Germany ships first batch of new Gepard ammo to Ukraine

STUTTGART, Germany — Germany has delivered the first shipment of new ammunition for the Gepard anti-aircraft weapon system to Ukraine , manufacturer Rheinmetall and the German Defence Ministry announced Tuesday.

This first lot of new 35mm ammunition comes months after Rheinmetall invested in new production capacity in the German state of Lower Saxony. It also follows an announcement by Defence Minister Boris Pistorius at a February meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group that the country would begin producing the Gepard’s munitions locally .

The contract with Rheinmetall was signed a few days prior for 300,000 rounds, at a total cost of €168 million (U.S. $181 million). Half of those rounds are bound for Ukraine, 40,000 of which will be delivered to Kyiv by the end of 2023, the company said.

This initial delivery includes “a five-digit number” of munitions, according to the German military.

“The war in Ukraine reminds us almost every day that air defense and sufficient ammunition are what count when defending one’s own country,” Pistorius said in the release. “With the resumption of production for the Gepard ammunition, we are focusing precisely on these two crucial aspects.”

“We will continue to support Ukraine in the areas that are our strengths: artillery, ammunition and ground-based air defense,” he added.

The self-propelled Gepard wields two 35mm guns, and Germany has provided 46 of the systems to Ukrainian troops, with another six to come. The anti-aircraft system has proved critical in helping Ukraine protect its airspace from Russian drones and other weapons. Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

But ammunition for the Gepard is tough to come by, as the German military retired the system from service about 15 years ago, and national ammo stocks had since dropped to zero.

According to a Rheinmetall news release, other nations declined to contribute from their existing stocks of ammunition, “citing either political considerations or constitutional restrictions.” Rheinmetall typically produces its munitions for medium-range artillery in Switzerland. The long-neutral nation has not sent any weapons to Ukraine , but has earmarked about 1.5 billion Swiss francs ($1.7 billion) for humanitarian and development aid to Kyiv over the next five years.

Local reports indicate the Swiss government is considering whether to allow third-party operators of locally made weapons to send them to Ukraine, under stringent export guidelines.

As a result, Rheinmetall modified existing 35mm ammunition from the main armament of an infantry fighting vehicle for use in the Gepard, then ensured the Gepard fire control unit could reliably recognize the ammunition.

Rheinmetall performed multiple tests at the company’s proving ground at Unterlüss in Lower Saxony, and successfully fired the ammo by a Gepard in May.

The company is providing two types of ammunition to Ukraine as part of the aforementioned commitment, including a subcaliber APDS-T munition containing heavy metal penetrators, intended for engaging hardened targets. The second type is a conventional high-explosive incendiary designed for air defense and for attacking aircraft and guided missiles.

Vivienne Machi is a reporter based in Stuttgart, Germany, contributing to Defense News' European coverage. She previously reported for National Defense Magazine, Defense Daily, Via Satellite, Foreign Policy and the Dayton Daily News. She was named the Defence Media Awards' best young defense journalist in 2020.

德国斯图加特——德国莱茵金属公司和德国国防部周二宣布，德国已向乌克兰交付了第一批用于“猎豹”防空武器系统的新型弹药。

这批新型35毫米弹药的交付距离莱茵金属公司在德国下萨克森州投资新建生产线仅数月之隔。此前，乌克兰国防部长鲍里斯·皮斯托里乌斯在2月份举行的乌克兰国防联络小组会议上宣布，乌克兰将开始在当地生产“猎豹”自行榴弹炮弹药。

几天前，该公司与莱茵金属公司签署了30万发炮弹的合同，总价值1.68亿欧元（1.81亿美元）。该公司表示，其中一半炮弹将运往乌克兰，4万发将于2023年底前交付基辅。

据德国军方称，首批交付的弹药数量为“五位数”。

皮斯托瑞斯在新闻稿中表示：“乌克兰战争几乎每天都在提醒我们，保卫祖国的关键在于防空和充足的弹药。随着猎豹导弹弹药生产的恢复，我们正着力解决这两个关键问题。”

“我们将继续在我们擅长的领域支持乌克兰：火炮、弹药和地面防空，”他补充道。

“猎豹”自行防空系统配备两门35毫米火炮，德国已向乌克兰军队提供了46套该系统，另有6套即将交付。事实证明，这套防空系统对于帮助乌克兰保护其领空免受俄罗斯无人机和其他武器的攻击至关重要。俄罗斯于2022年2月对乌克兰发动了全面入侵。

但是猎豹导弹的弹药很难获得，因为德国军方大约在 15 年前就已将该系统退役，而且国家弹药库存也已降至零。

根据莱茵金属公司发布的新闻稿，其他国家以“政治考量或宪法限制”为由，拒绝从其现有弹药库存中提供援助。莱茵金属公司通常在瑞士生产中程火炮弹药。这个长期保持中立的国家没有向乌克兰提供任何武器，但已拨出约15亿瑞士法郎（约合17亿美元）用于未来五年向基辅提供人道主义和发展援助。

当地报道显示，瑞士政府正在考虑是否允许第三方运营商在严格的出口指导方针下，将本地制造的武器运往乌克兰。

因此，莱茵金属公司对步兵战车主炮的现有 35 毫米弹药进行了改装，使其适用于猎豹坦克，然后确保猎豹坦克的火控单元能够可靠地识别这种弹药。

莱茵金属公司在位于下萨克森州翁特吕斯的公司试验场进行了多次测试，并于 5 月份用猎豹式自行火炮成功发射了该弹药。

根据上述承诺，该公司向乌克兰提供两种弹药，其中包括一种装有重金属穿甲体的次口径APDS-T弹药，用于打击加固目标；另一种是常规高爆燃烧弹，设计用于防空以及攻击飞机和导弹。

薇薇安·马奇是驻德国斯图加特的一名记者，主要负责《防务新闻》的欧洲报道。她此前曾为《国家防务杂志》、《防务日报》、《卫星通讯》、《外交政策》和《代顿每日新闻》撰稿。2020年，她荣获防务媒体奖最佳青年防务记者称号。