The revelation that the €1 billion new tranche of Belgian military aid to Ukraine includes the prototype Leopard 1A5 main battle tank with 3105 turret from Belgian John Cockerill for field testing.
As is well known, since the beginning of the Russian invasion, Ukraine has received a large number of armored vehicles as military aid, including several hundred main battle tanks (estimated at 800+ to 1,000+) of various types.
Britain provided 14 Challenger 2s, Germany 18 Leopard 2A6s, the US 31 M1A1 SA Abrams and Poland, by far the largest provider, a total of 354 (14 Leopard 2A4s, 60 PT-91s and 280 T-72M/-M1/-M1Rs). Among them are 50 Belgian Leopard 1A5BE, which after their withdrawal from the Belgian Army, which had initially purchased 334 tanks of the type, of which 132 were upgraded to the Leopard 1A5BE version, became the property of the Belgian company OIP Land Systems. These tanks were purchased in July 2023 by the German group Rheinmetall and, after their general overhaul and maintenance, were delivered to Ukraine.
For less wealthy countries, which more often use obsolete tanks, simply replacing the turret is a low-cost option. For this reason, the company is promoting the turret with a 105 mm caliber gun. The Leopard 1 is equipped with a gun of the same caliber by default and also states that several countries have collectively promised to provide 155 tanks of the type to Ukraine as military assistance.
Ukraine is focusing on the Leopard 1 to equip its motorized forces, as more modern tanks such as the Leopard 2 are more complex to use and maintain. He estimates that in the trench and positional warfare in Ukraine, tanks are increasingly being used as indirect fire platforms for infantry support in addition to artillery.
You can’t compare it to artillery, but it is an additional advantage. There is also a debate around the world about which caliber is more suitable, the 105 mm or the 120 mm, with which modern tanks such as the Leopard 2, Abrams and Challenger 2 are equipped. While the latter is more powerful and therefore more suitable for use against tanks and armored vehicles with heavy armor, the 105 mm offers many advantages.
“It all depends on the mission, of course. For example, a 105 mm gun and its ammunition are smaller in size and weight, making the platforms capable of moving over less accessible terrain. In addition, a wide range of ammunition types are available nationally, in stockpiles and in industry. For example, a 105 mm gun can also fire canister ammunition containing small metal bullets, which is similar to a shotgun but much larger.
While [armor-piercing, kinetic energy] sabot ammunition is particularly suitable against heavily armored targets, the aforementioned ammunition is more suitable against lightly armored targets, infantry, but also against unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs),” Jansens explains. He also adds that 105 mm caliber ammunition they are cheaper, one third to one quarter of the price of 120 mm ammunition.
As for Ukraine, it has already expressed its interest in the Leopard 1 upgrade proposed by John Cockerill Defense. It is recalled that late last year, the company conducted test firings at the Suippes firing range (135,000 acres, in the Marne department, in northeastern France).
If the tests are successful, Ukraine could decide to upgrade all Leopard 1 tanks with a John Cockerill turret.
