![]() ![]() By the company’s own account, the design will take until 2026 to reach full technical maturity. The Panther KF51, which in technical terms is actually a turret and not a complete tank, is based on the hull of the Leopard 2A4 fitted with a new turret, housing an auto-loaded 130 mm caliber main gun. Rheinmetall’s newest tank is essentially still a concept weapon, unveiled at last summer’s Eurosatory defense exhibition in Paris. “Producing the Panther in Ukraine would mean that Germany along other European states would not have to hand over the platforms in their inventories to Ukraine, thus preserving their own deterrence and defense capabilities, while assisting the country,” she noted. ![]() In contrast, fully building the vehicle in Ukraine could alleviate these difficulties and in the longer-term also possibly benefit other European countries. Marta Kepe, a senior defense analyst at RAND Corporation, said that pre-building parts in Germany and doing the final assembly and qualification in Ukraine carries the risk associated with shipping sensitive goods to a war zone. ![]() Perhaps most importantly, it remains unclear whether the goal is to erect a full-scale production plant or a potentially smaller assembling facility. Notably, Rheinmetall’s plans, at least whatever is public about them, are notional and may be aimed more at a post-war Ukraine. Assuming a lifespan of about 20 years, that requires procuring around 40 tanks a year, not 400,” he said.Ĭancian added that €200 million as an investment to build production capabilities sounds far too low for an endeavor of this magnitude and duration. The Ukrainian Army, in contrast, had a total of about 800 before the war erupted. roughly currently manufactures 100 per year. “To produce 400 complete tanks per year is a huge endeavor,” he said. ![]()
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