Poor State of German Armed Forces Revealed; Only 30% of Fighters and Under 50% of Tanks Serviceable

Recent findings in a new Defense Ministry study have revealed extremely poor levels of combat readiness in the German armed forces, a malady which has been found to affect several Western European countries in recent years. Many primary weapons systems in the German military were deemed unfit for deployment or even basic training exercises - according to the "Report on the Operational Readiness of the Bundeswehr's Primary Weapons Systems 2017." An overwhelming majority of the country's fleet of Eurofighter Typhoon fighters, the mainstay of the Air Force's combat capabilities, were found to be inoperable - with 89 of 138 jets out of service. In the Army meanwhile less than half of the 224 Leopard 2 tanks are serviceable, while only five of the Navy's 13 frigates are seaworthy - just a few examples of the poor state of the armed forces representing a wider trend. The country's Navy remains unable to field a single submarine due to issues with its fleet, while new frigates were rejected entirely due to severe flaws, seriously setting back the modernisation program and leaving the fleet unable to engage in power projection operations.

According to the Defence Ministry, a leading cause of the military's shortcomings has been a rapid rise in the number of training missions since the outbreak of Ukraine's Civil War and the rise of hostilities with Russian in 2014. This led to a greater wear and tear on equipment, but was not met with a reciprocal boost in maintenance efforts. Defense Minister von der Leyen also notably assigned blame to "reductions and cuts over 25 years," referring to the country’s €200 billion ($250 billion) military modernization program as "a long and arduous path." The poor state of Germany's military closely reflects those of Western Europe's two other leading military powers - Britain and France. To take Naval capabilities as an example, the British Royal Navy has 68% of its fleet, including 74% of its amphibious fleet, out of service. According to senior official is heading for 'Third World' level capabilities. In terms of air power, they also fare little better. France's Air Force similarly sees 56% of its aircraft inoperable, which while not as severe as the state of affairs in its German counterpart is still extremely poor. With Western European states facing little prospect of military attack, protected by the colossal might of the U.S. military which has deployed large forces to the European theatre, and safely under a nuclear umbrella, it appears that Germany is one of many which has grown complacent in managing its military.