The German Defence Ministry on Friday rebutted media reports about significant backlogs in the repair of prime combat vehicles in the country's Bundeswehr armed forces.
The operational readiness of major weapon systems is still moving "in the right direction," said a spokesman in Berlin.
The Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper and the WDR and NDR public broadcasters had reported on a significant backlog of repairs of essential assets, including the Marder (Marten) infantry fighting vehicle and the Panzerhaubitze 2000 – a heavily armoured 155-millimetre self-propelled howitzer.
The reason given was that spare parts were not available in sufficient quantities and there was a shortage of skilled personnel.
The reports cited internal information from Heeresinstandsetzungslogistik GmbH (Army Maintenance Logistics, HIL), a state-owned defence contractor that is tasked with ensuring the readiness and maintenance of the Bundeswehr's land-based heavy equipment and vehicle fleets.
The problems were said to even affect key weapon systems. In May, for example, reportedly fewer than half of the total fleet of Panzerhaubitze 2000 howitzers were operational.
In the case of the Marder and the Boxer wheeled armoured vehicle, almost half of the vehicles were stuck in the maintenance and repair cycle in May, it was reported.
Ministry cites aid to Ukraine and increased training
The ministry did not confirm the figures but instead said that "challenges" had arisen due to the transfer of weapon systems to Ukraine as it fights to repel the continuing Russian invasion. These will then also need to be supplied with spare parts, it added.
In addition, the troops are training more than before and equipment is being put under greater strain, according to the spokesman.
The initial supply of spare parts for newly procured weapon systems is guaranteed: "It is standard practice to order spare parts for the first three to five years at the same time. These are supplied as a package, a complete package, by the manufacturer," he said.
