As of: January 29, 2024, 12:57 a.m
By: Mark Stoffers
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Press
Split
The lack of spare parts makes it difficult to repair Leopard 2 tanks in the Ukrainian war.
This circumstance is also a problem in the repair centers, as the “reconstruction” of the tanks takes months rather than weeks.
© Alexander Welscher / dpa
Intact tanks are missing in the Ukraine war.
A lack of spare parts for the Leopard 2 is one reason.
Ukraine is helping itself – and creating a new problem.
Kiev - The situation in the Ukrainian war is getting worse: Since the first 71 Leopard 2 tanks began to be deployed a year ago, the defenders have suffered high tank losses.
According to Oryx, the Ukrainian army has apparently lost twelve Leopard tank models because Putin's drone pilots have found a sticking point.
But while the losses in the fight against Russia are heavy, that is not the only problem why the army is struggling to send combat-ready Leopard 2s to the front in Ukraine.
Damaged Leopard tanks from Germany are a big problem in the Ukraine war
The problem lies much more with the damaged Leopard 2 and less with the destroyed German-made tanks in the Ukraine war.
Rather, the Ukrainians are in the dilemma of repairing the damaged tanks for use at the front and making them operational again for the fight against Russia.
The Leopard 2 tanks endured a lot in the Ukraine war.
Not only are these an important factor on the battlefield, but the German Leopard tanks also save lives with a simple trick.
The robust four-person tanks - each weighing around 70 tons - can be hit, but are not so badly damaged that they would not be able to return to the front after repairs to take part in combat on the battlefield again.
Russia's Invasion of the Ukraine War: Missing Spare Parts for Germany's Leopard Tank
This fact makes Germany's Leopard 2 tank not only an important but also a renewable resource against Russia's invading forces in the Ukraine war.
But how quickly the technicians can get it fit again to be used again against Vladimir Putin's troops depends entirely on the availability of spare parts.
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And for the German Leopard 2 on the Ukrainian side, these parts are still very difficult to obtain.
Leopard tank in action: a dozen models lost in the Ukrainian war
At the start of the Ukrainian counteroffensive last summer, Ukraine had 50 Leopard 2A4s, 10 armored Strv 122s - the Swedish variant of the Leopard 2A5 - and 18 Leopard 2A6s with additional armor and a longer 120-millimeter smoothbore gun.
A total of 78 tanks, of which 71 tanks were made available to three mechanized brigades in the Ukrainian War.
All three brigades lost Leopard tanks to Russian mines, drones, artillery and rockets.
After a year, at least seven Leopard 2A4s were a total loss.
Four Leopard 2A6s and a single Strv 122 were also burned.
Dozens of “intact” Leopard tanks not even operational in the Ukraine war?
That's a dozen out of 71 tanks.
In theory, there are still 59 Leopard 2s in Ukrainian service.
But the reality apparently looks different.
Due to a lack of spare parts and repairs, dozens of the actually intact Leopard tanks that were supposed to be used at the hot spots in the Ukrainian war could not be operational at all.
An indication of this is the visit by a television team from
ntv
, which reported at the beginning of the year that only one of four tanks from a Leopard 2A6 platoon was ready for use at the front.
The Green Party politician Sebastian Schäfer then looked for answers and found them in Lithuania, where Rheinmetall and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann run a workshop that carries out repairs for the Leopard 2A6 and Strv 122 tank models.
“Only a very small number of the battle tanks delivered can still be used by Ukraine,” Schäfer reported at the time about the guesswork surrounding the breakdowns with the German Leopard tanks.
Lack of spare parts leads to longer downtimes for the Leopard tanks in the Ukrainian war
The reason for the lack of operational capability: There is a lack of spare parts at the front and in the repair center.
In desperation, the Ukrainians are trying to repair their tanks themselves.
To do this, they typically remove parts from the most damaged Leopard 2 tanks before loading them onto trucks and trains for transport to repair centers.
“I think it would be naive to assume that in the current situation Ukraine can repair the tanks according to our maintenance and repair regulations, which of course leads to greater wear and tear and this in turn to longer downtimes,” explained Major General Christian Freuding in an interview with the
Süddeutsche Zeitung
.
Freuding heads the Ukraine situation center of the German Ministry of Defense.
Cannibalization of Leopard tanks in the Ukrainian war: repair centers “rebuild” tanks
But this cannibalization means workers at repair centers must repair battlefield damage and replace worn parts.
The repair centers don't just repair tanks, they "rebuild" them, Freuding points out in
Forbes.com
article .
To simplify the logistics of repairs and spare parts deliveries, Ukrainian planners have already consolidated some Leopard tanks into another brigade that suddenly appeared on the Ukrainian front.
In order to keep these repair times as short as possible, a larger supply of spare parts for the Leopard tanks in the Ukrainian war is required - at the front and in the repair centers.
This should reduce cannibalization and speed up replacement, which could reduce the time needed for tank repairs to just weeks rather than months.
Lack of spare parts for Leopard tanks: Germany has to deliver
Berlin and Kiev know they have a problem.
It is not for nothing that a recently put together German aid package for Ukraine included a large shipment of parts for the Leopard 2A6.
And the Netherlands and Germany are starting to deliver 14 new Leopard 2A4s to the front lines in the Ukrainian war.
But in the long term there can only be one solution.
German industry must supply the corresponding spare parts for Leopard tanks in Ukraine.
Many of them.
And that continuously.