KF-51 Panther Main Battle Tank
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KF-51 Panther
Main battle tank
Country of origin Germany
Entered service ?
Crew 3-4
Dimensions and weight
Weight 59 t
Length (gun forward) ~ 10 m
Hull length ~ 7.8 m
Width ~ 3.7 m
Height ~ 2.5 m
Armament
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Main gun 130 mm
Anti-tan guided weapons HERO 120
Machine guns 1 x 12.7 mm, 1 x 7.62 mm
Elevation range - 9 to + 20 degrees
Traverse range 360 degrees
Ammunition load
Main gun 20 rounds
Anti-tank guided weapons 4 loitering munitions
Machine guns ? x 12.7 mm, 2 500 x 7.62 mm rounds
Mobility
Engine MTU MB 873 Ka-501 diesel
Engine power 1 500 hp
Maximum road speed ~ 65 km/h
Range over 500 km
Maneuverability
Gradient 60%
Side slope 30%
Vertical step ~ 1.1 m
Trench ~3m
Fording ~1m
The KF-51 Panther is a new German main battle tank. It was developed by
Rheinmetall in response to appearance of Russian next-generation Armata main
battle tank, which was a promising design with a number of advanced features.
Development of the KF-51 Panther began in 2016. It was developed as a private
venture. The tank was publicly revealed in 2022. It is being proposed as a next-
generation replacement for Leopard 2 series tanks.
The KF-51 is based on the hull of the Leopard 2A4. However it is fitted with a new
turret, which houses a 130 mm main gun and is fitted with an autoloader. Modern
main battle tanks reached their weight limit already and armor protection can not be
significantly increased any further. So German developers from Rheinmetall stressed
emphasis on active protection system and networking capabilities.
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There is a new 2-man turret, which is significantly larger than that of the latest
Leopard 2A7.
The KF-51 Panther tank is armed with a next-generation Rheinmetall Rh-130 L52
gun. This is a 130 mm gun. It outperforms the standard NATO 120 mm tank guns in
terms of range and lethality. It has 50% longer effective range than the standard
Rheinmetall 120 mm tank gun. This gun uses newly-developed APFSDS munitions
and programmable airburst munitions.
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The gun is fitted with an autoloader. This allowed to reduce the crew workload. The
autoloader consists of two revolving drums magazines with 10 rounds each. So a
total of 20 rounds for the main gun are stored in the autoloader. During testing this
tank managed to fire 3 rounds in 16 seconds. Maximum rate of fire could be around
10 rounds per minute. Loading hatches are located in the turret sides. These are
used to replenish ammunition. It takes 5 minutes to load a full set of ammunition. The
autoloader also has unloading and restocking capability. It seems that space inside
the hull is no longer used to store ammunition. However there is an option to carry
additional 10 rounds externally on the back of the vehicle.
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This tank has advanced commander's and gunner's sights. Fire control system has
integrated artificial intelligence. This allows automatic target detection and
identification.
There is a coaxial 12.7 mm machine gun. There is another 7.62 mm machine gun,
mounted in remotely-controlled weapon station. This weapon station can elevate to
+85 degrees. This allows to engage low-flying helicopters and drones.
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Interesting feature of this new tank is that carries two modular launch pods for
HERO 120 loitering munitions. Modular launchers are housed in the turret and are
configured to carry a total of 4 HERO 120 suicide drones. These provide non-line of
sight strike capability. These modular launchers can be configured to carry other
drones.
This tank has a welded steel armor hull. Composite armor is used over the front
arc. There are modules with passive armor. Damaged modules can be easily
replaced. Also there are sensor-based modules with explosive reactive armor that
provides protection against HEAT rounds, as well as many anti-tank rockets and
older anti-tank missiles. It is likely that ballistic protection of the hull and turret are
similar to those of the Leopard 2A7. Increase in armor protection was not significant
due to weight restrictions. So the KF-51 relies on its active protection system. This
tank uses Rheinmetall's active protection system. The tank can be fitted with top
attack protection system. This is the same hard-kill active protection system, which
destroys incoming rockets and missiles but has an added protection area of the roof.
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The tank is operated by a crew of 3, including commander, gunner and driver.
There is no loader as this tank is fitted with an automatic gun loading mechanism.
Interestingly the KF-51 Panther has 4th optional station for additional specialist. This
could be a dedicated drone operator.
The tank has got a number of cameras for 360 degree visibility. The driver also
uses front-mounted cameras.
The downside of this tank is that the driver and additional specialist, who are
seated at the front of the hull, have got no convenient emergency exits. Driver is
provided with a hatch, and it seems that the optional crew station for the 4th
crewmember can be fitted with a hatch. However emergency exit can be complicated
due to the sloped turret armor, that is overlapping the hatches. This could become a
serious survivability issue as the crewmembers can be trapped in a burning tank.
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This tank is reportedly powered by an MTU MB 873 Ka-501 diesel engine,
developing 1 500 hp. Interestingly this is the old 47.6-liter engine used by German
Leopard 2 main battle tank, but not its newer derivatives. Engine is mated to a Renk
automatic transmission. This tank weights a whopping 59 t. The KF-51 is among the
heaviest tanks in the world. Though it is lighter than the latest US Abrams main battle
tanks. Maximum speed of the tank has not been disclosed, but it could be around 65
km/h.
Rheinmetall plans to create an unmanned version of the KF-51 Panther. Due to
reduction of unnecessary internal volume that is taken by the crew and must be
armored, the unmanned tank could be smaller and more protected. It seems that the
KF-51 Panther is an interim solution, until the new Rheinmetall unmanned tank
becomes available.
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