system. Following a yearlong competition, Krauss-Maffei emerged as the victor, and would henceforth be in charge of reading the necessary components and subassemblies for serial production, organizing the manufacturing process and coordinating the work of subcontractors.

Development of the tank turret, conducted by Rheinmetall in cooperation with Wegmann, began in 1964, when manufacture of the 105 mm main armament and the two MG 3 machineguns for the new prototype tank began. This part of the production process took place in the former Gollnow Hall at Works No. 4 in Düsseldorf, the so-called "Big Building". Final assembly of the Leopard tank was carried out here, something the vehicle companies originally wanted to do themselves – but Rheinmetall's proposal carried the day. In the years that followed, local residents in Düsseldorf-Derendorf – and especially the municipal employees whose windows looked directly out on Works No. 4 – were frequently treated to the sight of tanks being shipped by rail on a special track leading from the local freight station, to be equipped with a turret and main gun in the "Big Building".

In September 1965 Krauss-Maffei transferred the first Leopard main battle tank to the Bundeswehr. It met the full array of requirements established by the German armed forces ten years earlier for the "Standardpanzer". As a contemporary journalist commented in the magazine "Soldat und Technik", "For an experienced tanker, the general feeling of going from an M48 A2C to the Leopard was like a cavalry soldier switching from a Holstein workhorse to an East Prussian thorough-bred."

Marking the formal handover of the first Leopard tank, the president of the BWB wrote to Rheinmetall chief Otto Paul Caesar: "The Federal Minister of Defence has requested me to express his thanks and appreciation for your outstanding achievement in developing the new main battle tank. The difficult task you took on seven years ago, and solved through multifaceted development work, made a material contribution to enabling the Leopard main battle tank to go into series production in its current form".

The Leopard main battle tank, subsequently known as the Leopard 1, was produced in six lots. The vehicles of the fifth lot carried the suffixes 1A2 and 1A3, and were considerably improved in several respects. At the same time, the tanks from Lots 1 through 4 were upgraded to form the 1A1 version. Rheinmetall developed an entirely new turret for the 1A3, as well as a gun stabilization system for the 105 mm gun and coaxial MG 3 machinegun. The sixth and final lot of 250 vehicles rolled off the assembly line at the end of March 1976.

The Leopard 1 was by no means the final chapter in the history of the tank. Today's Leopard 2, likewise built under the aegis of general contractor Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, is widely considered to be the world's most advanced main battle tank. The latest version is the Leopard 2 A6, armed with a Rheinmetall L55 gun and accompanying DM63 KE ammunition. A major export hit, this superb German tank now forms the backbone of many NATO armies.