Leopard 1 A5 BE
HISTORY
The West German Leopard 1 revolutionized the Main Battle Tank standard when it appeared in 1965 setting a much higher bar of ability and performance. Head and shoulders above its competition the “Leo” served as NATO’s premier front line tank until bested by the U.S. Abrams in 1980.
Many NATO member countries purchased Leopard Tanks and in most cases purchased modifications to suit their individual needs. Our example of the Leopard 1 is a Belgian (BE) variant. The Belgian version of the Leopard 1 was produced between 1968 and 1971.
Belgium kept pace with upgrades and finally in 1997 upgraded to the A5 standard incorporating the latest technological advances. The system features “fire on the move” stabilization, thermal imaging, a laser rangefinder, and a muzzle reference and correction system. Our Leopard was completely refurbished inside and out before its USA importation by Panzerfabrik
Our Leo has been used in public appearances as well as having been used in the Paramount Network mini-series, “Waco.”
SPECS
Dimensions
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Length – 9.54 meters
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Width – 3.37 meters
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Height – 2.70 meters
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Weight – 42.2 tonnes
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Armor thickness ranged from 10 mm on the belly to 70 mm on the front.
Weapons System
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The weapons system had one 105 mm Royal Ordnance L7A3 L/52 rifled cannon and two 7.62 x 51 mm machine guns. There were 55 rounds of 105 mm rounds stored on-board.
From 1974, Belgium Leopards were modified with gun stabilization’s and automatic firing directional systems. This allowed the gun to fire on the move. In 1997, the directional system was upgraded to include new thermal imaging abilities, a laser rangefinder, and a muzzle reference and correction system.