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Battle Stations II

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Named after the late General Creighton W Abrams, former commander of the 37th Armoured Battalion and US Army chief of staff, the M1 Abrams is the world's most potent main battle tank (MBT) thanks to its four principal assets:
• superior mobility
• advanced sensors and controls
• devastating firepower
• highly effective armour.

The origins of the Abrams lie in a US plan, devised in the 1960s, to form a partnership with West Germany to develop a tank that could be used by all Nato members. The plan fell through but led to the development of the General Dynamics M1 main battle tank, a project overseen by General Abrams.

General Dynamics delivered the first MI Abrams tank – which had a 105mm gun adapted to fire modern rounds – to the US Army in 1980. It was followed in 1985 by the M1A, which replaced the M1's main gun with a 120mm smooth-bore cannon, featured a redesigned turret and incorporated numerous enhancements, including improved suspension, increased armour protection and an NBC (nuclear-biological-chemical) protection system.

In the Gulf War of 1991, the US Army and Marine Corps fielded some 1,900 M1A tanks. Their ability to fire reliably when moving at speed over rough ground – due to the Abrams' stabilised gun mount – proved more than a match for the Iraqi armoured mainstay, the Soviet-built T-72, which was out-ranged by an average of about 3280ft (1,000m). Initial concern about the M1A's combat range was eliminated by a massive re-supply operation.

During that war, only 18 Abrams tanks were withdrawn from service because of battle damage. Nine were written off and the remainder incurred repairable damage, principally inflicted by mines. Not a single Abrams crew was lost in the conflict, and there were few reports of mechanical failure.

The first of the successor M1A2 series was delivered to the US Army's 1st Cavalry Division in the summer of 1998. This tank has all the M1A (now designated M1A1) features, plus an independent thermal viewer and weapon station for the commander. It also has Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) navigational equipment and a digital data bus and radio interface unit (IVIS -inter-vehicle information system) that provides M1A2s on the battlefield with a common picture using encrypted signals.

By the time of the recent conflict in Iraq, the M1A2 had undergone a modification programme. The digital command and control capabilities was enhanced with a mass memory unit (MMU) housing embedded battle command (EBC) software. Its combat effectiveness has been further improved with forward-looking infrared (FLIR) sights that are also linked to the EBC software.

Abrams tank at night

The tank's driver has an integrated display that includes steer-to-navigation data and other essential systems such as GPS. This enables him/her to move the Abrams over the battlefield without constant direction from the commander. The driver has either three observation periscopes or two periscopes on either side of his/her station and a central image-intensifying ('Starlight') periscope for night vision. The latter allows the tank to be driven at normal daylight speeds in darkness or poor visibility.

The commander has six periscopes that provide an all-round 360-degree view. The independent thermal viewer (ITV) also provides the commander with independent, stabilised day and night vision with a 360-degree view, automatic sector scanning, automatic target cueing of the gunner's sight with no need for verbal communication, and a complete back-up fire control system. The commander can also fire the main gun independently of the gunner.

All three versions of the Abrams tank are powered by a 1,500hp gas turbine engine, enabling them to move and manoeuvre faster than most comparable tanks and, in the case of the M1A2, accelerate from 0 to 20mph in just over seven seconds. However, even with an advanced digital fuel control system, the M1A2 gets less than a mile per gallon. To compensate, it has huge fuel tanks, giving it a tactical cruising range of 265 miles (426km) range without refuelling.

The hulls and turrets of the original M1 were fitted with advanced British- developed Chobam armour. The M1A1 and MIA2 also incorporate steel-encased depleted uranium armour. Armoured bulkheads separate the crew compartments from the fuel tanks.

In the recent war against Iraq, the US deployed some 325 Abrams MBTs in the initial assault against a debilitated and demoralised Iraqi enemy. Some 200 were with the 3rd Infantry Division and the remainder were with the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force. A handful of Abrams were flown in by C-17 Globemasters to support the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Kurd-controlled northern Iraq.

In the early evening of 25 March 2003, in an ambush at As Samawah on the west bank of the Euphrates, the 'Bonecrushers' of 3 Squadron (in the 7th Cavalry of the 3rd Infantry Division) lost two Abrams to direct fire from fedayeen fighters. Photographs of the damage to their hulls suggest that they were probably hit by Russian AT-14 Kornet laser-guided missiles fired from fedayeen 4x4 trucks shadowing the American advance.

When the Americans broke into Baghdad, 4 Battalion (in the 64th Armor Regiment of the 3rd Infantry Division) lost two Abrams, one of which suffered an engine fire after being struck in the rear by rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) fire. Subsequently, a field modification was introduced to add protection to the Abrams' air intakes vents and exhaust ducts in the rear hull. Later photographs of these disabled tanks showed them to be badly burned. However, it is standard American practice to call in air strikes to obliterate abandoned vehicles to deny the enemy the sensitive equipment they carry.

Two US Marines were also drowned when an Abrams on which they were riding fell off a bridge into the Euphrates at Nasariya.

The most modern versions of the Abrams – those earmarked for deployment through Turkey with the 4th Infantry Division, the first US division to have a complete digital battle management system – arrived in Iraq too late to have any impact on the war.

Under the rolling Abrams Systems Enhancement Programme (SEP), about 1,000 M1s have been upgraded to conform with the M1A2 configuration. The US Army's modernisation strategy aims to sustain its tank fleet over the next 25 years while new weapons systems and a new engine are introduced.

In addition to equipping the US Army and US Marine Corps, General Dynamics' international sales of the Abrams have been strong: Egypt has purchased 777 M1A1 kits, and Saudi-Arabia has bought 315 M1A1s and Kuwait 218.

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