Flugabwehrkanonenpanzer Gepard
Encyclopedia
The Flugabwehrkanonenpanzer Gepard ("anti-aircraft cannon tank Cheetah", better known as the Flakpanzer Gepard) is an autonomous, all-weather-capable German
self-propelled anti-aircraft gun (SPAAG). It was developed in the 1960s and fielded in the 1970s, and has been upgraded several times with the latest electronics. It constituted a cornerstone of the air defence
of the German Army
(Bundeswehr) and a number of other NATO countries. In Germany, the Gepard was phased out in late 2010 to be replaced by "SysFla" a mobile and stationary air defence system using the LFK NG
missile and the new MANTIS gun system
. The mobile platform of SysFla will likely be based on the GTK Boxer.
with a large fully rotating turret carrying the armament—a pair of 35 mm Oerlikon KDA autocannons
and the two radar dishes—a general search radar at the rear of the turret and the tracking radar, and a laser rangefinder, at the front between the guns. Each gun has a firing rate of 550 rounds/min.
The guns are 90 calibres
(3.15 metre) long, with a muzzle velocity of 1440 m/s (FAPDS—Frangible Armour Piercing Discarding Sabot
rounds), giving an effective range of 5,500 m. The KDA autocannon can take two different ammunition types, and the usual loading is a mix of 320 AA and 20 AP
rounds per gun. Combined rate of fire is 1,100 rounds/min.
The electrically driven turret is powered by a 40 kW generator driven by a 4-cylinder, 3.8 litre Mercedes-Benz
OM 314 multi-fuel engine.
Since the eighties Stinger teams have been accompanying the Gepard units, to take advantage of their long-range scanning capacity. To combine this capacity in a single unit a missile system upgrade which mounts the NATO ManPad Stinger
surface-to-air missile
(in twin packs) to the autocannons was developed. The system was tested by the German Bundeswehr but not bought due to budget restrictions and the fielding of the Ozelot Light Flak (leFla) System.
The Gepard was developed from 1963 onwards. In 1969 construction began of four A prototypes testing both 30 and 35 mm guns. On 25 June 1970 it was decided to use the 35 mm type. In 1971 twelve second phase B prototypes were ordered; the same year the Dutch army ordered a CA preseries of five vehicles based on a parallel development that had used a German 0-series Leopard 1 vehicle made available by the German government in March 1970 as the C-prototype. The Germans made a small preseries of both the B1and B2R. On 5 February 1973 the political decision was made to produce the type; in September 1973 the contract was signed with Krauss-Maffei
for 432 B2 turrets and 420 hulls with a total value of DM
1,200,000,000. Each vehicle would thus be about three times more expensive than a normal Leopard 1. The first was delivered in December 1976. Belgium ordered 55 vehicles, identical to the German version. The Dutch ordered three batches, the CA1, CA2 and CA3, with a total of 95 vehicles, equipped with Philips
radar systems.
Germany
The Netherlands
The Dutch version was officially called the PRTL (PantserRupsTegenLuchtdoelen or "Armoured Tracked Anti-Aircraft"), pronounced as "pruttle" by the soldiers. The Dutch series version was made public through a photograph of a vehicle from a C-Company, the first to be equipped with the new weapon. Traditionally all Dutch vehicles in a company have names beginning with the company designation letter and this vehicle happened to have the individual name Cheetah painted in bold type on its turret. Inevitably the international press assumed "Cheetah" was the Dutch name for their Gepard version and this mistake found its way into most armour publications on the subject. In 2000 the Dutch military authorities, tired of constantly having to explain all this and considering "pruttle" was hardly a martial name anyway, conformed themselves to common error and made "Cheetah" the official designation, when the system was upgraded.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
self-propelled anti-aircraft gun (SPAAG). It was developed in the 1960s and fielded in the 1970s, and has been upgraded several times with the latest electronics. It constituted a cornerstone of the air defence
Anti-aircraft warfare
NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...
of the German Army
German Army
The German Army is the land component of the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. Following the disbanding of the Wehrmacht after World War II, it was re-established in 1955 as the Bundesheer, part of the newly formed West German Bundeswehr along with the Navy and the Air Force...
(Bundeswehr) and a number of other NATO countries. In Germany, the Gepard was phased out in late 2010 to be replaced by "SysFla" a mobile and stationary air defence system using the LFK NG
LFK NG
LFK NG from Lenkflugkörper Neue Generation , is currently under development by LFK-Lenkflugkörpersysteme and Diehl BGT Defence as the new short-range surface-to-air missile system for the German Army as a replacement for its former Roland air defence systems and as a part of the army's new SysFla...
missile and the new MANTIS gun system
Nächstbereichschutzsystem MANTIS
Nächstbereichschutzsystem MANTIS , formerly titled as NBS-C-RAM , is the latest very short-range protection system of the German Army intended for base-protection, particularly in Afghanistan, produced by Rheinmetall Air Defence Nächstbereichschutzsystem MANTIS (Modular, Automatic and Network...
. The mobile platform of SysFla will likely be based on the GTK Boxer.
Description
The vehicle is based on the hull of Leopard 1 tankPanzer
A Panzer is a German language word that, when used as a noun, means "tank". When it is used as an adjective, it means either tank or "armoured" .- Etymology :...
with a large fully rotating turret carrying the armament—a pair of 35 mm Oerlikon KDA autocannons
Oerlikon 35 mm twin cannon
The Oerlikon 35 mm twin cannon is a towed anti-aircraft gun made by Oerlikon Contraves . The system was originally designated as 2 ZLA/353 ML but this was later changed to GDF-001...
and the two radar dishes—a general search radar at the rear of the turret and the tracking radar, and a laser rangefinder, at the front between the guns. Each gun has a firing rate of 550 rounds/min.
The guns are 90 calibres
Caliber
In guns including firearms, caliber or calibre is the approximate internal diameter of the barrel in relation to the diameter of the projectile used in it....
(3.15 metre) long, with a muzzle velocity of 1440 m/s (FAPDS—Frangible Armour Piercing Discarding Sabot
Kinetic energy penetrator
A kinetic energy penetrator is a type of ammunition which, like a bullet, does not contain explosives and uses kinetic energy to penetrate the target....
rounds), giving an effective range of 5,500 m. The KDA autocannon can take two different ammunition types, and the usual loading is a mix of 320 AA and 20 AP
Armor-piercing shot and shell
An armor-piercing shell is a type of ammunition designed to penetrate armor. From the 1860s to 1950s, a major application of armor-piercing projectiles was to defeat the thick armor carried on many warships. From the 1920s onwards, armor-piercing weapons were required for anti-tank missions...
rounds per gun. Combined rate of fire is 1,100 rounds/min.
The electrically driven turret is powered by a 40 kW generator driven by a 4-cylinder, 3.8 litre Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz is a German manufacturer of automobiles, buses, coaches, and trucks. Mercedes-Benz is a division of its parent company, Daimler AG...
OM 314 multi-fuel engine.
Since the eighties Stinger teams have been accompanying the Gepard units, to take advantage of their long-range scanning capacity. To combine this capacity in a single unit a missile system upgrade which mounts the NATO ManPad Stinger
FIM-92 Stinger
The FIM-92 Stinger is a personal portable infrared homing surface-to-air missile , which can be adapted to fire from ground vehicles and helicopters , developed in the United States and entered into service in 1981. Used by the militaries of the U.S...
surface-to-air missile
Surface-to-air missile
A surface-to-air missile or ground-to-air missile is a missile designed to be launched from the ground to destroy aircraft or other missiles...
(in twin packs) to the autocannons was developed. The system was tested by the German Bundeswehr but not bought due to budget restrictions and the fielding of the Ozelot Light Flak (leFla) System.
The Gepard was developed from 1963 onwards. In 1969 construction began of four A prototypes testing both 30 and 35 mm guns. On 25 June 1970 it was decided to use the 35 mm type. In 1971 twelve second phase B prototypes were ordered; the same year the Dutch army ordered a CA preseries of five vehicles based on a parallel development that had used a German 0-series Leopard 1 vehicle made available by the German government in March 1970 as the C-prototype. The Germans made a small preseries of both the B1and B2R. On 5 February 1973 the political decision was made to produce the type; in September 1973 the contract was signed with Krauss-Maffei
Krauss-Maffei
The Krauss-Maffei Wegmann GmbH & Co KG or simply Krauss-Maffei is an injection molding machine manufacturer and defence company based in Munich, Germany...
for 432 B2 turrets and 420 hulls with a total value of DM
German mark
The Deutsche Mark |mark]], abbreviated "DM") was the official currency of West Germany and Germany until the adoption of the euro in 2002. It is commonly called the "Deutschmark" in English but not in German. Germans often say "Mark" or "D-Mark"...
1,200,000,000. Each vehicle would thus be about three times more expensive than a normal Leopard 1. The first was delivered in December 1976. Belgium ordered 55 vehicles, identical to the German version. The Dutch ordered three batches, the CA1, CA2 and CA3, with a total of 95 vehicles, equipped with Philips
Philips
Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. , more commonly known as Philips, is a multinational Dutch electronics company....
radar systems.
Variants
There are two variants of Gepard in service; the Dutch has a different radar installation.Germany
- Search radarRadarRadar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
: S bandS bandThe S band is defined by an IEEE standard for radio waves with frequencies that range from 2 to 4 GHz, crossing the conventional boundary between UHF and SHF at 3.0 GHz. It is part of the microwave band of the electromagnetic spectrum...
, 15 km range - Tracking radar: Ku bandKu bandThe Kμ band is a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in the microwave range of frequencies. This symbol refers to —in other words, the band directly below the K-band...
, 15 km range - Laser rangefinder
The Netherlands
- Search radar: X bandX bandThe X band is a segment of the microwave radio region of the electromagnetic spectrum. In some cases, such as in communication engineering, the frequency range of X band is rather indefinitely set at approximately 7.0 to 11.2 gigahertz . In radar engineering, the frequency range is specified...
, 15 km range - Tracking radar: X/Ka bandKa bandThe Ka band covers the frequencies of 26.5–40 GHz. The Ka band is part of the K band of the microwave band of the electromagnetic spectrum. This symbol refers to "K-above" — in other words, the band directly above the K-band...
, 13 km range
The Dutch version was officially called the PRTL (PantserRupsTegenLuchtdoelen or "Armoured Tracked Anti-Aircraft"), pronounced as "pruttle" by the soldiers. The Dutch series version was made public through a photograph of a vehicle from a C-Company, the first to be equipped with the new weapon. Traditionally all Dutch vehicles in a company have names beginning with the company designation letter and this vehicle happened to have the individual name Cheetah painted in bold type on its turret. Inevitably the international press assumed "Cheetah" was the Dutch name for their Gepard version and this mistake found its way into most armour publications on the subject. In 2000 the Dutch military authorities, tired of constantly having to explain all this and considering "pruttle" was hardly a martial name anyway, conformed themselves to common error and made "Cheetah" the official designation, when the system was upgraded.
Users
- 377 originally built for the BundeswehrBundeswehrThe Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
, 94 remain in service until 2010 and will then be stored until SysFla is fully introduced.: 95 delivered, withdrawn from service.: 55 delivered, withdrawn from service.: 43 delivered, all ex-Bundeswehr stocks.: Former user. 4 vehicles delivered in 2008, and returned in January 2011. Equipment originally operated by the BundeswehrBundeswehrThe Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
. Order of 30 vehicles cancelled due to high overhaul/upgrade costs.
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