During the 29th edition of Eurosatory 2026, the international defense industry exhibition organized by Coges Events and taking place on June 15–19 this year at Paris-Nord Villepinte near Paris, the Italian-German joint venture Leonardo Rheinmetall Military Vehicles (LRMV), comprising Leonardo and Rheinmetall AG, unveiled the NMBT (New Main Battle Tank) prototype for the Italian Army (Esercito Italiano).
Photos: Jakub Link-Lenczowski, MILMAG
The NMBT is derived from the KF51 Panther-IT technology demonstrator with the Rheinmetall ARV 3 chassis, but with an Italian power pack. It has been fitted with the standard Rheinmetall Rh-120 L55A1 smoothbore gun, which is ultimately to be replaced by the newly designed Leonardo Model 120/L55 120-mm gun. The tank can also be integrated with Rheinmetall’s larger 130-mm Rh-130 L52 gun. The main gun is paired with an autoloader and a turret ammunition load of 20 rounds, including the new Vulcano HEFSDS (High Explosives Fin Stabilized Discarding Sabot) fin-stabilized high-explosive round with a discarding sabot. Secondary armament consists of a Leonardo Blaze 30 remotely controlled weapon station on the turret roof, armed with a 30 mm x 113 automatic cannon with a counter-drone capability, and a 12.7-mm machine gun.
The crew is to consist of three members plus a fourth specialist responsible for unmanned systems. The sensor suite, comprising day and infrared cameras, has been designed to provide 360-degree situational awareness by day and night, while the flexible crew station concept allows access to and control of key systems from any seat. The next-generation Attila observation and sighting devices provide Hunter-Killer and Killer-Killer operating modes.
The tank is also expected to be capable of firing the aforementioned Vulcano guided ammunition, feature counter-drone defenses, employ loitering munitions and, as mentioned above, control unmanned aerial systems. Its fully digital architecture, Rheinmetall StrikeShield hard-kill and ROSY soft-kill active protection systems, and sensor-to-effector connectivity position it as both a command and firepower platform on the battlefield, reflecting the broader shift toward network-centric and multidomain warfare.
The manufacturers state that the vehicle will reach a maximum speed of up to 70 km/h with a drive-by-wire control system, accelerate from 0 to 40 km/h in less than eight seconds, and have a driving range of up to 450 km. Combat weight is 69.5 tonnes, with the possibility of increasing it in the future.
Although armor protection parameters have not been disclosed, the manufacturers have announced comprehensive hybrid protection against threats from mines, improvised explosive devices, anti-tank grenade launchers and guided anti-tank missiles, kinetic energy ammunition, drones attacking the turret or hull roof in top-attack mode, as well as protection against CBRN threats.
Additional hybrid power supply is intended to enable eight hours of readiness with the main engine and auxiliary power unit (APU) switched off. All vehicle interfaces are to be compatible with the NGVA (NATO Generic Vehicle Architecture) electronic architecture, while the HUMS (Health and Usage Monitoring System) vehicle health monitoring system is intended to support predictive maintenance.
The vehicle architecture is to be fully electronic, with cyber protection provided. The tank itself is to be the first element of a family of vehicles that will in the future include an ARV armored recovery vehicle, an AEV armored engineering vehicle and an AVLB armored vehicle-launched bridge.
Italy plans to purchase 132 tanks together with 140 support vehicles, in parallel with the A2CS Lynx ITA/KF41 Lynx infantry fighting vehicles already ordered from LRMV.