https://sputnikglobe.com/20231109/the-end-of-the-abrams-tank-era-1114835145.html
The End of the Abrams Tank Era?
The End of the Abrams Tank Era?
Sputnik International
The M1 is a “very heavy” Cold War-era tank which weighs twenty tons more than its Russian rival T-90, David T. Pyne, an EMP Task Force scholar and former US Department of Defense officer, told Sputnik.
2023-11-09T11:05+0000
2023-11-09T11:05+0000
2023-11-10T12:30+0000
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With numerous reports about characteristics-related shortcomings of the M1 Abrams hitting global headlines, military expert Michael Peck gave his thoughts on what he described as the end of the era of the US Army's main battle tank. Peck noted in an article for a US media outlet that the issue came to the fore as the US is seeking to develop a next-generation light tank – as compared to the 70-ton Abrams - that will be capable of fighting in both Europe and the Pacific.He recalled that the US Army’s last light tank was the M-551 Sheridan, which was an air mobile and air transportable armored vehicle with aluminum armor that weighed only 16 tons. This tank was removed from active service in 1997.Pyne also admitted that he was “a big supporter of using off-the-shelf technology to fill gaps in weapon systems in the US military," adding that the US Marine Corps could buy “hundreds” of the UK-made Scorpion 2 light tanks.Pyne, for his part, noted in this vein that the Abrams is “a very heavy tank that is over twenty tons heavier than its modern Soviet T-72 and T-90 opponents.”He noted that “there have been many proposals to replace the Abrams with a new tank model” since the 1990s. According to him, all these proposals have been canceled, “forcing the US Army to upgrade existing Abrams tank models with more advanced electronic systems while relying on the same armor and firepower capabilities.”
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us' efforts to create new-generation tank, 'end of abrams era', cold war-era tank, upgrade of abrams tank
us' efforts to create new-generation tank, 'end of abrams era', cold war-era tank, upgrade of abrams tank
The End of the Abrams Tank Era?
11:05 GMT 09.11.2023 (Updated: 12:30 GMT 10.11.2023) The M1 Abrams is a “very heavy” Cold War-era tank which weighs twenty tons more than its Russian T-90 rival, David T. Pyne, an EMP Task Force scholar and former US Department of Defense officer, told Sputnik.
With numerous reports about characteristics-related shortcomings of
the M1 Abrams hitting global headlines, military expert Michael Peck gave his thoughts on what he described as the end of the era of the US Army's main battle tank.
Peck noted in an article for a US media outlet that the issue came to the fore as the US is seeking to develop a next-generation light tank – as compared to
the 70-ton Abrams - that will be capable of fighting in both Europe and the Pacific.
“The US does not currently have any light tanks in its inventory and unfortunately has no plans that I [Pyne] am aware of to acquire any,” David T. Pyne, an EMP Task Force scholar and ex-Pentagon officer, said in an interview with Sputnik.
He recalled that the US Army’s last light tank was the M-551 Sheridan, which was an air mobile and air transportable armored vehicle with aluminum armor that weighed only 16 tons. This tank was removed from active service in 1997.
27 September 2023, 19:14 GMT
Pyne also admitted that he was “a big supporter of using off-the-shelf technology to fill gaps in weapon systems in the US military," adding that the US Marine Corps could buy “hundreds” of the UK-made Scorpion 2 light tanks.
Peck meanwhile warned of futile attempts to retrofit the Cold War-era tanks with new technologies, such as robotics and automation. He quoted the Army Science Board report as saying that those attempts would be as useless as expecting that "new technology will maximally improve a 1980s commercial vehicle," in an apparent reference to the M1.
Pyne, for his part, noted in this vein that the Abrams is “a very heavy tank that is over twenty tons heavier than its modern Soviet T-72 and T-90 opponents.”
The M1 “fared well during both US invasions of Iraq in 1991 and 2003 but it is not well-suited to fight a war in the Pacific which the US believes would be an island-hopping campaign consisting of successive amphibious assaults much like the US fought during its Pacific War with the Japanese Empire from 1941-1945,” the former Pentagon officers said.
He noted that “there have been many proposals to replace the Abrams with a new tank model” since the 1990s. According to him, all these proposals have been canceled, “forcing the US Army to upgrade existing Abrams tank models with more advanced electronic systems while relying on the same armor and firepower capabilities.”
