The Lynx is a German armoured fighting vehicle developed by Rheinmetall Landsysteme (part of Rheinmetall's Vehicle Systems division). The Lynx, configured as a KF31 infantry fighting vehicle (IFV), was unveiled at the Eurosatory defence exhibition on 14 June 2016. The KF41 variant was unveiled at the Eurosatory defence exhibition on 12 June 2018. According to Rheinmetall, the Lynx family of tracked armoured vehicles is at the forefront of a new trend in IFV design toward armoured vehicles with lower unit and through-life costs and reduced complexity. One of the key principles of the Lynx concept is the integration of proven sub-systems with a high technology readiness level to reduce development time, cost and technical risk.
 The Lynx family has been designed as a highly protected tracked armoured vehicle to fill a gap identified in the market by Rheinmetall. Lynx was designed as a private venture by Rheinmetall to provide customers with a modern fighting vehicle that will be able to counter emerging near peer threats whilst maintaining the ability to conduct asymmetric or peace-keeping operations. It was first shown publicly in June 2016, and in the lighter KF31 configuration.
 On 4 June 2018 Rheinmetall issued a press release informing that the larger Lynx KF41 would debut twice in different configurations at the upcoming Eurosatory defence exhibition later that month. Following the unveiling in IFV configuration on 12 June the vehicle was reconfigured as a command variant, which was unveiled on 13 June. The First configuration would be as an infantry fighting vehicle with the new Lance 2.0 turret, and then after refitting on site, configured as command variant.
 As of May 2020 Rheinmetall had confirmed the company had proposed the Lynx to meet requirements in Australia, the Czech Republic, and the United States, and as of March 2022 these requirements were ongoing. The first user of the Lynx was announced as Hungary on 10 September 2020.
 The Lynx Combat Support Vehicle (CSV) was unveiled on 18 October 2021. The Lynx CSV was designed to meet the Australian Army's Land 400 Phase 3 requirement for approximately 100 support vehicles capable of fulfilling the manoeuvre support, logistics, repair, and recovery roles. It was expected that the CSV variant will be marketed to other potential export customers, including Hungary and the US.
 The Lynx 120 was announced by the company in February 2022. The Lynx 120 is a fire support variant of the Lynx KF41 platform. It consists of a Lynx KF41 hull mounting a large-calibre crewed turret armed with a derivative of Rheinmetall's 120 mm smoothbore gun family.
 The Lynx is built around a sponson-shaped hull with a long, shallow glacis and angled belly plate. The driver compartment is at the front left, the engine the front right, fighting compartment in the middle (when fitted with a turret) and there is a dismount compartment at the rear, access to which is via a ramp in the rear of the vehicle. A key feature of the Lynx design concept is the separation and modularity of the vehicle into two primary parts: the basic vehicle and specialist mission and role equipment. Lynx variants are designed around a common drive module upon which the mission kits are installed. Available kits include an IFV and APC. For the former, a turret is fitted to the roof of the hull, for the latter the turret is removed and replaced by a roof plate that includes an array of vision devices and a remote weapon station. It is understood that this transformation can be carried out near to, or in the field, within eight hours. Other variants have been developed, or will be developed. Those developed and shown include a Combat Support Vehicle and a 120 mm-armed fire support vehicle. Variants to be developed include a mortar carrier with 120mm mortar, an ambulance, a C2/C3 vehicle, and an air defence variant.
 The Lynx's overall design layout is conventional, the front right located powerpack consisting of a Liebherr six-cylinder inline diesel engine coupled to either an Allison X300 series 6F/1R or Renk HSWL 256 automatic transmission. The Liebherr diesel is of the common rail type and fitted with a two-stage turbocharger and two-stage intercooler. Power output when fitted to the Lynx varies from 755 hp (KF31) to 1,140 hp (KF41), although the actual engine is rated at up to 1,475 hp. The exhaust (right) and engine cooling (left) are routed to the rear of the vehicle to reduce its thermal and acoustic signature. Final drives are mounted in the front and the toothless idler sprockets with track tensioners are mounted at the rear. The running gear has six road wheel stations per side, which guide a lightweight steel or segmented rubber band-type track. The rubber-tyred road wheels are mounted on a suspension system comprising swing arms with conventional torsion bars and a SupaShock damper systems, this set-up is proven to be reliable and cost-efficient.
The Lynx is fitted with as many mature sub-systems as possible in order to facilitate maintenance. The KF41 transmission is the same as that used in the Puma and Ajax vehicles, the Liebherr engine is widely used in the construction industry, and the driver’s station is taken from the Kodiak armoured engineering vehicle. The NBC system is the same as that installed on Boxer and the tracks are identical to those used on the PzH 2000.
 Mobility parameters will vary by variant and exact configuration but are stated to include a maximum road speed of 70 km/h, a gradeability of at least 60%, a sideslope traverse capability of at least 30%, the ability to climb (forwards) a 1 m vertical obstacle, the ability to cross a 2.5 m trench, and an unprepared fording depth of 1.5 m. Operational range on 900-litres of diesel fuel is 500 km.
 The driver is located to the left front side of the hull and is furnished with three periscopes, one of which can be replaced with a night vision alternative. The rear crew compartment is designed as a mission neutral space with the incorporation of C-rails and a pattern of universal fixing points on the walls and floor. This provides a flexible configuration for all mission specific equipment. A large power-operated rear ramp allows for rapid ingress/egress of dismounts. For the CSV variant the most prominent design change is the removal of the turret and the alteration of the rear of the vehicle to provide a lowered loadbed for cargo to be transported on. In addition a 5 tonne capacity crane has been installed in the centre of the vehicle for cargo manipulation. The remaining internal volume below the loadbed is understood to house additional fuel tanks and storage for specialist equipment.
 The protection of the Lynx is designed to be scaled according to the threat. The vehicle's ballistic steel armour is designed to protect the Lynx from anti-tank weapons, medium-caliber ammunition, artillery shrapnel and bomblets, although exact details are classified. The interior is fitted with a spall liner to protect the crew, while the vehicle also features decoupled seats in addition to mine and IED protection packages that include a double floor. The standard armour configuration is designated the Mounted Combat Operations (MCO) kit and it is intended to offer vehicle protection against similarly armed opponents. It is understood to combine an advanced passive component with active protection systems. The second kit is designated the Complex Urban Environment (CUE) kit and excludes any active protection elements. Lynx is understood to be available with one further armour kit that can be used for air transportation, providing a vehicle that can deploy straight from a transport aircraft.
 Additional active protection can be provided for shaped charge warhead attack using Rheinmetall's Active Protection System AMAP-ADS. A range of passive protection and defensive aids are also available. They include a rapid obscuration system (ROSY), laser warning system and acoustic shot locator system. These are integrated in the Lance turret when it is fitted along with automatic target recognition and automatic target tracking.
 The heating, cooling and nuclear, biological and chemical filtration system is combined in an environmental control system stowed in the rear-located left sponson in front of the cooling system. Air ducts lead to the floor and to an air duct interface on the top end of the hull.
 The vehicle as shown at Eurosatory 2016 was outfitted with a Lance turret mounting a stabilized, externally powered, autocannon of 30 mm or 35 mm caliber, with airburst munition support. This allows the Lynx to engage targets at ranges of up to 3,000 meters, both when static and when on the move. The vehicle's main armament has an elevation of between +45˚ and −10˚ and has a controlled rate of fire of 200 rounds per minute. Mounted coaxial to the right is the latest Rheinmetall Machine Gun (RMG) 7.62 mm, which can fire standard 7.62 × 51 mm NATO ammunition and has a maximum rate of fire of 800 rounds a minute. The turret has manual back-up in case of power failure.
 The vehicle can also mount an optional anti-tank guided missile launcher. The demonstrator vehicle at Eurosatory 2016 was outfitted with a twin-round launcher for the Spike-LR anti-tank guided missile.
 The IFV variant of the KF41 variant shown at Eurosatory 2018 was fitted with the updated Lance 2.0 turret, this having flexible mission pods fitted on the left and right sides so that a variety of subsystems can be installed to provide the turret with specialist capabilities.
 The Lynx 120 fire support variant is armed with a derivative of Rheinmetall's 120 mm smoothbore gun family that is capable of firing the DM11 programmable HE round. A light machine gun is mounted co-axially with the main armament, and a RWS armed with a 12.7 mm heavy machine gun is installed on the rear of the turret roof behind the commander's panoramic sight. A row of eight Wegmann 76 mm smoke dischargers is also installed on either side of the turret behind the two hatches.
 The Lynx family of tracked armoured vehicles is based around two primary models, the KF31 and a slightly larger but considerably heavier KF41. Both models can be configured for a variety of roles that include command and control, armoured reconnaissance, surveillance, repair, recovery or ambulance operations in addition to infantry fighting vehicle configuration.
 This model, first displayed at Eurosatory 2016, has a maximum permissible gross vehicle weight of 35 to 38 tonnes, is 7.22 meters long and can carry a crew of three plus six passengers. Powered by a 563 kW (755 hp) engine, the vehicle can reach a top speed of 65 km/h.
 This model, as displayed for the first time at Eurosatory 2018, has a maximum permissible gross vehicle weight of up to 50 tonnes. The KF41 can carry a crew of three plus eight passengers. It is powered by an 850 kW (1,140 hp) engine and has a top speed of 70 km/h (43 mph). The KF41 is being offered to the Australian Army for the Land 400 program. In December 2020, the first of three KF41s were sent to Australia for testing under the Land 400 program. If successful, Australia will purchase a total of 450 KF41s for a total of $18.1 billion AUD ($13.30 billion USD).
 Variants shown as of March 2022 include the Lynx 120 that was first shown in February 2022, the Lynx Combat Support Vehicle that was first shown in October 2021, and the APC/command configuration which was shown as an overnight conversion from a KF41 at Eurosatory 2018. Variants that have been announced as to be developed (for Hungary) are a mortar carrier with 120mm mortar, an ambulance, a C2/C3 vehicle, and an air defence variant with cannon. Other variants will require development if contracts are won and these will include logistics and ammunition transporters.