Leopard Tanks - Germany: Books - History, Types and Construction

Leopard 1 Main Battle Tank Manual - all models and variant (1965 to present)

The Leopard 1 family of vehicles became the first fully-German developed series of armoured combat vehicles to be built since the end of the Second World War. Using the German-built version of the British L7 105mm gun the Leopard focused on firepower and with its impressive cross-country performance it was unmatched by most other tank designs of the era.

Michael Shackleton and Mike Cecil consider the design, development, anatomy and operational service of the Leopard 1 in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Croatia, Kosova and Somalia.

Leopard 1 Main Battle Tank 1965-1995

Development of the Leopard 1 can be traced back to November 1956, when the operational requirement for a new battle tank was formulated by the Federal German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr). Originally a Franco-German project, the tank under design was named the 'Standard-Panzer'. The French later dropped out, however, and on 1 October 1963 the 'Standard' tank was officially named 'Leopard', an appropriate choice considering Germany's wartime pedigree with the formidable Tiger and Panther.

This book traces the development and service record of the Leopard 1, detailing its control systems, modifications and variants.

Contents: Design and Development - Series Production - First Modernisation - Second Modernisation - Upgrading the Leopard I - Inside the Leopard I A5 - The Leopard I in Foreign Service - Variants.

Leopard 2 Main Battle Tank 1979-1998

In 1963 West Germany and the United States signed an agreement to develop the best tank in the world - the MBT/KPz-70. Though by 1970 this project was stopped, West Germany used the components created for the MBT/KPz-70 to develop a new main battle tank - the Leopard 2. Since 1979, when the first Leopard 2 rolled off the production line, the Leopard 2 has undergone various modifications, and has been exported to various European countries.
Enhanced by Osprey's signature colour plates and cutaway artwork, this book examines the development of the Leopard 2 from the first batch to its evolution into the improved Leopard 2 A5, detailing its features and variants.

Contents: Design and Development - The Leopard 2 AV - Series Production - Inside the Leopard 2A4 - The Improved Leopard 2 - The Leopard 2 in Foreign Service - Swedish Leopard 2.