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Sept. 27, 2017 / 10:41 AM

Rheinmetall upgrading tanks for German army

German Army Leopard 2 main battle tanks, more than 100 of which will be upgraded to the A7V standard by Rheinmetall. Bundeswehr photo

German Army Leopard 2 main battle tanks, more than 100 of which will be upgraded to the A7V standard by Rheinmetall. Bundeswehr photo

Sept. 27 (UPI) -- Rheinmetall has been contracted by Germany's army, the Bundeswehr, to perform a combat performance upgrade to 104 Leopard 2 tanks.

The upgrades under the contract, worth nearly $139.4 million, will modernize the tanks to state-of-the-art design status, the company announced on Wednesday.

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Rheinmetall, based in Dusseldorf, said the contract involves 68 Leopard 2A4, 16 Leopard 2A6 and 20 Leopard 2A7 main battle tanks, which will be brought up to the A7V standard. Rheinmetall will eliminate obsolescent features in the tank's fire-control computers and control consoles and install new laser rangefinders and thermal imaging devices.

The company will also supply the new L55A1 gun for the 68 Leopard 2A4 MBTs to be modernized, enabling them to fire the latest armor-piercing ammunition in the upper pressure zone.

The first upgraded tanks will be delivered back to the German army beginning in 2020.

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