M-1A2C Abrams: Is This New Tank the Best in the World?

By David Axe,The National Interest

The U.S. Army’s newest tank has made its apparent operational debut at a multi-national exercise in Romania.

The M-1A2C, previously known at the M-1A2 System Enhancement Package Version 3, appeared in imagery that the U.S. Defense Department published to mark the May 29, 2019 commencement of Justice Eagle, a U.S.-Romanian war game at Romania’s Smardan Training Area.

The tanks appear to belong to 1st Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment, part of the 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, whose home base is Fort Riley in Kansas.

The new M-1A2C Abrams boasts new active and passive protection that could help to protect it from the latest enemy weaponry. The most obvious new features of the M-1A2C are the vehicle’s Trophy active-protection systems and an additional slab of armor on the front of its turret.

Trophy uses a radar to detect incoming missiles and rockets then fires tiny projectiles to intercept the munitions. The Army also is back-fitting Trophy to some older M-1 models.

The bulky Trophy hardware is what gave away the M-1A2C’s presence in Romania.

The M-1A2C is the latest variant of Abrams to enter production. The Army in late 2017 accepted the very first M-1A2C Abrams tanks.