Academy 13427 1/72 French Army Char Leclerc Tank, Plastic Model Kit (A13427)

Contents

Model Specifications

• Reproduction of the French Char Leclerc battle tank.
• Includes decals offering five different marking options to provide variety across French Army units.
• Precisely rendered panel lines and detailed palettes for a realistic model.
• Scale: 1:72 for a compact and detailed display.
• Paints are not included in the package but can be easily found with the paint catalog provided.

The first prototypes of the French Leclerc 3rd generation main battle tank were produced in 1986. Mass production started in 1992 and continued with interruptions (2017), producing approximately 850 vehicles. The Leclerc tank is powered by a 1500 horsepower SAEM UDU V8X 1500 T9 Hyperbar engine. Its main armament is a 120 mm GIAT CN120-26/52 cannon, and its auxiliary armament is two 12.7 mm and 7.62 mm machine guns.

The Leclerc is a new main battle tank developed by the French army to replace the AMX-30 or AMX-30B2 tanks and to have greater combat capability than other Western designs. Modern electronics were used in the large-scale design of the new tank, which can be seen in particular in the very effective FCS (fire control system), which provides a 95% accuracy with the first shot! Moreover, the gun used is in no way inferior to the German or American solutions on the Leopard 2 or M1A1 Abrams tanks. Leclerc also has great maneuverability and mobility. However, it can be assumed that its armor is of slightly lower quality than other 3rd generation Western vehicles. Another disadvantage is its relatively high price, estimated at 6.5 million euros for a tank in 2001. The first Leclerc vehicles reached full combat readiness in the French army in 1995. The only foreign buyer of this vehicle was the United Arab Emirates, which purchased 436 units; For comparison, the French army purchased 406 of this tank. The Leclerc has been used for combat purposes in peacekeeping missions in Kosovo (1999) and Lebanon (2006), and since 2015 in the civil war in Yemen.