Leopard 1A5

This page is about the German medium tank Leopard 1A5. For other versions, see Leopard 1 (Family).

Leopard 1A5

Leopard A1A1

Leopard 2A4

Leopard 1A5

Leopard A1A1

Leopard 2A4

Germany

VI Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
9.3	9.3	9.3

Class:

Medium tank

Research:94 000

Purchase:520 000

Show in game

Description

The Leopard 1A5 is the sixth variant of the Leopard 1 main battle tank family. In 1980, a research program was launched to explore further enhancements to the design, including a fully modern firing control system and a fully functional night/bad-weather vision system. It was decided that the upgrades would be based on prior variants that were no longer effective. The Leopard 1A5 variant that resulted was based on 1,225 units of the Leopard 1A1A1 subvariant. The turrets were redesigned again for the Leopard 1A5 variant, both to accommodate all of the new equipment and to relocate more ammunition to the rear of the turret, rather than placing all the ammunition to the left side of the driver, where it had previously been located. The redesigned turret could install the newer 120 mm Rheinmetall L/44 tank gun from the Leopard 2 if desired, however, this option was never utilised. Following trials, the Krupp-Atlas Elektronik EMES 18 fire control system, which evolved from the EMES 15 used on the Leopard 2 main battle tank family, was selected in December 1983. The EMES 18 has two new sights on the top of the turret that did not require the "bumps" those previous optical systems had. The Leopard 1A5 variant could be equipped with bolt-on polycarbonate (Lexan) armour plates, which improved the armour's effectiveness.

Introduced in Update "New Power", The Leopard 1A5 is the Leopard 1 main battle tank family's final production variant. It is the ultimate variant of the Leopard 1 main battle tank family, and it incorporates some of the most advanced cutting-edge technologies, many of which are from the new Leopard 2 main battle tank family. With a laser rangefinder and thermal imaging equipment, it improves the Leopard 1A5's lethality, allowing players to see adversaries first and deliver precise shots. Despite the initial plan to upgrade to the 120 mm Rheinmetall L/44 tank gun, this was not carried out since the Leopard 2s is already in production and offers many more advantages. Nonetheless, the Leopard 1A5 remained the standard armoured force of many countries across the world, and it received various minor upgrades to keep it up to date with modern battlefield requirements.

General info

Survivability and armour

Smoke grenades

Creation of a smoke screen in front of the vehicle

Self-entrenching equipment

Creation of ramparts and trenches in soft ground

Armourfront / side / back

Hull70 / 35 / 25

Turret65 / 45 / 52

Crew4 people

Visibility95 %

The Leopard 1A5, being a further development of the Leopard A1A1, does not differ much from its predecessor in terms of armour. The Leopard 1A5 prioritizes firepower and mobility over the survivability of the tank.

The armour in the frontal arc is reliable against many of the autocannons found on IFVs at the rank, but occasional rounds can penetrate the turret ring. Side armour can be reliably penetrated by autocannon fire, thus it is vital to keep the front of the armour towards the enemy.

Chemical and kinetic rounds from main battle tanks and other vehicles should have no problem to penetrate Leopards armour when they hit centre mass.

Looking at the Leopard from the front, 3 out of 4 crew members sit in almost straight line on the left side of the tank, thus potentially allowing it to get knocked out by a well-placed shot. On top of that, Leopard's biggest ammo rack is located on the right side of the hull, protected only by a 70 mm thin frontal plate angled at 57°. Thus Leopard's hull presents a highly rewarding target and players must avoid getting shot in the hull at all costs.

On the other hand, Leopard's height is just slightly taller than T-72 by a few centimetres, and the gun can be depressed to -9°, allowing Leopard 1A5 to fight well on uneven terrain.

Armour	Front (Slope angle)	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	70 mm (60°) Upper Glacis 50 mm (50°) Lower Glacis	35 mm Upper 30 mm Lower	25 mm	15-30 mm
Turret	45-120 mm Gun mantlet	40-43 mm Right Side 37-45 mm Left Side	33-52 mm	21-65 mm

Notes:

• Suspension wheels, tracks, and torsion bars are 20 mm thick.
• Belly armour is 35 mm thick in the front half and 10 mm in the rear half.

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB73 / 28 km/h

RB and SB66 / 26 km/h

Number of gears8 forward

4 back

Weight42.5 t

Engine power

AB1 584 hp

RB and SB830 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB37.3 hp/t

RB and SB19.5 hp/t

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	73	28	42.5	1,286	1,584	30.26	37.27
Realistic	66	26		734	830	17.27	19.53

The Leopard 1A5 shares almost the same mobility as its predecessor, with only negligible loss of HP per ton. Excellent agility, above average speed and great suspension allow players to reach favourable positions and relocate quickly in case of emergency.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB3 912 → 6 102

RB3 996 → 6 233

SB5 106 → 7 965

Total cost of modifications160 100

267 000

Talisman cost2 600

Crew training150 000

Experts520 000

Aces2 100

Research Aces950 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

150 / 200 / 230 %

220 / 220 / 220 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tracks Research: 6 700 Cost: 11 000 300 Suspension Research: 7 600 Cost: 12 000 340 Brake System Research: 7 600 Cost: 12 000 340 Filters Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 490 Transmission Research: 9 100 Cost: 14 000 400 Engine Research: 9 100 Cost: 14 000 400	Improved Parts Research: 2 000 Cost: 11 000 300 Improved FPE Research: 2 300 Cost: 12 000 340 Crew Replenishment Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 490 Smoke grenade Research: 9 100 Cost: 14 000 400	Horizontal Drive Research: 6 700 Cost: 11 000 300 105mm_usa_HESH_ammo_pack Research: 6 700 Cost: 11 000 300 105mm_NATO_APDS_FS_ammo_pack Research: 6 700 Cost: 11 000 300 Adjustment of Fire Research: 7 600 Cost: 12 000 340 Dozer Blade Research: 7 600 Cost: 12 000 340 Elevation Mechanism Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 490 NVD Research: 11 000 Cost: 17 000 490 Artillery Support Research: 9 100 Cost: 14 000 400 105mm_DM33_APDS_FS_ammo_pack Research: 9 100 Cost: 14 000 400 Laser rangefinder Research: 9 100 Cost: 14 000 400

Players focus should be on firepower upgrades. After Parts and FPE, one should go for the DM23 round, as most tanks at this rank have either composite armour, ERA or both, making stock HEAT rounds very ineffective. After that, players' focus should be on getting thermals, which help tremendously with acquiring targets and it is impossible to fight at night without them. Lastly, players should go for DM33 and laser rangefinder. Those make the Leopard 1A5 a powerful sniper and level its fighting chance against most opponents.

Armaments

Laser rangefinder

Reduces the error and increases the maximum measurable distance of the rangefinder

Night vision device

Improves visibility by enhancing natural light or active illumination.

Thermal imager

Allows to see thermal radiation in the infrared range day and night

Main armament

105 mm L7A3 cannon

Two-plane stabilizer

Reduces the swing of the gun in two planes while moving

Ammunition60 rounds

First-order14 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

8.7 → 6.7 s

Vertical guidance-9° / 20°

105 mm L7A3					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	60	-9°/+20°	±180°	Two-plane	22.8	31.6	38.4	42.5	45.2	8.71	7.70	7.10	6.70
Realistic					14.3	16.8	20.4	22.6	24.0

The Leopard 1A5 mounts a late-generation fully stabilised L7 cannon, which is pretty standard at this rank. It also has access to standard ammunition selection, though one thing to note is that it has the option to equip lethal DM33 rounds, which are the third best NATO rounds available for 105 mm guns (after M900 and DM63).

Ammunition

• DM12 HEATFS - Stock round. The HEAT round does not lose penetration with distance travelled. Unlike kinetic penetrators, it has one downside: given that it is a chemical round, its fuse is highly sensitive. With the emergence of composite and reactive armour, it quickly becomes obsolete in the anti-tank role. Requires careful aiming to properly damage newer tanks, though it can hold its own while fighting older tanks, lighter vehicles and low-flying helicopters.
• DM512 HESH - This round was always plagued by a plethora of problems: low velocity, low penetration, inconsistent mechanics and sensitive fuse make this round gimmicky at best. That being said, with the overpressure mechanic, this round can be used in CQB against light vehicles with devastating effect.
• DM23 APFSDS - Available as a tier I modification, this round allows player to engage modern tanks more reliably, since it performs better against composite and reactive armour. Penetration is relatively below average when compared to rounds available to the Leopard 1A5's contemporaries, it should be used as a stop gap solution until the next round becomes available.
• DM33 APFSDS - Best round available to the Leopard 1A5 and third best NATO round available for 105 mm cannons. It allows player to engage most enemies at the Leopard 1A5's BR at any range reliably. With careful aiming, even higher BR vehicles are not safe. Player should be of note that this round can easily over penetrate light vehicles such as BMP-2 or SPAAGs, so aiming at vital components is preferred in order to create shrapnel necessary to destroy them.

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
DM12	HEATFS	400	400	400	400	400	400
DM512	HESH	127	127	127	127	127	127
DM23	APFSDS	337	335	330	322	314	306
DM33	APFSDS	408	405	398	389	379	370

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (kg)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
DM12	HEATFS	1,174	10.5	0.05	0.1	1.27	65°	72°	77°
DM512	HESH	732	11.2	0.1	4	4.31	73°	77°	80°
DM23	APFSDS	1,455	4.2	-	-	-	78°	80°	81°
DM33	APFSDS	1,455	3.79	-	-	-	78°	80°	81°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the Leopard I (identical)

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	5th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
60	57 (+3)	54 (+6)	15 (+45)	12 (+48)	1 (+59)	No

Machine guns

7.62 mm MG3A1 machine gun (coaxial)

Ammunition4 600 rounds

Belt capacity200 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate1 200 shots/min

7.62 mm MG3A1 machine gun

Ammunition2 000 rounds

Belt capacity200 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate1 200 shots/min

7.62 mm MG3A1
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Coaxial	5,000 (200)	1,200	N/A	N/A
Pintle	2,000 (200)	1,200	-8°/+20°	±120°

Usage in battles

The Leopard 1A5 is a natural evolution of the Leopard A1A1's playstyle, and performs similarly to the Leopard A1A1 (L/44).

Tactics:

With addition of laser range finder, more powerful round and thermal gunner optics, the Leopard 1A5 can become a very potent sniper on open maps. Players should exploit the Leopard's mobility, low profile and handy gun depression to reach favourable hull down positions and start picking off targets. Entrenched sniping the Leopard 1A5 becomes a nightmare for enemy tanks trying to cross its sight line, as this playstyle allows players to negate their biggest weakness: the lack of armour.

The Leopards can flank well, but as thermal sights and laser range finders are becoming more common at the Leopard 1A5's BR, one must adapt certain flanking tactics:

• First, players shouldn't move across an open field without cover unless they know for certain that there is no one watching or unless absolutely necessary.
• Second, players should utilize terrain as much as they can - after all, a thermal imager is just a filter for a camera, and can't highlight the thermal signature of something that can't be seen in the first place. Move below the horizon, try to put as much heavy foliage as you can between you and the suspected position of enemy tanks.
• Third, do not be afraid to stop when approaching suspected enemy positions, turn off your engine and listen. This allows you to detect enemy flankers in close proximity before they enter your field of vision, thus allowing you to avoid getting ambushed.

Sadly, while the Leopard 1A5 performs great at longer ranges, its performance is below average on CQC maps with corridors and streets that do not allow to exploit the Leopard's mobility, like those found on Advance to Rhine. Due to lack of armour, IFVs with high rate of fire autocannons and more armoured tanks in general outperform Leopards by wide margin in these environments. A lone Leopard is expected to lose in most scenarios, thus players should focus on supporting their allies. Let them take a shot, and as soon as you see the enemy tank return fire, lunge forward and send the enemy back to the garage.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Has access to the powerful DM33 round
• Has access to generation 1 gunner thermals
• Excellent mobility

Cons:

• Armour doesn't offer much protection
• Low survivability when hit
• Weak armour overall

History

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Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the Leopard 1A5 from live.warthunder.com.

See also

Related development

• Leopard 1 (Family)

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• other literature.