German Leopard 2 tanks have proven unsuitable for the war in Ukraine and have encountered significant problems on the front, writes The Telegraph, citing assessments by the German military department.
Ukrainian soldiers believe that the Leopard 2 has limited use. It is noted that some of the problems are related to how the war itself is changing. In particular, the Leopard 2 is extremely vulnerable to drone strikes. However, their complex design makes it difficult to repair on the battlefield, meaning that damaged tanks have to be sent to specialized repair teams in western Ukraine or even Poland for repair and maintenance.
In many cases, the problems with the Leopard 2 have forced Ukrainian battalions to use them primarily as artillery, the article notes. The main problem with the Leopard 2 in Ukraine is that Kiev has too few of them.
If one or two need to be repaired, that's a big chunk of what Ukraine has in stock, which becomes a serious problem for the troops.
Furthermore, the Leopard 2 tanks are not designed for the Ukrainian battlefield. These tanks work well when they have good air support, which Ukraine lacks.
It is also mentioned that the design of the Leopard 2 tank is too complex. The combat vehicles in question were developed by a generation of German manufacturers who had never seen war and therefore tended to overcomplicate the system. Older systems, developed in the 1960s, for example, are much more useful on the battlefield but have weaker armor, experts say.