Leopard 1A5 defies expectations in drone battle resilience
The war in Ukraine has been a harsh test for all military equipment and its modifications. Remarkably, even tanks as thinly armoured as the Leopard 1A5 have proven to offer protection. Let's explore the secrets behind this unexpected resilience.
A video has surfaced online showing a Ukrainian Leopard 1A5 tank being hit by as many as 12 first-person-view (FPV) drones, with only the last few strikes igniting a fire. According to the Militarnyj portal, the crew's status is not known, but in footage from the 12th FPV drone's camera (admittedly of poor quality), an image resembling one of the turret's open hatches can be seen.
No fire at that time might indicate that at least some of the crew managed to evacuate. This result is particularly impressive for a tank with armour that is largely symbolic. Notably, the Ukrainians have fortified the tank significantly to withstand attacks using basic single cumulative warheads commonly deployed by drones.
Leopard 1A5 sustained hits on the roof, the front armour where ammunition is stored, and in the engine section, which eventually immobilised the tank and led to a fire.
Leopard 1A5 - a useful relic from Europe
The Leopard 1A5 tanks are an updated version of a vehicle originating in the 1960s. The key upgrade was the installation of the EMES 18 fire control system, an advancement from the EMES 15 system used in early Leopard 2 models.
The core of this system is a thermal imaging sight for the gunner, complemented by a ballistic computer, which greatly enhances the ability to detect, identify, and accurately engage targets miles away, even at night or in poor weather conditions.
The drawback is the lack of substantial armour, as a maximum of 70 millimetres of armoured steel reinforced with Lexan panels (a type of polycarbonate) provides protection mostly against artillery fragments and some automatic gunfire.
To address this, the Ukrainians devised a modernisation package based on reactive armour blocks like Kontakt-1 and/or "Knife", with meshed layers spaced from the main armour to prematurely detonate cumulative warheads.
Improvised solution by Ukrainians — enough for Russian homemade weapons
This concept is essentially similar to Russian "armoured barns" covered with whatever materials are at hand. It's noteworthy that the widely used PG-7VL grenades from RPG-7 grenade launchers, often mounted on FPV drones, can penetrate 500 millimetres of armoured steel, but their optimal penetration effect occurs precisely 50 centimetres from the detonation point.
Thus, if a grenade detonates, for example, 70 centimetres from the armour on a mesh or other obstacle, its cumulative jet, capable of penetrating 500 millimetres of armour, will not be effective. Meanwhile, the action of reactive armour disperses this jet with a shockwave and fragments. However, the armour on which these blocks are mounted must withstand the explosion of the cartridges containing, for instance, Kontakt-1, which has about 250 grams of explosive material.
In the case of simple PG-7VL grenades and similar devices, this protection is effective. Still, if FPV drones appear capable of carrying heavier dual-warhead grenades such as the PG-7VR, this defence will be inadequate. In such cases, the first warhead creates a breach for the larger charge, which then detonates under optimal conditions.
