Meet the Leclerc: The Best Tank on Earth (Not Made in USA)

By the time World War II began, France had more, better-armed

tank

s at its disposal than the Germans, and the French army had deployed a number of light armored machines and air power in its missions in the Congo, Afghanistan, Mali and elsewhere. African countries. However, despite the notable name of their

tank

s there are French main battle tanks that have not fired since the Gulf War which tank is this Hello everyone, welcome back to another episode of military television in the session Today we are going to discuss one of the

best

tanks in the world originated from France.

The Leclerc tank. If you don't want to miss crucial information on this topic, stay with us until the end of this video. The Leclerc MBT main battle tank is a 57-ton machine manufactured by Nexter Systems. French state arms manufacturer formerly known as Giat Industries can fire arrows, explosives and canisters in both stationary and mobile modes The MBT is in service with the French Army and the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces United Arab Emirates in September 2001 The Army French placed the last order for 52 Leclerc tanks, bringing the total order to 406 tanks plus 20 armored recovery vehicles in October 2007.

Deliveries were completed in May 2021. The French army owns a fleet of 200 Leclerc tanks . The UAE ordered 390 tanks and 46 armored post-tank recovery vehicles. and arvs were delivered respectively in 2004 and 2008. now let's talk about the history of the

leclerc

tank. France wanted to replace the amx 30 main battle tank and in 1964 studies were started to explore possible options for the replacement vehicle, the study called the main engine. prospective in view of several inferiorities of the amx 30 compared to the new generation of Soviet tanks at that time, the French government

made

an order to start the Shar Future project in 1971 and a few years later, in 1975, a working committee was established and followed him. which had agreed on a set of specifications less than a decade later, in february 1980, the french decided to sign a memorandum of understanding with west germany for the joint development of a main battle tank called napoleon 1 in france and comfonzer 3 in germany, no matter how significant it was.

Friction over the proposed configuration led to the failure of the partnerships in December 1982. It was subsequently announced that a purely French battle tank codenamed epc motor principle decombat would be developed. Foreign equipment such as the M1 Abrams Leopard 2 and the Merkava had been imported. investigated and rejected the project was launched in 1986 under the name

leclerc

with six prototypes built in a short period of time mass production began in 1990 with the batch of four units, one that was mainly used for comparative tests in foreign countries, In batch 2, 17 units were delivered with improvements to the turret and hull armor.

These units were quickly withdrawn after being diagnosed with engine and suspension problems. Lot 3 followed with some improvements that served to define the doctrine of use and instruction after being remodeled in the late 1990s. The fourth and fifth lots were constructed better, eliminating repeated problems originating in the power plant and They are still in active service with an additional climate control system on the right side of the turret. The second series started with batch six, so the seventh batch featured a drive system. to vehicle command and a data set system that provides an instant view of the status of all battle tanks and targets that have been acquired, while batch 8 saw an improvement in the modernization of electronic systems, finally, batch 9 restored thermal imagery with better resolution for 2010.

Authorities conducted a defense review and a total of 240 Leclerc tanks were in operational units with each of the four regiments operated. 60 tanks, this figure did not include another 100 units in reserve ready for combat. Now let's delve into the design and characteristics of the leclerc tanks mainly the leclerc is armed with a 120 millimeter model f1 cn 120-26 smoothbore gun designed by the efab arsenal of borgia its barrel is 52 calibers long instead of The 44 calibers common in most main battle tanks of its generation, resulting in a higher muzzle velocity for the projectile, the f1 model is known for its compatibility with 120 by 570 millimeter NATO ammunition, This pistol is complemented by a magnesium alloy thermal holster and an automatic loading mechanism, the weapon's elevation, depression and turret travel are electrically powered for its secondary.

Armament, the Leclerc is equipped with a coaxial 12.7 millimeter M2 heavy machine gun and also a roof-mounted 7.62 millimeter machine gun, while most other NATO tanks use 7.62 millimeter guns to its coaxial, as well as upper machine gun mounts, except for the American M1. abrams that featured a coaxial 7.62 millimeter machine gun and two top-mounted machine guns respectively, one 7.62 millimeter and one 12.7 millimeter. What makes leclerc special is the fact that at 60 tons the tank is 10 tons lighter compared to most western main battle tanks and this led to many benefits, better power to weight ratio, lower pressure on the ground, amazing acceleration and also a relatively high top speed of up to 45 miles per hour.

In addition, Leclerc is more efficient in terms of fuel consumption, since before he could travel 340 miles. to refuel compared to the 260 miles of other tanks like the abrams, this absolutely reduces the logistical burden of the tank, finally let's take a look at the operational history of the leclerc in service after the persian gulf war, the leclerc has been mainly shipped to low-conflict areas such as Kosovo and Lebanon within the boundaries of UN peacekeeping missions. Their performance was considered favorable by French government officials. Until 2010, a total of 13 Leclercs were deployed to the part. southern lebanon for a peacekeeping operation with the united states provisional nation force in lebanon unifil the only other army that bought le clerks was that of the united arab emirates the united arab emirates bought 390 tropicalized versions with v12 engines As well as 46 armored recovery vehicles, the UAE Le Clercs were also deployed in the peacekeeping mission in Kosovo where the difference was clear compared to the French tanks.

The Emirati Leclerc had superior sensors and systems according to Emirati sources. united arab le clerks have been damaged four times by anti-tank weapons two incidents appear to have involved improvised explosive devices a third a rocket propelled grenade that deflected the blue slat armor of the target tank and a fourth anti-tank missile the leclerc survived in Although a missile killed a tank commander when it hit the commander's hatch, Le's employees were praised by UAE tankers as they conveyed their satisfaction with the tank. The tank's performance impressed coalition armies. In January 2016 there was a report about the Saudi government's approach to Nexter, the manufacturer of Leclerc, in what was understood as a sign of interest on the part of the kingdom to buy the large French tanks Mamadou Tu