Ukraine has ordered Skyranger 35 SPAAGs for “three-digit million” Euros, for integration on Leopard 1 MBT hulls to bolster low altitude defence quickly.
Rheinmetall announced the major Skyranger 35 order from Ukraine, which is financed by salvaging the frozen Russian assets from an undisclosed European country.
To ensure quick completion, Skyranger 35s will be integrated on abundant Leopard 1 MBT hulls, which can be said to be rendered as under-protected for a firefight against an average modern MBT. However, the sheer mobility and carrying capacity of a tank hull can not be dismissed this quickly.
Gepard 1A5 35 mm SPAAGs in frequent use are also based on the Leopard 1 MBT hull with slight changes. However, the newer Skyranger 35 brings many advantages compared to the Gepard 1A5, which is an ageing system despite its successful deployment.
The most prominent advantage of Skyranger 35 is obviously its inherent ability to fire the AHEAD programmed airburst ammunition, which spreads 152 tungsten pellets, which is highly effective against targets of small frame, like UAVs and missiles. This translates to less ammunition spent per target, giving advantages against saturation and ensuring a longer combat endurance.
Aside from this, Skyranger 35 features S-band AESA radars providing 360-degree coverage for short-range searching/tracking and a newer fire control radar coupled with optics.
Another notable feature is the use of a single KDG revolver cannon with a fire rate of 1000 RPM, compared to Gepard using twin KDA revolver cannons with a fire rate of 550x2 RPM.
Author: Kaan Azman
Editor:Özgür Ekşi
