On Tuesday, June 23, 2026, German group Rheinmetall AG announced that it has signed a contract with the Bundeswehr procurement authority BAAINBw (Bundesamt für Ausrüstung, Informationstechnik und Nutzung der Bundeswehr) worth several hundred million EUR (in the mid three-digit million-euro range, i.e. approximately half a billion EUR – ed.) for the delivery of 23 Bergepanzer 3 Büffel tracked armored recovery vehicles on a Leopard 2 tank chassis.
Photo: Rheinmetall AG
This followed the approval by the parliamentary budget committee (Haushaltsausschuss) of the Bundestag on June 10 of this year of the Federal Ministry of Defence’s application to fund the contract.
The procurement is linked to the fact that the Berlin government, as part of its support for Ukraine, transferred 21 Bergepanzer 2 (BPz 2) and a further two Bergepanzer 3 (BPz 3) armored recovery vehicles. The decision to order 23 of the latest BPz 3 Büffel compensates for these transfers and strengthens the Bundeswehr’s armored recovery and support capability. Delivery of the first vehicle is planned as early as December 2027, just 18 months after contract signing. To enable such an early delivery, Rheinmetall AG pre-financed and commenced production. Completion of remaining deliveries is planned for June 2029.
The vehicles are a modernized, defect-corrected version of the proven Bergepanzer 3 and are known to the customer as Bergepanzer 3 A2. The replacement order underlines the continued relevance of the Bergepanzer 3 as a key support system for the mechanized forces of the German Army (Heer). The aim of this action is not to develop new capabilities, but to ensure long-term operational readiness based on a proven, commercially available system, manufactured using state-of-the-art processes.
This configuration reflects the current state of technical knowledge and offers potential for future upgrades. The Bergepanzer 3 therefore provides essential, long-term support for armored forces and is designed for decades of service. The investment in a modernized, future-proof vehicle fleet forms the basis for the long-term availability of this system in the Bundeswehr.
The Bundeswehr received a total of 75 Bergepanzer 3 Büffel armored recovery vehicles between 1992 and 1997. In December 2018, the BAAINBw approved the modernization of the BPz 3 fleet to the A2 standard to adapt it to changing operational requirements.
Between 2019 and 2024, a total of 69 vehicles were retrofitted with additional armor protection against projectiles and mines, a fully digital architecture encompassing internal communications, battle management systems, and crew situational awareness systems, as well as a new crane and GFB (Gefechtsfeld-Bergeeinrichtungen) recovery winches mounted at the rear. These enable the battlefield recovery of damaged Bushmaster, Boxer, CV90, PzH 2000, Leguan, Kodiak, and Leopard 2 vehicles without the crew leaving the recovery vehicle. Additional equipment will include a UTP (Universaltransportplattformen) universal cargo platform for transporting equipment such as a spare engine.
Beyond Germany, the BPz 3 Büffel has been delivered to the armed forces of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Greece, Indonesia, Canada, Sweden, Switzerland, Singapore, Spain, Sri Lanka, the Czech Republic, the aforementioned Ukraine, and Hungary. It was also offered in Poland under the now-cancelled Kajman program.
Replacement #order of #armouredrecoveryvehicles: #Bundeswehr orders in the mid three-digit million-euro range at #Rheinmetall pic.twitter.com/wXlME3BXOJ
— Rheinmetall (@RheinmetallAG) June 23, 2026