M1A2 Abrams: M1A2 Abrams is the main battle tank of the United States. It has excellent firepower and protection capabilities and has been upgraded and improved many times. The M1A2 tank is the main battle tank currently in service of the U.S. Army and one of the latest models of the M1 series of tanks. The body structure and layout of the M1A2 tank are basically the same as the M1A1 tank, but there are improvements and upgrades in the fire control system, communication system, armor protection, etc.
The body structure of the M1A2 tank adopts the classic three-zone distribution, namely the front cockpit, the middle fighting compartment and the rear power compartment. The armor of the M1A2 tank adopts the “Chobham” composite armor design, which can resist the attacks of various anti-tank weapons. The latest depleted uranium armor module is also installed on the front of the car body and turret, which increases the defense capability of the M1A2 tank against armor-piercing projectiles.
The layout of the M1A2 tank adopts a four-person crew design, namely driver, gunner, loader and commander. The driver is located in the middle of the front of the vehicle body, and the gunner, loader and commander are located in the turret, responsible for operating the main gun, machine gun and communication equipment, respectively. The latest M1A2 SEP3 tank uses an advanced tank computer that can automatically identify, track and shoot targets.
The power system of the M1A2 tank uses the AGT-1500 gas turbine from AVCOLycoming, which forms a power package (FUPP) with the X1100-3B gearbox from Allison and other components. It takes 1 hour to complete the replacement of the power pack.
The power system of the M1A2 tank is AVCOLycoming’s AGT-1500 gas turbine, which is the world’s first standard tank that uses a gas turbine as the main power source. This engine’s basic structure is similar to an aircraft’s jet engine, and both use turbine blades. The gas turbine gives the M1A2 plenty of power, with a rated power of 1,500 horsepower, which can make the M1A2 tank of more than 70 tons fly at a speed of 72 kilometers per hour.
In fact, to reduce wear and tear on the engine and suspension system, the US military equipped the M1A2 with an engine regulator, which limits the tank’s top speed. The M1A2 tank has 4 forward gears and 2 reverse gears, which can achieve continuous steering and in-situ steering.
The primary armament of the M1A2 is the M256 120mm L/44 caliber smoothbore gun (a tank gun with a caliber 44 times its length), developed by the German company Rheinmetall and manufactured in the United States. The M1A2 tank has the capacity to carry 42 shells. When equipped with the latest M829E4 depleted uranium fin-stabilized armor-piercing projectile, it can effectively penetrate over 800 mm of homogeneous steel armor at a range of 2,000 meters.
Additionally, it can deploy other types of ammunition, including the M830A1 multi-purpose armor-piercing rounds, XM1147 (AMP) multi-functional high-explosive tracer grenades, and M1028 anti-personnel rounds. These versatile ammunition options enable the M1A2 to engage and neutralize enemy tanks, armored vehicles, infantry, and anti-tank obstacles.
