The German concern Rheinmetall officially presented the new innovative Panther KF51 tank at the exhibition “Eurosatory-2022”.

This is stated in a press release from Rheinmetall.

At the arms show in France, Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger presented a tank that is considered to become the successor to the Leopard 2 tank.

“Panther KF51” is the newest member of the family of armored combat vehicles from Rheinmetall.

KF is short for Kettenfahrzeug, i.e. the full name in the translation “Panther Crawler Machine 51”.

The KF5 is based on the mobility concept of the Leopard 2 with a weight of 59 tons.

It is possible that it was included into German-French program MGCS which is aiming to substitute Leopard and Leclerc tanks starting from 2035.

Armament

The main weapon of the KF51 is a 130-mm smoothbore cannon.

Also, additional weapons are available to provide concentrated firepower for long-range and even aiming for multiple targets.

The tank received a loading machine, which is designed for 20 rounds.

The cannon can fire kinetic energy rounds, as well as programmable air burst munitions.

A 12.7 mm coaxial machine gun complements the main gun. Multiple Remote Controlled Weapon Station integration options give flexibility in drone defence.

A NATTER combat module with a 7.62 mm machine gun is installed on the tank turret.

Integrating a launcher for HERO 120 loitering munition from Rheinmetall’s partner UVision into the turret is equally possible.

This enhances the KF51’s ability to strike targets beyond the direct line of sight.

Protection

Panther KF51 has a fully integrated concept of protection that includes active, reactive and passive protection technologies.

In addition, its digital architecture enables integration of additional sensors for detecting launch signatures of enemy shells.

Due to its pre-shot detection capability, the KF51 Panther can recognise and neutralise threats at an early stage.

The tank received a system of protection against threats from above by Rheinmetall and the ROSY smoke grenade system.

It is stated that designed to work in a tense electromagnetic environment KF51 is fully protected from cyber threats.

Controls

The tank is designed for a crew of three: the commander and gunner in the turret and the mechanic-driver. There is also an additional workplace for the operator of additional systems, or the commander of the unit.

Variants of the KF51 Panther with unmanned turrets or completely remote-controlled vehicles are also planned in the future.

Thanks to the panoramic SEOSS optical sensor and EMES main combat aiming device, the commander and gunner are both able to observe and hit targets independently of each other, both in daylight and night.

In addition, via a display in the fighting compartment, the crew has a 360°, round-the-clock view of the vehicle’s surroundings.

Integrated, unmanned aerial reconnaissance systems enhance the crew’s situational awareness.