Main Battle Tank makes IDEX 2007 debut

The Leopardo 2E is being brought to Abu Dhabi by the General Dynamics Santa Barbara Sistemas (GD SBS) of Spain, who is building 189 of the tanks under licence from Krauss-Maffei Wegman (KMW) of Germany for the Spanish Army.

'We are thrilled that General Dynamics Santa Barbara Sistemas is bringing a MBT to IDEX 2007,' said Mohamad Nabhani, Show Director. 'In the past, the cost of transporting a 62.5 ton tank to the show has been a deterrent to exhibiting the most advanced versions of heavy armour here. It is clear that exhibitors are now recognizing the value of IDEX in reaching the important military markets of the Middle East, Africa and Asia.'

The Leopard name has become synonymous with modern ground warfare, as since 1963 more than 9200 tanks of the Leopard 1 and 2 versions have been exported to most of the NATO countries including Belgium, Denmark, Canada, the Netherlands, Norway, Italy, Turkey, Australia, Austria, Sweden and of course, Germany.

The Leopardo 2E has a range of 350 kilometres with a top speed of 70 kilometres per hour. It is a more heavily armoured variant of KMX's Leopard 2A6. The Leopard 2A6 includes a longer 120mm L55 gun with a range of five kilometres, an auxiliary engine, improved mine protection and an air-conditioning system. The German Army is upgrading 225 2A5 tanks to the 2A6 configuration, the first of which was delivered in March 2001.

The first tank built by GD SBS was handed over to the Spanish Army in June 2004 ceremony, which was attended by His Majesty Juan Carlos I, King of Spain. Deliveries should be completed in 2008.