To obtain the most accurate and up-to-date information on Denmark’s plans to provide tanks to Ukraine or any other military assistance initiatives, I recommend referring to official Danish government sources, defense ministry announcements, or reputable news outlets that cover defense and international relations. These sources will provide the latest information on Denmark’s intentions and actions related to military support for Ukraine.According to information published on the Danish website “OLFI” on February 1, 2023, Denmark plans to purchase 20 decommissioned Leopard 1A5 Main Battle Tanks that are stored in the German company FFG. These Leopard 1A5 tanks could be repaired and returned to service and then sent to Ukraine.
Citing open source information, the German company FFG will have a stock of 100 Leopard 1A5 Main Battle Tanks (MBTs) that were in service with the Danish army. In 2010, FFG would have bought 100 Leopard 1A5 in Denmark to transform them and then resell them.
Denmark ordered 120 German-made Leopard 1A3s in June 1974, the first of which were delivered in March 1976 and the last in November 1978. Denmark modernized the Leopard 1A3 to the 1A5 configuration and obtained a further 110 Leopard 1A3s from German Army stocks.
The Leopard 1A5 is an improved version of the Leopard 1 tank family. It keeps the design of the Leopard 1 consisting of three main parts with the driver seated at the front right side of the hull, the turret in the middle, and the engine compartment at the rear. The tank has a crew of four including the commander, driver, gunner, and loader. The Danish version retains the original welded turret.
The Leopard 1A5 is equipped with a completely modern fire control system and a fully effective night/bad-weather vision system. The tank is fitted with a new turret in order to store all of the new equipment, as well as to move more of the ammunition into the rear of the turret, as opposed to the left side of the driver where it had previously been stored.
The Leopard 1A5 is armed with one 105 mm L7A3 gun able to fire all the standard 105 mm NATO rounds manufactured by Canada, France, Germany, Israel, the UK, and the United States. The tank carries a total of 60 rounds with 42 rounds stored in the hull and 18 in the turret. The gun has a maximum effective firing range of approximately 3,000 m.
The second armament of the Leopard 1A5 includes on 7.62mm coaxial machine gun mounted to the right of the main armament. The coaxial machine gun is operated by the gunner but can also be operated by the commander in the override mode. A second 7.62mm caliber machine gun is mounted at the commander’s or loader’s station for anti-aircraft defense.
The leopard 1A5 is powered by an MTU MB 838 Ca M-500, 10-cylinder multi-fuel engine developing 830 hp at 2,200 rpm coupled to a ZF 4 HP 250 transmission with 4 forward and 2 reverse gears. It can run at a maximum road speed of 65 km/h with a maximum cruising range of 600 km on road and 450 km in all-terrain conditions. The suspension on each side consists of seven dual light metal rubber-tired road wheels with the drive sprocket at the rear, idler at the front, and four track-return rollers on either side. The first, second, third, sixth and seventh road wheel stations are provided with hydraulic shock absorbers.
