Hungary Receives Three Leopard 2A7HU Tanks and the First Leguan 2HU Tank-Launched Bridgelayer

The Hungarian Armed Forces have received three more Leopard 2A7HU main battle tanks and the first Leguan 2HU tank-launched bridgelayer on a similar chassis. The delivery took place under a contract signed in 2018.

The current program to modernize the armored component of the Hungarian army, which is being implemented in cooperation with KNDS Deutschland, provides for the delivery of up to 44 Leopard 2A7HU main battle tanks and related support equipment. The received tanks and the Leguan bridgelayer will be put into service with the 1st Armored Brigade, stationed in the city of Tata in northwestern Hungary. It is this unit that operates all the armored vehicles delivered under the program.

According to Defense Post, Budapest's 2018 order includes the delivery of three Leguan 2A7HU tanks, five Wisent 2HU armored recovery vehicles, and twelve refurbished 2A4HU tanks, which will be used for training. All equipment is based on the proven German Leopard chassis. The contract is valued at approximately $565 million, and deliveries are scheduled to be completed in 2028. In this case, it is necessary to note a slight inaccuracy in Defense Post. According to a press release from Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (now KNDS Deutschland), in 2018 Budapest ordered 44 Leopard 2AHU tanks, 10 Leopard 2A4 tanks, support vehicles on the Leopard 2 chassis, as well as 24 PzH 2000 155-millimeter self-propelled howitzers. And the stated contract value of $565 million includes the cost of the howitzers.

The Leopard 2A7HU is a version of the tank manufactured to the requirements of the Hungarian Armed Forces. The combat vehicle is equipped with a 120 mm Rheinmetall smoothbore gun, a coaxial 7.62 mm machine gun and a heavy machine gun mounted on the roof of the turret. The power plant is a diesel engine with a capacity of 1,500 hp, providing a maximum speed of 68 km / h when driving on hard-surface roads, the cruising range on fuel is 500 kilometers.

The Leguan 2HU tank bridgelayer has a maximum load capacity of over 70 tons [permissible load on the bridge structure, ed.] and can lay one bridge of 26 meters in length or two bridges of 14 meters each. The bridge system is remotely controlled by one person and can be installed within five minutes.