Tank Battles: Rheinmetall’s New KF51 Panther Tank vs. US Army Abrams Tanks

Video Above: Army Research Lab | Armored Warfare

By Kris Osborn – President & Editor-In-Chief, Warrior Maven

The newly unveiled Rheinmetall KF51 Panther tank is reported to be built with a 130mm Future Gun System, a weapon larger than the standard 120mm weapon used on the Abrams, something which raises questions about the extent to which the new platform represents a leap-forward technologically.

Clearly the tank appears to weave in new, much more capable technologies, however it is not clear just how much the new tank rivals or surpasses the most current variants of the US Army Abrams.

Rheinmetall KF51 Panther Tank & Abrams Tanks

A recently published Popular Mechanics article says Rheinmetall claims the new gun as a 50-percent longer kill-range, writing “According to Europäische Sicherheit & Technik, the new gun is a 130-millimeter/L52 gun, meaning the barrel length is 52 times the diameter of the barrel. That comes out to 6,760 millimeters, or 22.1 feet long. The barrel is also fitted with a futuristic-looking shroud, but it’s not clear how it contributes to the efficiency or effectiveness of the tank.”

Abrams developers explain they have developed the technology for “modular’ gun applications, meaning a 130mm cannon could be added on as needed. When it comes to lethality, it seems significant that the article on the Panther makes no mention of ammunition, as that is an area wherein there continues to be impactful innovations. 

The newer Abrams vehicles have an ammunition data link. Not only are there things like delayed fuses for added penetrating effects, proximity fuses for area detonation or “point-detonate” kinds of round, but the Army has for many years now been developing its Advanced Multi-Purpose Round for tanks.