Vehicles affected: Leopard 2A7V, Leopard 2A8.
Issue description:
The vertical gun guidance angles for the German Leopard 2A7V and Leopard 2A8 were changed from -9°/+20° to -7.4°/+17.4° based on page 8 of the promotional KNDS Leopard 2A8 brochure. However, applying these figures to the serial German variants is historically and technically inaccurate for the following reasons:
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Unchanged gun mount and turret geometry: According to the official German Bundeswehr portal, the serial Leopard 2A8 retains the exact same 120mm Rheinmetall L55A1 gun integration and cradle as the Leopard 2A7V (“Das 120-Millimeter-Hauptgeschütz ist jedoch unverändert geblieben”). No structural modifications were made to the trunnions or gun cradle that would restrict the physical elevation arc of -9°/+20°.
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Manufacturer specifications (Rheinmetall): Technical documentation from Rheinmetall (the OEM of the L55A1 gun system) confirms the standard vertical elevation range of -9° to +20°.
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Inapplicability of the KNDS marketing brochure: The -7.4°/+17.4° figures reflect software-limited stabilizer buffers or early export testbeds (such as the Norwegian configuration with an external SPECTUS housing on the upper glacis). On serial Bundeswehr Leopard 2A8 tanks, the SPECTUS sensor is integrated flush into the hull to prevent any barrel interference. Furthermore, the KNDS brochure contains multiple internal errors (listing both 28 km/h and 30 km/h reverse speeds, and 42 rounds instead of 37), making it unreliable as a primary technical source over Bundeswehr and Rheinmetall data.
Suggested fix:
Restore the vertical gun elevation angles of the German Leopard 2A7V and Leopard 2A8 to -9° / +20° over the frontal arc.