DailyNewsHungary reported that the Hungarian Armed Forces (Magyar Honvédség) had ordered weapons and equipment from Germany for a total of 572 billion forints ($ 1.8 billion) back in 2018. According to the Ministry of (Defence Magyarország honvédelmi minisztere), the Hungarian Army purchased 12 Leopard 2A4, 44 Leopard 2A7+ heavy tanks and 24 Panzerhaubitze 2000 (Pzh. 2000) self-propelled guns from the Krauss-Maffei Wegmann Group. Hungary ordered 44 Leopard 2A7+s main attle tanks, making them the second operator of the improved version, after Qatar (Qatari Emiri Land Force). Leopard 2A4 tanks are already finished and will serve training purposes for both soldiers and maintenance personnel until the arrival of the more advanced Leopard 2A7+ tanks expected to be ready in 2023.
The Hungarian Armed Forces visited the German factory in Munich on 3rd July to take a look at the new Hungarian tanks. The Hungarian government ordered several vehicles from the German Krauss-Maffei Wegmann Group. The first batch of these main attle tanks are ready and will be transported to Hungary soon. The main attle tanks are still in Munich at Krauss-Maffei Wegmann’s German combat vehicle manufacturing plant, but the Leopard 2A4 tanks are going to their new home soon. This purchase will help the Hungarian Armed Forces to catch up to the standards of other military forces around the world. The learning process is necessary because the operation and maintenance of the new Leopard 2s are significantly different from the Soviet T-72 tanks that have been in use by the Hungarian Armed Forces since 1978.
The most widespread version of the Leopard 2 family, the 2A4 models included more substantial changes, including an automated fire and explosion suppression system, an all-digital fire control system able to handle new ammunition types, and an improved turret with flat titanium/tungsten armour. The Leopard 2s were manufactured in eight batches between 1985 and 1992. After 2000, Germany and the Netherlands found themselves with large stocks of tanks that they had no need for after the Cold War. These tanks were sold to NATO or friendly armies around the world. Among these buyers of the surplus tanks were Turkey (purchasing 354 vehicles), Greece (183), Sweden (160), Chile (140), Finland (139), Poland (128), Austria (114), Spain (108), Canada (107), Singapore (96), Norway (52), Denmark (51), Indonesian (103) and Portugal (37).
The Leopard 2A7+ has been tested by the Bundeswehr under the name UrbOp (urban operations). The Leopard 2A7+ is designed to operate both in low intensity and high intensity conflicts. The tank’s protection has been increased by modular armour; the frontal protection has been improved with a dual-kit on the turret and hull front, while 360° protection against RPGs and mine protection increase the survivability of the tank in urban operations. The modular armour’s system components were first used by Canada in Afghanistan. It can fire programmable HE munitions and the turret mounted MG3 has been replaced with a stabilised FLW 200 remotely controlled weapon station. The mobility, sustainability and situational awareness have also been improved.
