Hmm, in tank battle nowadays you at most get only one shot if
both tanks are already engaging each other. An autoloader might not
be as great an advantage as you think. The Fire Control System, the
ability to shoot further and on the move are things that western
tanks tend to do better.
Also an autoloader is a complex piece of equipment can jam and
break down (and if it does jam the tank is all but useless until it
is fixed). A 19-year old with a strong arm is a lot smarter, is an
extra set of eyes and ears if needed, and can help pull through the
gun barrel. Also in war, I suspect 19-year olds might be (to be a
bit cold blooded) easier to replace then an autoloader. So it's
pros and cons. They did consider using autoloading designs when
making the M1 and Leo2, but rejected that for the said
reasons.
The armour protection of the Leo2A4 is not superior to that of the
later M1 series AFAIK, given the yanks were nutty enough to use DU
in their armour when considering KE protection. But I think it's
more or less up there lah. In terms of protection the two tanks are
roughly equal, but I suspect the fuel efficency issue is certainly
a big factor in why we chose the Leo2, if the M1 was even a
consideration to begin with. The Leo2A4 fleet might also be easier
to "reverse engineer" I suspect, if we ever decide to make our own
upgrades.
Somebody said the Leo2a4 used space armour, I don't think this is
true. All the stuff I read so far seems to indicated this is
composite. A better example of a spaced armour concept would be in
the Merky series of tanks.
And to correct the impression that M1s are getting pwned- the M1s
are doing very well in Iraq, once you realize that the M1s actually
destroyed were done in by "suck-thumb" IEDs that no MBT in the
world can survive. The tanks actually soaked up a large number of
IED attacks that would have totally wiped out other smaller units,
and this M1 tankie actually showed pictures of post-IEDed M1s which
survived the attacks. You don't want to be in any other thing in
Iraq (except maybe Merky).
But anyway, great news!
