The Brazilian Army is seeking to upgrade its Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) Leopard 1A5BR main battle tank (MBT) through a competition for local modernisation.
The request for information (RFI) and request for proposals (RFPs) are scheduled to be issued by the Directorate of Materiel, part of the Logistics Command, in 2022 to modernise 116 of the existing 220 MBTs, the army told Janes .
Brazil's Leopard 1A5BR is fielded by the 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 5th Combat Tanks Regiments and the 4th, 6th, and 9th Armoured Cavalry Regiments. (Brazilian Army)
The upgrade is part of the 2020–39 Armoured Forces Sub-program of the Army Strategic Program for Obtaining Full Operational Capability. It is meant to address the tank's obsolescence and extend its lifespan by more than 15 years.
Requirements were formally approved on 12 February 2020 and formal clearance to proceed with the effort was given on 17 December 2020.
The vehicles will principally receive a fully electric turret drive system, commander's independent sight, modernised EMES 18 fire-control system, driver's thermal imager, climate control unit, and automatic fire suppression system for the engine compartment.
A government furnished command-and-control suite consisting of an L3Harris Falcon III RF-7800V-V51x VHF radio, Thales SOTAS IP intercom, Centro de Desenvolvimento de Sistemas GCB battle management system, and AEL Sistemas CTM rugged tactical computer will be added to the MBTs.
The requirement also includes provisions to add a combat dozer blade, full-width surface clearance device, remote weapon station, and add-on armor protection kit.
Options could add an inertial navigation system, 360° laser warning system, active or passive protection system, auxiliary power unit, situational awareness system, and CBRN defence kit.
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