Finland orders third batch of Leopard bridge vehicles
Austria received its first Leopard 2L vehicles in 2005. (Photo: Patria)
Austria, which has been operating Leopard 2 MMBTs and Leopard 2L tracked bridge laying vehicles, will see the new Leopard 2Ls built on the country’s existing Leopard 2A4 tanks.
Finland has ordered an additional six Leguan bridge laying systems to be installed on Leopard 2A4 main battle tanks already in service with country’s army.
The agreement was for a third batch of Leopard 2L bridge layers from Patria with previous deliveries in 2005–08 and 2018–22. Deliveries of the new systems have been scheduled for 2026–28.
The bridge layers will be built by Patria on Finnish Defence Forces’ Leopard 2A4 chassis with the value of the procurement approximately €23.6 million (US$26 million).
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The Leguan bridge-laying system can be mounted on various tracked and wheeled chassis, including the Leopard 2 main battle tank.
The system consists of a mechanism for transporting and laying either one 26m-long MLC80 bridge or two 14m-long MLC80 bridges, both of which can support loads weighing up to 72t.
Shephard Defence Insight noted that at least 17 countries had bought the Leguan system including six for integration on the Leopard 2 including all continental Nordic countries.
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