On Tuesday, August 12, 2025, the press service of the 15th Giżycko Mechanised Brigade announced on social media that the tank battalion in Orzysz had received the third batch of K2GF Heuk-Pyo (Black Panther) tanks. Eighteen units arrived in Poland by sea from the Republic of Korea.
Photos: SSWO Mariusz Kraśnicki, 15th Giżycko Mechanised Brigade
The first two batches arrived in Orzysz earlier this year, on May 6 and June 4. This unit is the third brigade of the Polish Armed Forces to be re-equipped with South Korean combat vehicles, replacing the PT-91 Twardy tanks. Previously, K2GFs were delivered to two battalions of the 20th Bartoszyce Mechanised Brigade and the 9th Braniewo Armoured Cavalry Brigade, as well as to the Land Forces Training Centre in Poznań (six tanks).
In July, crews from Orzysz participated in the K-Army International Course in the Republic of Korea, familiarizing themselves with the capabilities of the K2GF. “The highlight of the course was live-fire training, during which a Polish soldier achieved the best score among all participants, hitting two targets flawlessly. This is valuable experience and an important step towards improving the training of Polish tank crews and strengthening cooperation with the Republic of Korea Army,” the press service of the 15th Giżycko Mechanised Brigade reported.
On February 28 of this year, the Armed Forces General Command announced that K2GF crew training was underway at the 15th Brigade.
Meanwhile, on March 24, the process of rearming the 15th Brigade began, replacing the 122 mm post-Soviet 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled howitzers with 155 mm South Korean K9A1 Thunder systems. As for modern military equipment, back in 2019, this brigade was re-equipped with M120K Rak 120 mm self-propelled mortars.
It should be recalled that under the first executive contract of August 26, 2022, worth 3.37 billion USD net (15.98 billion PLN net / 19.65 billion PLN gross) for 180 tanks, 151 have been delivered so far, with the remaining 29 due to arrive by the end of this year.
On August 1 of this year, at Zakłady Mechaniczne Bumar-Łabędy, the long-awaited second executive contract was signed for another 180 tanks, including 116 K2GFs to be delivered in 2026–2027 and 64 vehicles in the Polish-configured K2PL variant (61 of which will be assembled in Poland), as well as 81 support vehicles of three types: 31 armoured recovery vehicles, 25 engineering vehicles, and 25 armoured bridge layers, all to be developed and built in Poland. This is part of the framework agreement for a total of 1,000 K2GF/PL tanks.
The K2 Black Panther is a South Korean 3+ generation main battle tank. Its main armament is a 120 mm smoothbore gun with an autoloader, capable of firing the latest types of ammunition. Secondary armament includes a 7.62 mm machine gun and a 12.7 mm heavy machine gun (HMG). The tank’s advanced fire control system ensures high accuracy at long ranges. Its armour, in the standard configuration, can be further enhanced with active protection systems, soft-kill (VIRSS), and hard-kill (KAPS, providing high ballistic and mine resistance. The tank is powered by a 1,500 hp diesel engine with an automatic transmission, delivering high speed and mobility across all terrains. It is characterised by a relatively low weight of 55 tonnes and the use of hydropneumatic suspension.
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