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Canadian Forces Armour
— Leopard 2A4M CAN Main Battle Tank |
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Leopard 2A4M – Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed ...
The first Canadian Forces Leopard 2 tanks were 20 Bundeswehr Leopard 2A6Ms on loan
from Germany since 2007. These tanks were later joined in Afghanistan
by 5 refurbished and upgraded CF Leopard 2A4M CANs. The 2A4M CAN variant was
created by German Krauss Maffei Wegmann to upgrade ex-Dutch Leopard 2A4s.
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The new variant was first unveiled by KMW in October 2010. The ex-Dutch Leopard 2A4 hulls were refurbished,
running gears upgraded, and 'composite' armour protection similar to that of the loaned Leopard 2A6M CAN
installed. The turrets also received composite armour. Again, this is similar to Leopard 2A6M protection but
different in detail – IED blast protection being paramount. Leopard 2A4M CANs are also
distinct in retaining the shorter original L/44 120mm gun.[1]
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KMW Leopard 2A4M
CAN Specifications
| Crew: |
4 (driver, gunner, loader,
veh cdr.) |
Armament:
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120mm L/44 main gun, 2 x 7.62mm
C6s, 16 x 70mm grenade launchers |
Size:
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L x 9.61m (gun fwd.) 7.74m (hull),
W x 4.05m (2A4; 3.7m), H x 3.0m |
| Weight: |
62.5 t (56 t w/o add-on
armour) [2] |
| Powerplant: |
1100 kW MTU MB 873 V12 diesel |
| Speed: |
72 km/h (road), 55 km/h (off road) |
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Out of Service Trials & into an Operational Fire
Some surprise was expressed at the new Leopard 2A4M CANs being deployed so close to the end of the CF
combat mission in Afghanistan. There's two compelling reasons: the five Leopard 2A4Ms brought Leopard 2
numbers back to 20 (assuming the 15 remaining 2A6Ms held out ) and DND had the opportunity to give the
new Leopard 2A4M a real 'baptism of fire' under operational conditions. With the end of the CF's
combat mission, the five Leopard 2A4Ms were flown out of KAF.
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Leopard 2A4Ms Home ... for the First Time
The Leopard 2A4M CANs began arriving in Canada in late Jan 2012. The refurbished
Leo 2A4Ms were delivered by sea to Halifax, NS, transferred to Rheinmetall Canada
in Quebec by rail. With final checks complete, the tanks were back on flat cars heading
for Edmonton where they joined Lord Strathcona's Horse (RC) in the
first week of Feb 2012. LdSH (RC) now have 14 Leopard 2A4M CANs.
The Armour School at Gagetown have Leopard 2A4s with DND announcing a total of 42
Leopard 2A4s in service by the end of 2013.
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[1] Leopard 2A6s mated the longer L/55 gun to the ballistically-improved add-on armour of the Leopard
2A5. Both gun and armour were optimized for tank-vs-tank engagements. See Leopard 2A4M Background for details of distinctions
between Leopard 2A6M and 2A4Ms.
[2] Published weights for the 'base' Leopard 2A4 CAN varies ( 55.2 t says DND,
56 t says users LdSH [RC] ). Bridge classification is 60 t.
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