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Interested in the world's best battle tanks? The American M1 Abrams tank is one of them. This second-generation battle tank was designed in the USA. It was used by the US Army in the Gulf War. Today, there are two new versions of this American tank, still in use in conflicts such as the war in Ukraine.
Discover the history and performance of the M1 Abrams tank!
The idea for the M1 Abrams tank was hatched in February 1972 at Fort Knox. Indeed, a task force was ordered to brainstorm and design a new main battle tank, called the Main Battle Tank (MBT). The US Navy quickly requested prototypes from two manufacturers: General Motors and Chrysler. The idea was to create a competition for the best tank at the best price.
Expectations for this new battle tank were crew safety, the ability to hit the target on the first shot, rapid target acquisition and attainment, mobility, secondary armament, material safety, potential for further development and ease of transport.
The new battle tank was originally named XM815, inspired by the lessons learned from the Yom Kippur War, which took place at the same time. The project was then renamed XM-1. In the end,Chrysler won the competition, and the first XM-1 prototypes appeared in February 1978.
It was later widely commissioned and renamed the 105mm Gun Tank M1 Abrams. Its name was chosen as a tribute to Creighton Abrams, battalion commander of the 4th Armored Division during the Second World War, then Chief of Staff of the US Army in 1972.
In 2021, the Government Accountability Office estimated the total cost of purchasing an M1A2 tank (the latest version of the M1 Abrams tank) at $12.5 million. It'sone of the most expensive tanks in the world!
Previously, the M1A1 tank (second version of the M1 Abrams tank) was valued at $7.5 million in 2015. In 2006, the same version was valued at $5.3 million.
The M1 Abrams tank boastsexcellent technical performance. With each successive version, these performances have been improved and others added to make it an ultra-powerful combat tank, one of the most powerful in the world. It has proved its worth in numerous conflicts, including the Gulf War, the Iraq War and most recently in Ukraine.
Here are the technical performances of the latest version of the M1 Abrams model, the M1A2 Abrams tank:
The armament of the M1A2 Abrams tank is even better than that of the original M1 Abrams tank! Its main armament is a 120 mm M256 smoothbore cannon (42 shells). The M1A2 Abrams tank has five secondary weapons: an M2HB.50 BMG 12.7 mm machine gun (900 rounds), two M240 7.62 mm machine guns (11,400 rounds) and two M250 batteries of 6 x 66 mm smoke canisters.
The M1A2 M1 Abrams tank features an Avco Lyocoming AGT-1500 turbocharged engine rated at 1,501 hp (1,119 kW) at 3,000 rpm.
The mobility of the M1 Abrams tank is impressive! Its ground pressure is 1.08 kg/cm². Its road speed is rated at 66 km/h and its off-road speed at 48 km/h. It can negotiate slopes of up to 60% and has a power-to-weight ratio of 22.4 to 24.1 hp/t.
The M1A2 tank has an estimated range of 426 km. The M1A2 SEP tank has a range of 391 km.
The M1 Abrams tank is the first version of this American tank. It was produced from February 1980 to February 1985. A total of 3,273 examples of this version were produced during these 5 years. At the time, the M1 Abrams had a 105 mm gun and a "short" turret.
The M1A1 Abrams tank was produced from 1986 to 1994. The M1A1 tank is distinguished from the original M1 Abrams by its larger-calibre M256 gun. It was used in the Gulf War, Iraq War, Afghanistan War and the Egyptian Revolution of 2011. Recently, photographs have been taken of the M1A1 tank during the Ukrainian War.
It came in three versions, improved over the years:
The M1A2 Abrams tank is the latest version of this American tank model. It appeared in the US Army in October 1994. Significantly improved on its predecessor, the M1A1, the M1A2 Abrams tank features a panoramic commander's sight, and all on-board electronics are digitized (90%).
As with the M1A1 tank, this version of the M1 Abrams tank came in 5 versions:
The M1 Abrams tank has been used in numerous conflicts around the world. It was used in the Gulf War, the Iraq War, the Yemeni Civil War, the Afghan War, the Egyptian Revolution of 2011 and recently in Ukraine. It is an excellent battle tank used by many armies, including the US Army, the Army of Saudi Arabia, the Army of Morocco, Kuwait and Taiwan.
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