The German Bundeswehr's Leopard 2 main battle tank combines firepower, maneuverability and protection. At the beginning of the design, it was considered that they would serve continuously for decades. However, to serve for such a long time, it is necessary to carry out regular maintenance and maintenance of the tank, and the tank crew should also work closely with the military and civilian maintenance personnel.
The tank captain holds an electronic terminal to check the maintenance list of the car group. Each crew member has his own task.
The commander of a Leopard 2A6MA3 main battle tank came to the maintenance workshop of his battalion with a maintenance list, while other passengers were busy. After each training, they have to carry out corresponding technical work. Besides the conductor, the other three people-the driver, the gunner and the stevedore-have taken off their uniforms and put on greasy work clothes.
The crew spent half a day thoroughly inspecting the tank with a length of 1 1 m and a weight of 62 tons. There are 89 items on the captain's checklist, and each item has been carefully recorded. The commander of the unit said: "Technical support is an indispensable part of our work, and it is almost a fixed content. Each passenger has his own task, and the driver is responsible for the tank chassis, which is the so-called car body. The gunner and the loader are responsible for the turret. "
The driver of Leopard 2A6MA3 is checking the track of the tank. If excessive wear is found, he will send it to the repair unit of his battalion for maintenance.
The conductor said, "We will check the condition of the fuel tank, such as whether the crawler is seriously worn, whether there is oil leakage, and clean the air filter on the fuel tank. If problems are found, we will report them immediately. " Heavy equipment such as Leopard 2 tanks is the pride of any ground troops. It combines firepower, mobility and protection. When combined with armored personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles, it can be the pioneer of any large-scale ground assault operation.
In order to prevent accidents, the main battle tanks of the German Bundeswehr will be inspected, maintained and repaired regularly. The maintenance project completed by tank crew is only the most elementary part of the maintenance work of this complex weapon system. In this way, the problems existing in tanks can be found early and solved quickly.
The overhaul of Leopard 2A6M also includes checking the oil position of 1500 HP. If there is not enough oil, wear will increase and performance will decrease.
For these jobs, there are so-called maintenance mechanics who are responsible for the normal operation of all weapons and equipment in the tank battalion. The six tank battalions of the German Bundeswehr are usually equipped with 44 Leopard 2 main battle tanks, and three companies are each equipped with 14 tanks. The battalion commander and the deputy battalion commander each have a command tank.
In addition, each battalion has a large number of military and civilian logistics vehicles. In the 4 14 tank battalion, there are even 48 main battle tanks. This has something to do with their special organization. The battalion has a Dutch army tank company equipped with 18 Leopard 2 tanks.
During the field maintenance, a garage modified from a "dingo" armored vehicle came to help.
The commander of the 4 14 tank battalion said that this unit must keep about 180 different vehicles in good condition. They will check the condition of the equipment, record the problems found, determine the maintenance measures, order spare parts, and pay close attention to the maintenance interval of each vehicle. In addition to participating in the combat readiness of military operations, we must also ensure the needs of general operations and traffic safety.
The battalion commander said, "All soldiers want to take part in the war, and I hope they can get the best protection possible." If the main battle tank breaks down during marching and drills, it will immediately dispatch a battle damage maintenance team (GSI). The team consists of three maintenance soldiers, who will arrive at the scene in a mobile workshop modified by a "wild dog" armored vehicle. This car is very similar to a civilian pickup truck, but it is modified from a "wild dog" armored vehicle. Restoration mainly includes the restoration of power, firepower and communication equipment.
If Leopard 2 needs a higher level of maintenance, then a Buffalo armored maintenance vehicle will be dispatched to tow Leopard 2 tanks.
If GSI can't restore the power of Leopard 2 tank, or the damage is too serious to complete the repair work in the wild, the battalion commander will order the dispatch of "Buffalo" to repair the car. The battalion commander said: "this is advanced equipment, which can improve the combat readiness of tank troops." At the same time, he also said that this tank repair vehicle uses the chassis of the Leopard 2 main battle tank.
"Bison" repair car is very powerful and can tow tanks that have lost mobility. And equipped with a crane that can rotate in all directions, with a lifting capacity of 30 tons. This makes it possible to carry out more complex maintenance work in the field environment. For example, the hood of the Leopard 2A6MA3 main battle tank weighs about 1.5 tons, so it is impossible to repair the engine without the help of the tank repair vehicle.
For higher-level maintenance work, maintenance technicians can invite foreign aid. The logistics force of the German Bundeswehr has its own maintenance force. In addition, HIL Army Maintenance Logistics Co., Ltd., as a logistics service provider of the German Army, specializes in the maintenance of military wheeled and tracked vehicles. The maintenance mechanic said: "When we still can't eliminate the fault with our best efforts, we will hand over the main battle tank to another department of the German Bundeswehr. However, we must first examine whether the Army Supply Logistics Battalion can undertake this task. If it doesn't have this ability, it can rely on HIL Army Maintenance Logistics Co., Ltd. "
To open and install the engine compartment cover, it is necessary to use the "Bison" armored repair vehicle, which can make the work easier.
HIL Army Maintenance Logistics Co., Ltd. is not far from Tank Battalion 4 14. They have a maintenance network covering the whole territory in the German Bundeswehr: * * There are 63 workshops and 3 large factories, and about 2,700 employees are responsible for providing military equipment maintenance services for the German Bundeswehr.
Many of these employees used to be maintenance workers. A workshop of HIL Army Maintenance Logistics Co., Ltd. is located in Lower Saxony Barracks, Loheider, and 4 14 Tank Battalion is also stationed here. The manager of this workshop served in the German army 12 years. He said: "Where there is an army, there is HIL Army Maintenance Logistics Co., Ltd. ... We are an indispensable part of the logistics system of the German Federal Defence Force and are also responsible for other German ground systems."
In HIL Army Maintenance Logistics Co., Ltd., the tanks of the 4 14 armored battalion are repaired twice a year on average, and many mechanics working here have served in the German Army.
In Lower Saxony Barracks, 15 employees of HIL Army Maintenance Logistics Co., Ltd. serve 4 14 Tank Battalion. If other troops are in the military training ground near Bergen, they can also get support from here.
In addition to solving the damage caused by wear and tear, there are some maintenance tasks called maintenance intervals, such as changing oil every six months, checking turret performance every year and overhauling the engine. The workshop manager said: "depending on the model, whether the maintenance is completed in the workshop or in the military station." Every tank in Tank Battalion 4 14 is overhauled twice a year. After each large-scale exercise, all Leopard 2 tanks have to be thoroughly inspected by HIL Army Maintenance Logistics Co., Ltd. ..
The main battle tank was taken to the HIL Army Maintenance Workshop, which has 63 maintenance workshops in the German base.
Fox armored personnel carriers, Boxer ·GTK armored vehicles, wild dogs and eagle command vehicles were also handed over to this workshop for maintenance. According to the data of the German Federal Defence Force, on average, 70% of weapon systems (including main battle tanks) must always be in operation.
The workshop manager said: "We ensure the combat readiness level of the weapon system entrusted to us. If the main battle tank is regularly maintained, its weapon system can be used for decades.