Wiesel: Meet Germany's small but lethal tank 

Had the same experience with some Leopards 2. They tricked us at night. Made up a huge spectaculum with shooting there grenades and made a lot maneuver. We didn't realize that this was a trap, right out of the dark and foggy forest a Leopard lurked out and the commander told us that we are now dead. It was shocking 🤣 They really tricked us with suck heavy and loud machines that we couldn't even hear the Leopard behind us.

@@christophmartin5381 Was it about 24 to 25 years ago? Because "we" allways did play with the sound of the Leopard 2s . like having 2 or three of them reving high to fake a big concentration of force just to bait the enemy team into a prepared ambush by the Minelaying vehicles of the pioneers and the rest of the tanks...

@@TremereTT Yes, roughly 28 years ago with pioneer units. 😁

@@christophmartin5381 Did the referees ordered the trap to be opened again, so the maneuver wouldn't end right there?

@@TremereTT Good question, I think they practiced further more. We were really shocked and that impression is quite present today. What happend afterwards is a bit in fog because we had a 36hour training session and we were quite exhausted.

Buddy of my commanded a group of Wiesel. During a maneuver, he was to join an Abrams platoon with his vehicles. The Abrams tanks were waiting next to a field and wondered where the Weasels were. They had been there for a long time and wanted to annoy the Americans a bit. Flap open, soldier stands up and grabs the leg of a US soldier who was just lying on the Abrams. He almost fell off the tank out of fright.

We had a similar experience in the Netherlands, in 1940. Everybody was minding his own business and suddenly there they were, the Germans. They left 5 years later.

@@bollewillem1 lel

@@bollewillem1 Yes, and now it's 2023. The two countries are working closely together.

@@ehmjay97 I know, I like Germans, great country to go to for a holiday. And when it comes to building a strong army I will put my money on Germany.

How could the tank commander not eliminate the combat vehicle? Are you laughing? Or do leopards have too much armor, active defense and combat doctrines that they are not able to eliminate combat vehicles and open up like cans of fish? Engineers did not sleep for days and nights to design and install stabilization, rangefinders and other novelties in your tanks. Are you afraid of this little thing?

@@shell.rider_0452 You underestimate that thing !

@@shell.rider_0452 oh, Mr keyboard warrior is typing. If you cant spot it u cant kill it, its that simple

@@ger_airfighter I'm a driver mechanic. I recently completed my military service, at the end of which I went into the “reserve”. I didn’t want to connect my life with a military career. Yes, she was cheerful and filled with emotions. But I wanted to do IT. I knew my combat vehicle very well, the tactics of working with it and its combat role. We also studied the cars of our western neighbors and the very car mentioned in the video was our favorite. Because it could very easily be turned into a colander (a saucer with holes). In the literal sense of the word. The technology that I was trained on was created in order to destroy such equipment. Which transports or supports infantry. (or, like, hit and run) Unfortunately, my past work interferes. And especially for you, I will open the eyes of you and all the same sick people who do not understand the topic they are talking about. In our terrible times, many means and systems for detecting equipment have long been invented. And my fate and the fate of the driver of this car are the same. Burn out before leaving even for the enemy’s expected location (line of contact). Understand?

@@ger_airfighter I'm a foreigner. I am not bound by Europe. I think you understood this by the way sentences are constructed with the help of a translator.

Literally built for shoot-and-scoot tactics against soviet tanks, and good at it because it's a nimble little bugger.

@@Snarcksa these would have been extremely useful in 2022

Indeed!!! ^^

Not being able to withstand .50 cal sounds like a terrible idea. Heavy weapons arent uncommon.

Its armored against 14.5 mm thats a .70 cal antitankrifle!

Don't forget that some 120mm mortars can have laser guided versions (i.e. STRIX mortar, terminal guided). Imagine being quick deployable, fast, and even with precision capability?

@ I think, they have GPS guided ammo for it.

yeah same goes for the Panzerhaubitze 2000 that thing stops fires 3 shots packs up and is on the move before the first shell hits. it´s insane.

@@FunkyBuddha81wasn’t it 5?

​@@dash_lpit was 5, and they can actually coordinate multiple pzh2000 to do that

We love you too 😘

have you blown up nordstream ?

@@minimax9452 No, have you?

@@minimax9452 Actually yes, The US did blow up Nordstream. Hope that didn't affect you at all. 🤦‍♂

@@DerekVanUffelen we are fine the winter was mild and government is helping - but on the long run we have a disadvantage - some of our "friends" unfortunately like this.

How so? How is it better than any other APC? Even the old BMPs are amphibious, pack a much harder punch, carry more troops, can be airdropped, etc

because the bmp is russian for боевой магистральный полимерный бак which is the russian approximate for main battle tank. because of this; the BMP is considered an MBT and not at all an APC. @@sergeig685

​@@sergeig685 This is lighter and much more mobile than all of those, extremely quiet and easy to maintain due to using a literal car engine and transmission, extremely compact and you can put two of them in a single helicopter. Sure, it's got similar capabilities to APCs, but due to not needing to carry soldiers it is cheaper, lighter, smaller and more mobile.

@@mikeblatzheim2797 i just check the price of a Wiesel vs a BMP-2 and just that the bmp2 is half of the price of a wiesel, where you even think to get those facks? just pouring stuff from your mouth to try to win an argument on internet?

@@daquemasquieren An obsolete, 60+ year old design is cheaper than a modern armoured vehicle. Go figure. How about you compare the price to that of vehicles such as the Bradley, or Marder? You know, vehicles that aren't early cold war designs, and have at least somewhat similar capabilities?

You are right about that. Also in the Passat. Very reliable engine.

Incredibly overrated

The Wiesel can have different loadout depending on the mission. ATGM, Small Arms, Mortar system, ADA, and recon setup.

Wiesel 2 Chassis has Mortar, Stingers and even has a MedEvac Version. Wiesel 1 has a 20mm automatic gun or TOW + MG3. I am curious to see if they will upgrade it with MELLS.

@@JazzJaRa they already get upgraded, the first upgraded Wiesel are already in service.

And only about 12 (or so) active ones sitting on the coast of the baltic sea, completely useless. Every other mobile anti air system we thrown out without replacement. Only now, after the shit in Ukraine happened, our politicians started to finally dump some money into the Bundeswehr.

the ozelot is still in use since 2002 or even older. i was a stinger shooter in such a unit in 2003/2004

Needs a backhoe option too. For after the fight.

I want a kei pickup

stop first weapon sale to every idiots in you country like hamburger or hot dog!

@@airfight10 You can always tell an idiot of how he can't write.

You mean cattle rustlers?

Not a tank. In Europe, a tank needs to have a gun larger than 75mm and weighs over 16,5 tonnes.

That makes me imagin Urban fighting, Clearing out at supermarket aisle by aisle. ,,Milk, Eggs, Soup, Tank, Flou... Tank?" And this little sheit just standing there like >:3

The actual German reconnaissance vehicle is a better platform named Fennek

That's exactly what I was thinking. Attach a tethered drone to identify targets up to 6 miles away and then send out loitering munitions from launch tubes on the vehicle.

@@mjk9388 The Plans are to change the TOW2 to a Spike. Remotecontrolled ATGMs with a reach from 6-20km. But I dont think you wont have enough bandwith for the longer ranged ones.

The Wiesel was given to the US Army for exactly that. Wiesel Digital Platform as a testbed for ground based drone.

die neuste Wiesel Version ist unbemannt ^^ kein scherz gibt's Werbevideos auf YT

Which was the biggest?

@@johnnunn8688 MAUS I think

@@harrystone8491 good job it never saw action!

@@johnnunn8688 at least they were built.

Germans seriously know how to build some shit!!

🤣🤣🤣😅👍

I think you may find soon that the Chinese have probably developed a similar system of their own. Cheap mass produced low-tech equipment and swarm tactics are their speciality after all. And with the recent ban on all advanced semiconductor supplies, Chinese military industry will soon lack the means to produce advanced weapon systems with digital components soon. So the obvious answer will be, to go low tech, low cost, high quantity.

How do you figure? Its 2 or 3 at max depending on the combat loadout. ...Driver/ Commander or Driver/Gunner/Commander. The wiesel is not a clown car...

@@CCM1199 hes insinuating that chinese people are very small.

Nailed it. Needs a different tactical thinking this thing but if adapted will come in quite handy I guess. Needs some Ford- or B17 style mass production though. Yanks, your call. We`ll provide the drawings, engine and drivetrain. Unbeatable. Some 3000 of 'em and Ivan has to run for it.

@@jerichotrompete5313 The US is already working on a "light tank" exactly for this purpose. It is larger than a truck though, so I think it kind of misses the mark in my opinion.

@@mzimmerman1988 It wont be light when 2 average americans sit inside it 😂

Apparently on some trainings with the US, a few of these little tanks took out multiple abrahams before they knew what hit them. Wish we had more to send to Ukraine

That's the idea. 😉

But be sure, they were there ;-).

@@chrissi.enbyYT, pretty sure TOW can’t take out Abrams.

@@johnnunn8688 Abrams doesnt have god mode, at least the top attack TOW would have a pretty good chance, as well as shots from the side and rear

They are cute, aren't they? How much for one?! Minus the weaponry of course.

Mein Auto lief immer bei Regen schlecht und ich hab mich gewundert. Als ich im Motorraum nachgesehen hatte, war alles am rumfunken. Dieses verdammte Wiesel kletterte immer auf meinen Motor wenn ich Abends heimkam wohl um sich aufzuwärmen und hat aus langeweile die Zündkabel alle angeknabbert und die Isolierung abgefressen. Ein Bekannter hatte ein Wiesel als Haustier, sie haben messerscharfe Zähne. Mit einem Biss hat es eine ganze Ecke aus meiner Turnschuh Sohle rausgebissen. Das sind gefährliche Biester, auch wenn sie putzig aussehen.

By far, the sexiest thing from the German military industry is the Fennek. Contrary to the smallest fox this recon car weight is 7,5 t+

Sicher dass das keine Marder waren die deine Kabel zernagt haben?@@andik859

In Europe cars are usually immobilized by marten chewing on hoses and cables. Martens are also mustaekid but bigger than weasel. Funfact: they also gave their name to a german military IFV, the so called Marder.

Germans and simple are incompatible things. I have a shower hose from Germany. It consists of ten parts, for disassembly of which you need a special tool.

@@user-fr8op9hf7r The German tanks are all built with easy-to-replace engine blocks, as the engines themselves are of course complicated. The Bundeswehr claims the engine of a Leopard 2 can be swapped within 15 minutes (with the utilization of a Büffel (engineering tank)). Also, the Büffel (based on a Leopard 2 chassis) is one of the few, if not the only vehicle capable of swapping its own engine (at least in maneuver settings).

@@FactoryofRedstone I would willingly believe it if I did not know the German approach of engineers. Probably in laboratory conditions, if you have a special machine for removing an engine from a tank, and a repair team with 40 years of experience in removing this particular engine exclusively, then probably yes, you can change it in 15 minutes.

@@user-fr8op9hf7r I have done in in under 20 min as a training exercise in the early 2000 so it is totally possible and i was only a "Zeitsoldat" for 2 years

@@user-fr8op9hf7r The engine (including gear aka. "power unit", a quasi cube) can be replaced within 15 minutes. You just need a replacement unit and any kind of crane which can handle the weight. The tank crew knows the 10 screws to loosen and tighten.

Like my cat...

How is it better than an MBT? The survivability sucks on the Wiesel as the armor is light. 7.62mmm and above can easily penetrate that vehicle. If its caught its done for. A tank can shoot further than the max range of a TOW2B which is 4500M. one HEAT round will do the trick.

@@CCM1199 it's small and you can make a lot, that's the whole point..

@@CCM1199 Why are you lying? 7.62 can't penetrate it.

@@Narcan885 that depends what 7.62x54r likely would pen it

@@off6848 if 7.62x51 wont penetrate it 7.62x54r which is usually firing the same weight bullet at lower velocities wont penetrate it either

I want to drive it to work

i need it for home defense and occasional duck hunting.

They may as well get replaced by some kind of futuristic jumping spider tank far into the future. fun thought.

​@@nevrynkinori3627 well, they have LuWa for the successor of the Wiesel and Wiesel 2

Take it China is pulling some BS,

@@alexandarvoncarsteinzarovi3723 yeah this little bad bois could give Vietnamese some more defense capabilities against the threat from China. However its very hard to get due to strict export law of Germany

@@HungPham-hm9yk Still there could be workarounds with India,

Just call the Chinese names.

❤ Greetings from Germany 🤝

Mörserkampfsystem was such a nice vehicle, if there would be intelligent/ advanced grenades that thing would've been a wet dream for any military. Saw it during my time in an exercise with the fallschirmjäger (paratroopers). Amazing thing but quite straining on the commander as he has a doublefunction as commander and gunner while also being responsible for any ammunition problems.... But on bad terrain this thing can shine to its fullest

@@niko7626 I bet they would also be quite effective with an automatic grenade launcher system coupled with a LMG for anti-infantry use hit-and-run tactics. A modular Wiesel with quick field-swappable weapon loadout bay depending on the required combat role would be an absolute hit for pretty much any army. Cost effective, versatile, compact, cute. Everything a modern military commander could wish for in a support vehicle!

@@axelhopfinger533 to be honest with a fast firing 20mm autocannon like the wiesel, you dont need any greande launcher and coaxial/lmg on it... weight would be a problem and since the 20mm HE of the wiesel can be programmable in some forms you have the best option for it

the mudskipper 2

Its a nice vehicle but giving up survivability for movement is not what I wouldve wanted. The vehicle is 2.75 TONS total weight. Even our M998 HMMWV is heavier than the Wiesel. You want to compare a vehicle that conducts the same role? Try the M551 Sheridan when it was on active duty back in the day. That vehicle was heavier than the wiesel. The wiesel is designed to be Air Mobile and air droppable much like the sheridan. but it will not go toe to toe with an MBT as the MBT doesnt even need to use its main gun to kill it.....7.62 API or .50 CAL API-T will shred that vehicle in a matter of seconds. I honestly hate people who cant even distinguish what a Tank, Armored Fighting Vehicle (AFV) which by the way the IS the Wiesel's Vehicle Classification and the IFV (Infantry Fighting Vehicle) are. its like calling the M1128 Stryker a Tank which is not. Its also called an Armored Fighting Vehicle. Just because the M1128 has a 105MM gun does constitute it being a Tank

tank you

i never heard of it, had to google it. This thing is just awsome. I want one

small size some times matters in a big scale. ;-)

Small is good if you know how to use it?

What a hoot! Bet they didn't expect that one.

Nothing "niche" about it. Its a highly multi-role vehicle.

Yes, they would certainly be ideal for quick reaction maneuver warfare in the muddy conditions of Ukraine, as they can stealthily traverse most terrain types there and also all bridges fit for cars or trains, including improvised pontoon bridges. Ideal as mobile drone carrier or light mortar platforms, tank hunters and scouts. Easily concealable, fuel efficient and with only 2 man crews, low personell requirements. Quite important for Ukraine's depleted manpower. Not that even all Wiesels the Bundeswehr still has could change much about the outcome of this conflict anymore at this point.

@@MAKIUSO Leopards aren't obsolete at all, just not the right kind of vehicle for the type, terrain and scenario of combat in Ukraine. Every modern MBT can easily be knocked out or crippled by ATGMs, RPGS, airstrikes or precision guided artillery. And Russians have plenty of all of those. This conflict is a rather static artillery and infantry war on difficult terrain for heavy vehicles with many operational limitations. And Russians have a 10X firepower and manpower advantager over Ukraine currently, where even a few hundred MBTs wouldn't make much difference for Ukraine, as they simply lack the means of combined arms operations to protect and support them adequately.

@@MAKIUSO Who thought electing a green government would be a good idea during any times?

Man, they're too chickenshit to send them ANYTHING, except helmets....Don't think for a second that those cowards are gonna help Ukraine, they're scared to DEATH of Putin!!!...When the FIRST German tank gets there, the LAST german tank will have gotten there, and the Ukrainians will only have Poland and the Baltic states to thank....Germans are bought and paid for by Russia, I'm suprithat Germany didn't HELP RUSSIA any more than it ALREADY DOES by buying gas from them...And they most likely are doing A LOT of under the table stuff with Russia to get around sanctions as there are today!!!!!

@@MAKIUSO Hm. I'm very up to date regarding the developing of renewable energy and these have been intentionally slowed down the last 15 to 20 years, so obviously politics werent at all green ENOUGH, if anything.

there is already one in testing...

Both engines were produced by the same company called Volkswagen Audi Group.

The first Porsche diesel was a tractor.

Need a speed up version with 3.0 V6 Turbo Diesel. 😂

@@richarddietzen3137 A buddy of mine had one in mint condition. In Porsche red.

Mountain warfare Unit also uses them :D

Right. Or you can just advance through those small tree lines in the south of Ukraine, where they base all their defense in. It small enough to get through most forests

@@HerrLBrodersen it could probably even fit into some trenches and drainage ditches

Well, we invented the car after all

and if you need something heavier and bigger, you could try to find a "Bergepanzer Büffel" for heavy snow plowing;-)

with a 20mm hunting rifle on top