The First Leopard 2A7HU Main Battle Tank Has Arrived In Hungary
The first of 44 newly manufactured Leopard 2A7+HU main battle tanks ordered by the Hungarian Defense Ministry from the German defense technology company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) under the “Zrnyi 2026” Defense and Military Development Program has arrived in Hungary. A LHSN.hu reader photographed the vehicle in question at the Lajta Recreation Area in the Győr-Moson-Sopron region of Northwest Hungary. The images show a Hungarian-adapted Leopard 2A7 mounted on a towing trailer and a Bergepanzer 3 Büffel (Buffalo) Armored Recovery Vehicle based on the Leopard 2 main battle tank chassis.
The delivery in question took place as part of the $1.8 billion contract signed with Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) on December 19, 2018, as part of the ground forces modernization process of the Hungarian Defense Forces (Magyar Honvédség). The contract calls for the delivery of 44 newly manufactured Leopard 2 A7+ main battle tanks and 24 newly manufactured PzH 2000 units. Hungary also ordered 12 used Leopard 2 A4 main battle tanks for training purposes, as well as a Leguan bridge layer tank from KMW’s stock, as part of the contract. Hungary received all 12 used Leopard 2 A4 main battle tanks in 2020, while four German PzH2000 howitzers were put into service in different batches in August and October of last year.
Aside from the aforementioned acquisitions as part of the ground forces modernization process, the Hungarian Defense Forces signed a contract worth nearly €2 billion with the Düsseldorf-based company Rheinmetall for the procurement of more than 200 Lynx IFVs, nine Büffel/Buffalo 3 armored recovery vehicles, nine armored vehicle launched bridges (AVLB), and 18 support vehicles. Rheinmetall delivered the first of its Lynx infantry fighting vehicles to the Hungarian Defense Forces (HDF) just two years after the order was placed, and deliveries are still ongoing. The agreement states that 46 of the vehicles in question will be delivered from Rheinmetall’s facilities in Germany. The remaining vehicles will be delivered from the Lynx Infantry Fighting Vehicle Factory, which Rheinmetall opened recently in Zalaegerszeg, Hungary.
Hungarian ground forces expect to receive the remaining 43 Leopard 2A7+HU main battle tanks by 2025, which will replace Russian-made T-72s. The 24 new PzH 2000 units, which will replace the Soviet D-20 hand-loaded, towed 152mm gun, are expected to arrive in line with the Leopard 2A7+HU tank delivery schedule. 209 KF-41 Lynx IFVs will be delivered to Hungary in seven different variants (IFV, command, reconnaissance, joint fire observer, mortar carrier, ambulance) to replace Soviet-era BMP-1 and BMP-2 vehicles. With the completion of all deliveries, Hungary will have achieved its goal of replacing Soviet-era weapons with modern systems and creating a heavy brigade capable of working with its NATO allies.