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German automotive and arms manufacturer Rheinmetall has announced the first shipment of 35mm ammunition for Ukrainian Gepard anti-aircraft tanks.
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Rheinmetall AG of Düsseldorf has shipped the first lot of 35mm air defence ammunition to Ukraine for its twin-barrelled 35mm-armed Gepard vehicles, ahead of a predicted 40,000 rounds expected to be produced and delivered by the end of the year.
The shipment is among 300,000 rounds (150,000 subcalibre APDS-T munitions and 150,000 conventional HEI-T high-explosive incendiary ammunition) ordered from a new production facility relocated from Switzerland to Unterlüss.
The relocation was supported by the governments of Switzerland, Germany and Italy and testing was conducted in Unterlüss to successfully fire the new ammunition in May this year.
“We keep our promises. Just six months after signing the contract, we’ve already started delivery, as agreed,” said Rheinmetall AG executive board chairman Armin Papperger.
“My sincere thanks go to the men and women of Rheinmetall who have done so much to make this project a success, even working on weekends.
“Our subcontractors and vendors deserve praise as well, having helped us to achieve what at first seemed impossible.
“The pressure to succeed was huge but so was our commitment to getting the job done. We want to help the people of Ukraine. Every drone that’s shot down saves lives.”
German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius announced capacity for producing ammunition for the Gepard would be created in Germany during a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group in February this year.
The German government has made 46 Gepard anti-aircraft tanks available, with another six to follow in countering kamikaze drones used against Ukraine’s cities. The 1960s defence system had previously been retired from service in Germany in late 2010.
“We have an unbeatable strength at Rheinmetall, namely, the broad-based expertise that comes with being a systems house,” Papperger said.
“Whether in ammunition development, mechanical production and materials knowledge, in the development of air defence weaponry, in comprehensive live fire testing, in the design and construction of production facilities, everywhere our experts worked with tremendous drive and great personal commitment to complete the project.
“They knew how urgently Ukraine needed the ammunition and the sooner, the better.”
