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QuickFacts
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Named after General Creighton Abrams of the 37th Armored Regiment.
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One of the heaviest main battle tanks in operational service.
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Original rifled 105mm main gun later upgraded to more powerful 120mm smoothbore main gun for increased penetration and range.
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At the time of its inception, the M1 Abrams was at the cutting edge of tank design, joining the ranks of the German Leopard 2 and the Israeli Merkava series. As a joint Chrysler / General Motors trial model, the XM1 further developed un the ownership of General Dynamics, Land Systems to become the fully operational M1 Abrams.
The system featured an assortment of technological details designed to maximize battlefield presence and minimize crew fatalities. The M1 spawned a much improved subvariant which ultimately led to the developed M1A1 with the larger 120mm main gun (previous versions were armed with a less-powerful 105mm variety. The M1A2 followed and became the ultimate form of the main battle tank.
The M1 features a traditional seating arrangement for the crew. The commander, loader and driver all sit in the turret with the driver at front / middle. The commander and gunner both sit to the right whilst the loader sits left. Both commander and loader are afforded a machine post with the commander manning an anti-aircraft .50 caliber system that he can fire from beneath the safety of his hatch. The loader fires a .30 caliber pintle-mounted machine gun. The gunner also has the ability to fire a forward-fixed .30 caliber coaxial machine gun when needed.
The M1A2 was exported to US-friendly nations such as Kuwait and Saudi Arabia and filled in the ranks of the US Army as well, bringing along all existing M1's to the M1A2 standard. The M1A2 has seen extensive action in the first and second Gulf Wars and Afghanistan as well. The hitting capabilities of the M1 proved quite effective against their Soviet-produced Iraqi counterparts in both conflicts.
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All other images cited with origin.
This article last updated on 7/22/2008
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