Leopard 5¶
| Type | Main Battle Tank |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Germany, Earth, Sol |
| In service | 2170 |
| Used by | Bundeswehr, various militaries |
| Wars | None |
| Designer | KraussMaffei-Wegman |
| Designed | 2166 |
| Manufacturer | KraussMaffei-Wegmann, various |
| Unit cost | 5A6: 2.5 million € (used) 5A7: 6.5 million € 5A8: 7.5 million € |
| Produced | 2168 |
| No. built | 12.400 |
| Operator | Bundewehr Various |
| Variants | 5A1 through 5A8 |
| Mass | 81.4 metric tons |
| Length | Standard Chassis length: 10.97 metres (main battery forward) |
| Width | 4.1 m |
| Height | 3.2 m |
| Crew | 3 (Commander, Gunner, Driver) |
| Armor | 4th generation cermet composite armour with reactive exterior lining |
| Main armament | Main Armament in full rotation remote controlled turret: - Rheinmetall 120mm Helical Rail Gun (150 shot of various forms in autoloader) - OTO Melara 25mm coaxial Helical Rail Gun (2000 shot) - Zeiss Coaxial 100 MW Free Electron Laser |
| Secondary armament | Commanders Weapon Station: - OTO Melara 12.7mm Rapid fire Helical railgun 8x Zeiss point defense lasers 1MW 8x heavy drone launch bays (loitering munitions) 2x recon drone launch bays |
| Main Communication System | Link 24 Multimodal Decentralised Combat Information & Communication System - Multiband Radio & Microwave Comlink - LASER line of sight Comlink - Satellite Comlink (Radio, Microwave & Laser) - Smart Dust Short Range Comlink |
| Sensor System | Phased Multiband Radar with C-RAM capabilities Multiband LIDAR Multispectral Imaging Systems |
| Power Source: | MAN MFR-45 micro fusion reactor Superconducting battery |
| Engine | 2x VW high torque electric motor à 10.000 kW |
| Power/weight | CLASSIFIED |
| Transmission | Non-Applicable (direct electrical power) |
| Suspension and Motive Group | linear electromagnetic shock absorber/motive accelerator pistons Floating electromagnetic multiple roadwheel suspension system |
| Ground clearance | 1.2m with suspension lifted to maximum elevation |
| Fuel capacity | 15 year active lifespan with unlimited endurance over same period, so long as maintenance is performed. Can be extended beyond 15 years via shutting down the reactor. |
| Operational range | Indefinite over operational lifespan / Reactor can be refueled repeatedly as needed after 15 years. |
| Maximum speed | Road: 143.8 km/h (governed) Off-road: 97 km/h |
The Leopard 5 is the fifth iteration of the venerable Leopard Line of the Leopard Main Battle Tank, designed with the modern battlefield in mind.
It was designed in the 2160s, based on experience from the Leopard 4, developed in the wake of World War III, and incorporating new designs technologies that were developed in the wake of First Contact and with an eye towards the possibility of the Leopard being used on Worlds other than Earth. As such, the Leopard 5 was designed to operate in gravitational fields from 0.25 to 2 times Earth standard gravity, in low pressure atmospherics and under a variety of other environmental environments.
KraussMaffei-Wegmann also designed the Leopard 5 with an eye towards easy field serviceability, upgradeability and even construction with the use of fabricator systems, by minimising the number of different individual parts as much as possible.
In 2220, the Leopard 5A6, the majority of its systems and its training material were made 'open source' and added into the Library of Alexandria. As such the 5A6 and its subvariants are some of the most popular Main Battle Tank used by Terragen settlements within Local Space, even though it is two generations behind bleeding edge Main Battle Tanks.