page_title: Leopard 2E
section_title: Programa Coraza
hierarchical_section_title: Leopard 2E / Programa Coraza
caption_attribution_description: English: Spanish Leopard 2A4 in Madrid, 2006.
context_page_description: The Leopardo 2E or Leopard 2A6E is a variant of the German Leopard 2 main battle tank, tailored to the requirements of the Spanish army, which acquired it as part of an armament modernization program named Programa Coraza, or Program Cuirass. The acquisition program for the Leopard 2E began in 1994, five years after the cancellation of the Lince tank program that culminated in an agreement to transfer 108 Leopard 2A4s to the Spanish army in 1998 and started the local production of the Leopard 2E in December 2003. Despite postponement of production owing to the 2003 merger between Santa Bárbara Sistemas and General Dynamics, and continued fabrication issues between 2006 and 2007, 219 Leopard 2Es have been delivered to the Spanish army.
  The Leopard 2E is a major improvement over the M60 Patton tank, which it replaced in Spain's mechanized and armored units. Its development represented a total of 2.6 million man-hours' worth of work, 9,600 of them in Germany, at a total cost of 2.4 billion euros. This makes it one of the most expensive Leopard 2s built. Indigenous production amounted to 60% and the vehicles were assembled locally at Sevilla by Santa Bárbara Sistemas.
context_section_description: In March 1994, the Spanish Ministry of Defense created Programa Coraza 2000 (Program Breastplate 2000), which focused on the procurement and integration of new armament for the Spanish army's modernization. The program included the Leopard 2E and the Pizarro infantry combat vehicle, as well as the Eurocopter Tiger attack helicopter. The program's scope extended to the integration of 108 Leopard 2A4s, which were leased to Spain in late 1995. Apart from procurement, Programa Coraza was meant to prepare the Spanish army logistically for the introduction of new matériel.
caption: Spanish Leopard 2A4 in Madrid, October 2006
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