Notional MGCS family of combat and support vehicles. The current Leopard 2 and Leclerc tank families – while superb weapon systems – have reached the end of their growth potential, and need to be replaced by new designs. Next-generation technologies need to be integrated into MBTs in order to continue to dominate the future battlefield. Conversely, improvements in vehicle armour and defensive systems threaten to erode the effectiveness of today’s front-line MBTs against the MBT fielded by of peer- and near-peer opponents.
This includes more sophisticated anti-tank weapons, long-range precision artillery, armed unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) s, loitering munitions with shaped charge warheads, and unarmed reconnaissance UAVs to aid over-the-horizon (OTH) weapons in targeting armoured formations. The decision to develop MGCS reflects the fact that battlefield threats to even the heaviest main battle tanks (MBTs) are growing. Representing next-generation technology, the weapon system – provisionally designated the ‘Main Ground Combat System’ (MGCS) – will constitute a quantum leap in both offensive and defensive capabilities. In 2018, France and Germany agreed to jointly develop a successor to their respective main battle tanks (MBTs), the Leclerc and the Leopard 2.
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