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The Spähpanzer Ru 251 is a German light reconnaissance tank developed in 1964 to replace the obsolete American M41 Walker Bulldogs in service in the Bundeswehr. It was designed on the basis of the German Kanonenjagdpanzer 4-5 tank destroyer. The final product possessed exceptional mobility and armament, but with the arrival of the more powerful Leopard 1, the Ru 251 was never put into mass production.
The Spähpanzer Ru 251 light tank was conceived solely as a reconnaissance vehicle. In the early 1960s, the Bundeswehr were still using the outdated American M41 Walker Bulldogs in their armored scout battalions, however the time had come to replace them with something more modern. A program to develop a new light tank was launched in 1960. It was essential that the tank had excellent mobility and enough firepower to destroy the main Soviet tanks of the day. The first prototype was built in 1963, followed by at least one more by 1964. In 1964, the Ru 251 prototypes underwent intensive field tests, although by that time the Leopard main battle tank was already being readied for serial production and the Germans decided against ordering another tank so similar to the Leopard.
The Spähpanzer Ru 251 was built based on the Kanonenjagdpanzer 4-5 tank destroyer, borrowing the majority of its components. Instead of a cabin, the Ru 251 was fitted with a cast rotating turret. The tank was also equipped with the 90 mm Rheinmetall BK 90 gun, the German version of the American 90 mm M36 installed on the M47 Patton IIs. Like its forefather, the Ru 251 possessed remarkable mobility and firepower, but lacked any shell-proof armor. The work on the Ru 251 prototypes was strictly confidential, and details of its development are still kept under wraps by the Bundeswehr today.
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