Tank M1 Abrams - SpeedyLook encyclopedia

History

In February 1972, a work force was made up with Fort Knox to design the new tank MBT (Hand Battle Tank). The objectives required for this new tank were, inter alia and by order of importance, the safety of the crew, the possibility of blow to the goal as of the first shooting, the speed to acquire and strike the objective, the Mobilité any ground, the integration of a secondary armament, the integrity of the components, the potential of later developments and the ease of transport. The army of the United States requested prototypes General Motors and Chrysler. This competition was to make it possible to obtain the best solutions at less costs. The new tank was initially named XM 815. In October 1973 took place the Guerre of Kippour to the Proche the East. It was essential to include in project XM the 815 all lessons drawn from this conflict. One of the major innovations in this war was the broad use made of anti-tank missiles AT-3 and Lance-roquette anti-tank RPG-7 of Soviet origin. However, the drawn most important teaching this war, confirmed that the tank was the dominant weapon on the Battle field. One started again the project of the new American tank, renamed XM-1. General Motors and in Chrysler continued to work on their prototype incorporating the Blindage Burlington in it. The first specimens for the phase of validation appeared between January and May 1976. Finally, the November 12th 1976, Chrysler was declared titular for the development of the project. The 1 prototypes (XM-1) rolled in in February 1978, the production in minor amounts of the XM 1 began on May 7th, 1979. In February 1981 its production with large scales was accepted and one gave him the name of tank to gun of 105mm (the 1st version equipped with a gun M 68 of 105 mm (derivative of the British L7 )) " M 1 Abrams" in honor of the major of the 4th division armor-plated during the second world war then chief of state major of the US Army in 1972, Creighton Abrams, one of the fervent supporters of the project XM 1. The first phase in the evolution of M1 was the contribution of the improved gun of 105; the second was the installation of a simplified version of the German gun Rheinmetall of 120mm which leads to the version M1 A1 in August 1984. In October 1988, appeared a new version, M1 A1HA (ha for Heavy Armor, heavy shielding) which incorporated in the shielding a special layer of meshs of Uranium impoverished to double protection.

It started to be replaced on the assembly lines of the Detroit Arsenal Tank Seedling and of the Lima Arsenal Tank Seedling since 1985 by improved versions.

Characteristics

First of all, Abrams M1A1: it is characterized by its gun Rheinmetall of 120 German origin mm which equip also the Char Leopard 2. Then, most recent Abrams M1A2, which is seen allotting a new system of fire control system (sight thermal, a station of weapons independent for the chief of tank) and a new trip computer (an interface of data acquisition and transmissions, equipment of navigation and positioning). This mastodon of approximately 55 tons is carried out by a crew of 4 men and can especially sink at the speed of 67 km/h, and this, on 465 km.

It is the first American armoured tank equipped with a gas turbine, less cumbersome and easier to revise and replace, but its strong consumption while carburizing poses a problem of logistics.

Side armament, M1 Abrams is equipped with a gun of 105 mm (120 mm for 2 alternatives M1A), of two Mitrailleuse S of 7,62 mm and from a machine-gun of 12,7 Misters It profits from a protective system NBC, a rangefinder Laser, a stabilization of the gun and system of shooting ordered by a computer of shooting.

This tank is used mainly by the United States with more than 7.000 specimens, but also by the Saudi Arabia (315 M1A2), the Kuwait (218 M1A2), the Egypt (777 M1A1) and was ordered in 2004 by the Australia (59 M1A1). The unit costs of a M1A1 are of 5,3 million dollars.

In operations

Its baptism of fire took place in 1991 at the time of the war of the Gulf or it behaved very well vis-a-vis a conventional force mechanized by undergoing only one score of losses (of which several fratricidal shootings).

As from 1995, the American armed and the marine American employ it in Bosnia-Herzégovine then in 1999 with the Kosovo.

In 2003, at the time of the invasion of Iraq, 1.100 M1A1 were committed causing devastations in the Iraqi regular army, but in 2 years of operations of war known as “asymmetrical”, 80 tanks were damaged so much that they had to be brought back to the United States, with 5 team members killed inside the tanks and 10 partly outside.

Even if the enormous majority of some 770 Abrams touched in Iraq suffered only minor damage, whereas they are the privileged target of enemy fire for reasons symbolic systems, these figures show an unquestionable problem.

Modifications are thus in hand for best adapting to the urban war. It is about the program Tank Urban Survival Kit .

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