Rheinmetall Will Soon Send a Batch of Lynx IFVs to Ukraine

The Rheinmetall plant in Germany is completing the assembly of a batch of Lynx combat vehicles that will soon be shipped to Ukraine.

Armin Papperger, he company’s CEO, announced this in a recent interview with Loyal-Das Magazine.

The first modern German infantry fighting vehicle, KF41 Lynx, was delivered to Ukraine this winter for testing.

“We are currently building five of these vehicles in Germany, and they will soon be sent to Ukraine,” Papperger said.

However, the contract for Lynx production has not yet been signed with Ukraine.

“This contract requires financing, and this requires significant funds. Setting up production in Ukraine makes sense only if Rheinmetall can produce 200 to 300 machines,” the CEO noted.

In mid-October, the parties signed an agreement on defense-industrial cooperation, which paves the way for the implementation of joint projects, including the production of Lynx infantry fighting vehicles in Ukraine. However, the entire project is still far from being finalized.

The key issue in a potential contract is the financing of procurement, which could be worth hundreds of millions, if not billions of euros. Last year, Papperger expressed concern about the budget for defense projects in Ukraine.

Lynx IFV

Rheinmetall first presented the Lynx heavy infantry fighting vehicle, which weighs about 44 tons, in 2018.

Its primary weapon is a 30- or 35-mm automatic cannon mounted in the LANCE turret. In addition, the vehicle is armed with a machine gun and an anti-tank missile launcher, which can be equipped according to customer requirements.

The BMP is protected from 30-mm shells in the frontal projection and from 14.5-mm shells in the side projection. The bottom of the vehicle guarantees protection against an explosion equivalent to 10 kg of TNT.

The BMP is powered by a 1470-horsepower Liebherr D9612 engine, which allows it to reach 70 km/h. The range on the road is 500 km. The crew of the combat vehicle consists of three people. It can carry up to 9 soldiers.