The Bundeswehr and the British Army are commissioning qualification samples of the latest iteration of Rheinmetall’s armour-piercing 120 mm KE ammunition, the KE2020Neo. Last month, the Federal Office of Bundeswehr Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw) awarded Rheinmetall Waffe Munition GmbH a corresponding qualification contract. The basis for the development is a qualification contract between Rheinmetall and the BAAINBw from 2020.
Like its predecessors, the latest KE-class balancing ammunition is also based on a high-strength tungsten penetrator. The manufacturer promises that the system is capable of penetrating modern combined protection systems. If qualification is successful, the ammunition will be used in the Leopard 2 main battle tank and the British Challenger 3. Consequently, the penetrating power of the KE2020Neo should be equal to that of British depleted uranium (DU) ammunition. The German armed forces have been using balancing ammunition from the KE family since 1979. The model designation was DM13. In the course of the 1980s, Rheinmetall presented two versions with increased combat effectiveness, the DM23 and DM33. With the increase in combat effectiveness of the Leopard 2 to the A6 upgrade stage, Rheinmetall subsequently developed two performance-enhanced KE ammunition types. These resulted in the DM53 and DM63 models used by the Bundeswehr. The DM63 is now available in the REACh-compliant A1 version. The most recent member of the ammunition family used in the Bundeswehr, the DM73, is used in the L55A1 high-pressure weapon.
The British Challenger 3 main battle tank, which is currently under development, is being created as part of a German-British joint venture. In May 2021, Rheinmetall BAE Systems Land (RBSL) signed a contract worth £800 million with the British Ministry of Defence for the modernisation of 148 Challenger 2 tanks.
Three prototypes have already rolled off the production line at the production site in Telford. Six more vehicles are to follow in the coming months. These prototypes are undergoing an evaluation process to clarify whether changes need to be made to the prototypes before the remaining 140 tanks can go into series production.
With the modernisation, the United Kingdom is moving away from its previous special position in NATO battle tanks. Instead of a rifled barrel as in the previous iterations, the Challenger 3 will have a smoothbore gun, which is standard.
This year’s Berlin Security Conference (BSC) hosts a panel on the acceleration of procurement and armament. Among others, Vice Admiral Carsten Stawitzki, National Armaments Director, Ministry of Defence, Germany; Lieutenant General de Tuesta, National Armaments Director, France; and Lieutenant General Luciano Portolan, Secretary General of Defence/National Armaments Director, Italy, will discuss concepts and methods for faster and more effective armament.
