Mold armor for Germany – why the price for the Swiss Leos is so low Dissatisfaction in the Federal Council: The circumstances surrounding Baume-Schneider’s move are being criticized

The long tug-of-war for the Leopard 2 main battle tanks came to a successful end in November: the Federal Armaments Agency (Armasuisse) and the German manufacturer Rheinmetall signed the contract for the sale of 25 tanks at the end of November, and the Federal Armaments Agency granted the municipality the export permit .

The 25 Leopard tanks are among 87 tanks that have been decommissioned in eastern Switzerland without retaining their value. German Economy Minister Robert Habeck and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius requested the resale of some of these decommissioned tanks in February.

You can see that the sales process took a long time and that several authorities had to give their approval – not least because there were questions about neutrality.

Good or bad deal? The situation says it

Now the deal is once again causing dissatisfaction. The reason for this is the sales price. According to federal councilor Viola Amherd, this is in the “low double-digit million range.”

This caused some parliamentarians to sit up and take notice. Only in May did the German Bundestag approve a budget of 525 million euros for 18 brand new Leopard 2 battle tanks – equivalent to a purchase price of 30 million euros per tank.

Now documents reveal why the Swiss tanks were given to Germany so cheaply: some of the decommissioned Leos are in poor condition, reports “Blick”. The sales contract number 4780002844 between Armasuisse and Rheinmetall reveals a lot. The condition of each individual tank is listed. An example:

And that’s for one tank. According to Blick, most tanks are contaminated with mold and many are missing, in addition to the engine blocks or gun barrels, also the lifting mechanism, the ejection tube or the covers of the emergency exit hatches. So it’s no surprise that the federal government is happy with the deal. (Yes W)