The Leopard ARMOURED RECOVERY VEHICLE

[@harentrois]

I was a mechanic on board a Bergepanzer between 1978-1980 in the Belgian army. During the NATO exercises, we were only 2 on board. I slept lying inside the tank and my fellow driver placed the boom of the crane approximately in the middle of the rear shelf and put a tarpaulin on top to make a camping tent. With the heat from the engine, it had heating for about 10 hours. In the morning, I turned on the main ignition and turned on the internal heating (which can be seen just behind where the orange pipe is attached). I waited 10 minutes in my sleeping bag and then I got out since it was around 20° Celsius. It was a very good machine, we did a lot of recovery of tanks stuck in the mud. It was the happiest time of my life.

[@ennok4231]

In Canadian service, the engine sling was known as the 'back-deck finger pinching device' because you inevitably got a glove or a finger caught in it when you were trying to remove the back deck of a Leopard to get at the power pack.

[@brianj.841]

Well, there wasn't a turret-monster to do it. :)

[@contributor7219]

These were my favourite toy during my RAEME career. As you say Jason, in my humble opinion the ARVMs were possibly the most versatile bit of kit we ever bought. The reccy mechs could do just about anything with one of these, and they are an absolute hotrod to drive. It was an unfathomable decision not to keep these in service. I think the one that was based at 'The Centre' is still a runner, though I'm not sure if that will continue once those displays all go to their new home. Of all the bits of kit I came across during my career, it's the ARVMs I miss the most. Great to see one being covered in detail.

[@frostedbutts4340]

Huh, didn't realize there isn't a matching Abrams engineer vehicle

[@contributor7219]

@@frostedbutts4340 There's the M88, which don't get me wrong is a great recovery vehicle in it's own right, but it just doesn't have the versatility of the Leopard ARVM. The crane on the ARVM capable of doing millimetre-precise lifting jobs. The ARVM also has a neat party trick, which is that it can change its own power pack. Jason is quite right, had we kept the Leo ARVMs alongside the M88s we got later, the ARVM's could have continued to work their magic.

[@wekker090]

Our crew would sleep on the dek in colder conditions, the residual heat of the engine would keep them nice and warm, a tarp was used as cover.

[@gerardhogan3]

I was wondering that when I saw the flat surface on the rear!

[@nauticalvideos2506]

These video's with Jason are great! Please keep them coming!

[@lysanderkrieg5474]

We should never have chosen 0/0 Abrams over the Leo 2. Didn't even trial the Abrams. And yes, totally agree, they are a good ARV.

[@causewaykayak]

Great production - nice to get the expert view. I suppose every army can say something about the 'logic' of military procurement 😊 AusArmour provides a global audience with a balanced diet of history and workshop. Great Job and Thanks !

[@depleteduraniumcowboy3516]

Recovery vehicles are fascinating. Being able to have pack on the back is clever.

[@laurisikio]

Has anyone heard about the famous Packback leopard and its new popular dance?

[@depleteduraniumcowboy3516]

@@laurisikio arguably the best reply to any of my comments ever. Someone must prompt an AI to come up with a picture of this.

[@0Turbox]

Means it could lift whole turrets, damn impressive.

[@wrecks02]

I remember in about '97, 2 D9 cats got bogged doing reclamation work beside Tiger Brennan drive... the second got stuck trying to recover the first... At the time there was nothing 'yellow' in Darwin big enough to pull them out, so a phone call was made... ARVM went for a little drive, single pull (I think), both cats back on dry land...

[@jdshqs]

didnt they have to get them out again when that crane went awol into the drain next to tiger?

[@wrecks02]

nfi...Possibly after I left on posting... I was carting the ARVMs around the Territory because (apparently) I got on the right side of the wreckymechs... though I did have a few favourite crewies among the gun tanks...

[@simonrooney7942]

Entertainment and educational. Thanks Jason.

[@ricksmith4736]

Listening to Jason describe these vehicles is like having a trainer go over it with you.... EXCELLENT job as always Jason

[@luvtruckin]

Jason it's so cool when you post a video I really enjoy your knowledge and presentation.

[@PropperNaughtyGeezer]

I served one of these myself. When I was younger and fit through the hatch. An excellent device. Powerful, sensitive and relatively fast and you have space and a good heater. You can live there for weeks with the usual two-man crew. The second door contains external starting cables, Chainsaws, Motorflex, impact wrenches and a few other devices. That changes occasionally and an electric flame cutter/welding machine. As an experiment, we had an aircraft APU as a power generator. They won't have taken it over. It was louder than the tank. The gearbox shifter here is the new version. We still had the semi-automatic. It was more fun and more similar to that of the Panther or Tiger. He's a little thirsty. I once flushed 500 liters through the engine for a transfer from the Verden area to Bergen. About 40km as the crow flies. Well, I had a Marder on the trailing scissors. But it also ran 65 kmh in this combination.

[@sunil_de6856]

Saw these in action during the flooding catastrophe in the summer of 2021 in Germany. For being a vehicle designed to revoer tanks they are surprisingly good at cleaning up destroyed houses

[@georgesmith5708]

In 1985 in my town in Italy we had an exceptional snowfall, about two meters high in one single day. Very unusual as we are in the plain near Milan, were the average winter snow was no more than 30 to 40 centimeters each time. The local Army barracks Leopards RVs were used to clean the streets. I was a young boy. I still remember looking down at the tanks working in the snow from my window, during the night, after they woke me up with their engines roar. Their sound and their lights reflecting on the white snow in the dark.... something a young boy will never forget. Never. By the way, when I attended my military service ten years later....I met them again, and this time as part of the crew!

[@Slaktrax]

Agreed Jason. They are a brilliant vehicle. Probably does a better job than the Abrams (which I don't rate at all) Australia should have gone to the Leo 2.

[@micemb2570]

I definitely agree, the leopard 2s are a beast and would've been far simpler logistically following the leopard 1

[@TheVandalo76]

meccanico carri 1995 132° reggimento carri ariete, caserma zappala..italia.. lo usavo tutti i giorni per estrarre il motore all leopard 1A2..bei ricordi... grande carro soccorso

[@russwoodward8251]

I find the recovery vehicles the most fascinating type of armored vehicles. Thank you Jason and Aus Armour.

[@Curlyween]

Love the Leopard vehicle series. I was able to visit the Deutsches Panzermuseum Munster in Germany last year and they have the full evolution of the Leopards from early prototype through to the latest Leopard 2. Very impressive. I was lucky enough to drive an Australian Army Leopard at Monegeetta Proving Ground back in the early 90's. Biggest thrill of my life!

[@alecfraser1928]

Most interesting Jason. Looks a very well designed piece of kit.

[@nevillegoddard4966]

Excellent presentation! 😃👍!

[@danmeehan1390]

I served for 36 years in the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps. I have required the use of the Leo ARV on several occasions, including a 2:1 pull on the winch. Our mechanics would put the power pack on the ground and use the back cover on the back deck as their sleeping quarters!

[@bobbroadhurst1648]

Awesome, really enjoyed that Jason

[@nosnhoj99]

Can you guys do a video on your shooting range?

[@jamesbelcher9374]

Can you please do a review on the “Yeramba self-propelled 25 Pounder Tank” it’s so rare, and there are no videos on KZbin anywhere about this rare Australian tank…

[@AdamWeber-pi1gs]

I have of course seen photographs of this monster, but many thanks for the video walkaround and your expert commentary.

[@Max_Flashheart]

Smart thinking and what a beast

[@korbendallas71]

Awesome thanks for the vid. Favourite piece of armour.

[@jacobcox198]

thank you for that great talk cheers mate

[@michaelscaplis]

Interesting the gear shifter and direction switch is different than on the Belgian Bergepanzer 2. I can confirm that it’s a lovely vehicle to drive.

[@MGB-learning]

Always an outstanding presentation by Jason!

[@obsidianjane4413]

@8:45 Did they get M-88s as part of the M-1 Abrams buy? You guys should try to source an M-88 ARV since they are so similar but different approaches to the same problem.

[@danmeehan1390]

The LEO 1 ARVs were great pieces of kit

[@davedickinson822]

Small interesting snippet. Mercedes hub caps fitted inside the final drive hubs. Seen on a demonstration by the the local Panzer battalion at 7 Armd Wksp REME Fallingbostel early 80s.

[@johnnewman366]

Jason, mate, yet another very informative video, thumbs up! Any progress getting the broken (stuck in workshop) Leo 1 up and running soonish? Still hard to obtain parts? And one last question, does the Oz Army still have any ‘stored’ bits that could get the Leo 1 running, sooner than later? Cheers,

[@jasonbelgrave2831]

Hopefully the parts we need will arrive in the next week or two. I'm also keen to get this vehicle back up and running as its a crowd favourite at AusArmourFest.

[@johnnewman366]

Mate, that’s good news, she’s been sitting, forlorn, in the background of the workshop for far too long. Cheers,

[@glengrant3884]

FKN BRILLIANT JASON!!💥💪KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK!!💥👍👊💚💛

[@smalcolmbrown]

Thanks :)

[@54mgtf22]

Very interesting 👍

[@jamessuman2151]

Be cool to see an "Aus armour games" episode with the recovery vehicle, split the team into crews of two, have a driving course challenge, lift some things challenge, winch something out challenge, tow something challenge, do some pioneering challenge, stuff like that

[@danpatterson8009]

That looks like something straight out of The Road Warrior.

[@davidkimmel4216]

Very interesting. Thank you

[@patchmack4469]

Big fan of the ARV, and pleased you have one to give us a walk round - personally i now favour the ARV3 the Kodiak, fantastic system and has way more functionality than it first appears - something i would very much like to get my hands on and use in a civil mode with out all the military equipment - the adverts suggest some roles of use and comes as a perfect platform although my only concerns are weight and performance over inaccessible terrain - nuff said, all very cryptic haha - but when your in need of a descent engineering tool, the ARVs have strength in bucket loads

[@SteamCrane]

How does this compare with the US M88 series? That might be an interesting video. Unfortunate that joint developments never work out.

[@AndrewC.McPherson-xf5zw]

Super cool.

[@andrewfieldhouse3641]

Hi Jason, great video on a great track. I more than concur with your thoughts on keeping the ARVMs in service and to thnk some were used as range targets. Unbelievable!

[@meddy833]

We used the same system to check and adjust the track. We used a penny and Lincoln's nose was the mark for track tension. Memories. We had M88s in my day. Great stuff.

[@herosstratos]

Back in the day, it was the diameter of a cigarette ...

[@meddy833]

@@herosstratos I heard of using that as well. Good memory

[@jumi9342]

I wish I had insisted on getting on a tank when I joined the army, still regretting it 12 years later

[@juannixs1524]

When Restoring the Super Heavy German E-100 Hull? Like finding it in Scrapyard

[@chrisperrien7055]

Scary how much that looks like an M88.

[@ianbell5611]

Very good. Another great video. Cheers

[@drmarkintexas-400]

🎖️🏆🤗⭐🙏 Thank you for sharing

[@herosstratos]

Armored recovery vehicles are always important force multipliers. When assessing the importance of this recovery vehicle with its special capabilities, one should also consider that the Leopard MBT and the Marder AIFV were specially developed so that they can be repaired quickly and easily.

[@rudivandoornegat2371]

I think it is never shown in these kind of tour videos of armoured vehicles how the seats work, while for me I'm so interested how a driver, commander, etc. can sit with his head out of the hatch or completely inside.

[@MikeDudley-b4b]

Excellent.

[@ottovonbismarck2443]

Fun fact: when the crane hydraulics have an internal leak, the fluid reaches a level of 3,5 cm inside the (really comfortable) crew compartment and it takes one recruit and the TC half a day to clean. This gets ridiculous when your own tank workshop can fix any tank/APC/IFV/truck except the own recovery tank.

[@alfredpedneau9598]

Do yall have a Dragon Wagon ???

[@IntrospectorGeneral]

No M-25 in the display collection.

[@yattaran1484]

Thank you for posting !. Shortage of those vehicle made German forces to abandon precious Panzers at the front in World War 2.

[@stanislavczebinski994]

According to the manufacturer, these things had enough battery power to remove it's own engine and lift a replacement in. AFAIK, nobody has ever tested that in reality. If you want to give it a go - would surely make a great youtube video!! Greetings from Germany!!

[@contributor7219]

There's no need to do it with battery power to run the hydraulics, you can use extended lines to run the power pack you are removing while you are removing it, or run the vehicle from the power pack you are installing. It's been done many, many times.

[@AndrewC.McPherson-xf5zw]

Look at the shackle sizes

[@ricksmith4736]

is this the vehicle that I see you move vehicles around with?

[@agn855]

It is.

[@AndrewC.McPherson-xf5zw]

After a maul both sides could find themselves trying to recover kit. Makes for interesting night.

[@marcbrasse747]

Real world Thunderbird rescue vehicle!

[@Rogster559]

Is this the same system as the bridge transport tank or are they a completely different configuration

[@dawshill1400]

Same system; Kampfpanzer Leopard 1, Bergepanzer 1 Standard (Bueffel), Pionierpanzer 1 (Biber), FlakPanzer (Gepard) and Brueckenlegepanzer.

[@Cadfael007]

The Bergepanzer based on the Leopard is called "Büffel" (buffalo) in Germany.

[@chkoehler8879]

Only the Bergepanzer 3 is called Büffel and based of the Leopard 2. This is a Bergepanzer 2 or Standard and based of the Leopard 1

[@tedstrikertwa800]

That's fckn cool 👍

[@steven9562]

Have you got a chieftain tank

[@davidbarnsley8486]

Why we didn’t just go leopard 2 I just don’t know Defence is its own worst enemy most of the time

[@Ganiscol]

When the Abrams is chosen over the Leopard 2, it is usually because the US government sweetened the deal to the point most wont say no...

[@alexanderzink9877]

Dieser Berge Panzer ist halt durchdacht und vielseitig wie ein schweizer Taschenmesser, nicht umsonst ist dieser Panzer bei anderen Nationen recht beliebt.

[@AndrewC.McPherson-xf5zw]

Wow

[@RoFKillaBacon]

who makes those blue pants beau is always wearing

[@agn855]

Bergepanzer [Bear-ga Pan-tsa], from "Bergen" = "salvage", *not* Berge = mountains. JFTR

[@banditbandit7705]

Leopard 2 Abrams?

[@Rusty_Gold85]

Its needed for the Woolworths CEO multi million dollar lump sum payout

[@poppyrider5541]

Some more wide shots to get a sense of scale would be appreciated.

[@AndrewC.McPherson-xf5zw]

Lets push up some dirt. Make a mound to hide behind.

[@kirankrishnars9089]

❤❤

[@bardapenes8299]

The Norwegian army that Tank

[@Joeschmo776]

I love bergepanzers

[@HK94]

👍

[@ianatkinson8464]

😎👍

[@N_Wheeler]

1:17 ball mount MG! ..... for sure a German design, and .... that MG3 was never mounted.

[@paninaro-zq9hx]

I have watched a lot of videos with this fellow talking, he is a mathematician but doesn't know it.

[@bebo4807]

Why did Australia have a vehicle for recovering alcoholics? Why were alcoholics allowed in the navy?

[@ronsteelable9405]

1410 Liters with a range of 800 to 900 km gives this thing a fuel mileage of 1.3 to 1.5 mpg. Oof

[@SteamCrane]

If you state it in terms of ton-miles, it isn't so bad.

[@66kbm]

Unfortunately Jason, as much as you and the other operators of this machine loved it and saw its extended life at no extra cost to the Military Budget, that's not how both Govt and Politics work.

[@ABrit-bt6ce]

Neat toy. Aren't all the cheap spares in or heading to Ukraine.

[@rambletonne]

as a faithfuil satrapy I believe Australia should throw cash at the US whenever possible and irregardless of consequence. Thank you for the video.

[@brothermaynard3200]

Better value than all the foreign aid we give. At least the US is useful. Unlike every other nation that doesn't speak English, eats insects, cats, dogs, or bats, and doesn't have flushing toilets. Where are you from? 😅

[@rambletonne]

@@brothermaynard3200 Sydney. My comment was citical of how we use our defence spend more then whether we should spend it at all. If i had my way we'd still be making cars in Victoria and Adelaide with Fed Gov subsidies as part of our secutity spending. Foreign aid serves a different purpose entirely.

[@brothermaynard3200]

@@rambletonne No argument there. But while Australia needs to increase self-sufficiency as part of irs security, and ensure defence spending is well suited to its strategic circumstances, it still needs as much access to American military technology as it can get. That said, Australia can't expect others to respect it until it respects itself. We don't need a spirit of submission and appeasement - be that to the US or any other nation.

[@gerardhogan3]

Jason just bloody well stop using your experience and make practical decisions, e.g. keep those in service when Abrams came into service. Army never makes poor decisions that waste tax payer funds

[@RonJalbert]

M88 is better

[@gregchijoff9959]

Zelensky will take it! How many have you got?!

[@Jorg-mb2ik]

Hi, Ukraine got from Germany Military Engineering Capabilities 22 mine clearing tanks WISENT 1 6 armoured engineer vehicles DACHs 15 bridge-laying tanks BEAVER 15 armoured recovery vehicles Bergepanzer 2 2 armoured recovery vehicles Bergepanzer 3

[@simonmarsden66]

Are you ex RAEME Jason?

[@jasonbelgrave2831]

Not ex RAEME, but ex RAAC... the RAEME guys were worth their weight in gold who operated these vehicles. Day or Night they kept the Regt running.

[@simonmarsden66]

@@jasonbelgrave2831 I loved my time with the RAC (ex REME), and my son did 15 yrs in Cav. These vids are the closest I get to a tank now 🤣

[@AndrewC.McPherson-xf5zw]

Unresl

[@tanthaman]

This guy has a weird voice

[@brothermaynard3200]

Not as weird as your lineage.. Incest a problem was it? 😂

[@brothermaynard3200]

You have weird ancestry. The problem is what? PS. Incest a problem was it?

[@SteamCrane]

It's Aussie regional, I'm getting used to it. There is so much good knowledge conveyed that a voice doesn't matter.

[@simperous4308]

Can’t you find someone who speaks better English to narrate this? “To be able to necessitate recovery”… 😂😂

[@brothermaynard3200]

Skilled player of the pink oboe are you? 😅 I bet you just love playing with it all night long...

[@graemewatkins5535]

We’re here for the tanks bro, not English lessons. You’re on the wrong site for Shakespeare recitals

[@simperous4308]

@@brothermaynard3200 projecting again…

[@simperous4308]

@@graemewatkins5535more fool you…

[@brothermaynard3200]

@@simperous4308 Keep trying.

[@hamilcarbarca8659]

Looks alot like an M-88.