How effective is the Leopard 2A6 in battle? A tank crew revealed their secrets

The Ukrainian Armed Forces have been supplied with the powerful German-made Leopard 2A6 tank as part of a larger effort by Kyiv's partner and allies to furnish it with powerful Western weapons. But what do Ukraine's soldiers think about this older but effective tank?

In September 2023, a tank crew operating one of Ukraine's many Leopard 2A6 tanks revealed just how effective the tank has been on the battlefield in a video that was released by Ukraine's Ministry of Defense.

The video highlighted the experience of the tank crew fighting inside the Leopard 2A6, and they had nothing but praise for these advanced Western weapons and their combat abilities on the battlefields of eastern Ukraine. 

The tank crew in the video came from Ukraine’s 47th Mechanized Brigade, the Ukrainian unit that's been supplied with the country's Leopard 2A6s, and noted the tank gave them a significant advantage over the Russian Armed Forces at night because of its night vision capabilities.

“It can operate at night. There is a night vision device; this vehicle can provide visibility up to four kilometers, allowing us to effectively engage the enemy,” one Ukrainian tank commander explained according to a translation provided by the Ministry of Defense. 

Only known by his callsign Fartovyi, the Leopard 2A6 tank commander explained that the night vision capabilities of his tank allowed his crew to achieve a nearly one hundred percent success rate in their battles. 

Pictured: Fartovyi "Fortune" / Photo Credit: Twitter @DefenceU & @StratCom_AFU

Leopard 2A6 gun loader Yurii also explained the significance of the tank's ability to fight, noting that the vehicles mostly fought between dusk and dawn, joking that the tank was called a leopard because it was a “swift… nocturnal predator.”

Pictured: Yurii / Photo Credit: Twitter @DefenceU & @StratCom_AFU

Forbes’s David Axe noted in his breakdown of the interview that Russia’s own difficulty fighting at night gave the Leopard 2A6 a distinct advantage over Moscow’s equipment and ultimately protected Leopard crews from enemy fire. 

Photo Credit: Twitter @DefenceU & @StratCom_AFU

However, the Leopard 2A6 has several other advantages according to Fartovyi, which include the tank's speed, accuracy, and maneuverability. “It’s very maneuverable, very fast,” the tank commander explained. “And it's precise,” he added. 

Photo Credit: Wiki Commons By Fotoafdrukken Koninklijke Landmacht, CC0

Another crew member from the 47th Mechanized Bridge named Vladyslav commented on the abilities of the Leopard 2A6 but said he believed the main advantages of the tank were its main gun as well as its survivability. 

Pictured: Vladyslav / Photo Credit: Twitter @DefenceU & @StratCom_AFU

Vladyslav was part of a crew that operated one of the country’s T-64 tanks according to the Ukrainian tanker, and he explained that he felt more at ease going out on a mission in the Leopard 2A6 because he knew his life wasn’t as at risk. 

“There is no such thing in Soviet equipment,” Vladyslav said, adding that there was “no detonation of the ammo rack and no turret flying off,” something that has been widely seen in the tanks of the Russian military since the invasion began. 

Vladyslav also commented on the speed of the vehicle and explained it was important in the work they were doing since it gave Ukrainian crews more maneuverability while they engaged in combat with Russian forces. 

Photo Credit: Twitter @DefenceU & @StratCom_AFU

“Quite fast, quite maneuverable, quite smooth,” Vladyslav said before going on to report that in his role as a gunner, he was very satisfied with the optics of the tank. “The optics here are just fantastic,” he explained. 

“I can see perfectly at four to five kilometers and even more,” Vladyslav noted before he added that the stabilization of the tank allowed him to track enemy targets while driving at speeds of upwards of 50 to 60 kilometers (31 to 37 miles).

The value of such a quick and stable tank has certainly proved itself on the battlefield in the 47th Mechanized Brigade's September 2023 fight with Russian forces along one of the hottest parts of Ukraine’s counter-offensive frontlines in Zaporizhzhia.

The 47th Mechanized Brigade were the soldiers who pushed into the town of Robotyne according to Radio Free Europe, which started a slow chain reaction that has brought a good deal of success to Ukrainian forces along the southern front even though the country's summer counter-offensive failed. 

“Combine the Leopard 2A6’s best attributes—precise day-night optics, high speed, and excellent stabilization—and you get a nimble night-hunter,” wrote Forbes’ David Axe. 

Photo Credit: Twitter @DefenceU