page_title: Rheinmetall Rh-120
section_title: Operators
hierarchical_section_title: Rheinmetall Rh-120 / Operators
caption_attribution_description: English: Map with Rheinmetall 120mm operators in blue with former operators in red
context_page_description: The Rheinmetall Rh-120 is a 120 mm smoothbore tank gun designed and produced by the West German Rheinmetall-DeTec AG company, developed in response to Soviet advances in armor technology and development of new armored threats. Production began in 1974, with the first version of the gun, known as the L/44 as it was 44 calibers long, used on the German Leopard 2 tank and soon produced under license for the American M1A1 Abrams and other tanks. The 120-millimeter gun has a length of 5.28 meters, and the gun system weighs approximately 3,317 kilograms.
  By 1990, the L/44 was not considered powerful enough to deal with future Soviet armour, which stimulated an effort by Rheinmetall to develop a better main armament. This first involved a 140-millimeter tank gun named Neue Panzerkanone 140, but later turned into a compromise which led to the development of an advanced 120 mm gun, the L/55, based on the same internal geometry as the L/44 and installed in the same breech and mount. The L/55 is 1.32 meters longer, giving increased muzzle velocity to ammunition fired through it. As the L/55 retains the same barrel geometry, it can fire the same ammunition as the L/44.
context_section_description: Due to tank sales, Rheinmetall's L/44 tank gun has been manufactured for other nations. For example, the Leopard 2 armed with the 44 caliber long gun, has been sold to the Netherlands, Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, Austria, Denmark, Finland, and other countries. Egypt had manufactured 700–800 M1A1 Abrams by 2005, and in 2008 requested permission to build another 125 tanks; their M256 main guns (the US version of the L/44) were manufactured by Watervliet Arsenal. The M1A1 has also been exported to Australia, while the M1A2 Abrams has been exported to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. The American license-built M256 has also been offered by General Dynamics Land Systems as part of the M60-2000 Main Battle Tank which would upgrade older M60 Patton tanks to have capabilities of their M1A1 Abrams at a reduced cost, though the company has not yet found a buyer.
  The Leopard 2A6 and its longer L/55 main gun have been exported for use by the Canadian Army, and the Netherlands upgraded part of its original fleet of Leopard 2s with the more powerful armament. The British Army has tested Rheinmetall's longer gun, possibly looking to replace the current L30A1 120 mm L/55 rifled main gun on the Challenger 2. Two Challenger 2s were modified to undergo firing trials. Although South Korean K2 Black Panther is equipped with a L/55 main gun and shows similar characteristics as its German counterpart, it is indigenously developed by Agency for Defense Development and World Industries Ace Corporation (WIA), a Korea-based powertrain company affiliated with Hyundai Kia Motors Group.
caption: Map with Rheinmetall 120mm operators in blue with former operators in red
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