The Leopard 1 is a modern 2nd generation German Main Battle Tank. The first prototypes of the vehicle were created in 1961, and serial production continued in 1965-1979, ending with the production of over 4,700 tanks. The Leopard 1 is powered by an 830hp MTU MB 838 Ca-M engine. The vehicle is armed with a single 105mm L7 A3 semi-automatic cannon and two 7.62mm MG3 machine guns.
The Leopard 1 was created in response to the demand for a new Main Battle Tank announced by Bundeswehr in 1956. The new car was to replace the American M47 and M48 tanks. Design work and testing of the structure was extended until 1965, which may be partly explained by an unsuccessful attempt to establish cooperation with French companies on a new car. Ultimately, however, a highly refined tank was created, with good armament for those times, good armor, low failure rate and - as it turned out - very susceptible to modernization. During serial production and operation, several development versions of the tank were created Leopard 1. The first was the A 1 version with a new gun stabilization system. A version of the A 3 was also created, with a completely new turret design and better armor. In 1974, the production of the A 4 version was launched with a new SKO (fire control system) and even more perfect turret armor. The last mass-produced version was the A 6 with an improved SKO in relation to the A 5 version and better hydraulics. There were also modernizations made by foreign users, e.g. the Leopard C2, i.e. the modernization of the Leopard 1 tank made in Canada in 2000, consisting in strengthening the armor and using the turret from the A 5 version. Due to its high combat value, the Leopard 1 was exported to many countries, including: Brazil, Belgium, Chile, Greece, the Netherlands, Turkey and Italy. In some of them (Italy or Greece) it is still in service.
