M1 Abrams “Thunderbird”
Wölfli Tier VI Main Battle Tank
[Click Photos for High Res]
The M1 Abrams is an iconic American tank, and perhaps one of the most definitive modern main battle tanks. Development began in 1973 based on the cancelled MBT 70 project. Competitive prototypes were presented for trials by the Chrysler Corporation and the Detroit Diesel Allison Division of General Motors in 1976, with production beginning in 1980. The M1 Abrams was designed to be tactically superior on the battelfield to compensate for numerical inferiority in the face of fleets of Soviet tanks, while being within lowest buget possible. It emphasized crew protection, mobility, and firepower. It features a crew of four - commander, gunner, loader, and driver. Originally, the M1 Abrams was protected by thick rolled homogenous steel armor which would later be upgraded with composite Chobham armor. Ammo stowage featured blowout panels to protect the crew from ammo cookoff. the tank features full NBC protection as well. It is powered by the extremely powerful Lycoming AGT 1500 multi-fuel gas turbine, which gives the tank almost unparalleled performance. The M1 Abrams was initially armed with the license built Royal Ordinance L7 105mm rifled gun, and featured advanced fire control, laser range finder, and day/night sights. Additionally, it is armed with a coaxial 7.62mm machinegun, with another one for the loader’s hatch and a Browning M2HB 12.7mm HMG for the commander’s hatch. In-game, the M1 Abrams is perhaps one of the most balanced tier VI MBTs. It perfectly balances mobility, firepower, and protection resulting in a highly versatile and resilient tank. It’s mobility is unmatched for its class and tier, with exceptional acceleration, hull traverse, and a top speed of 72+ km/h on paved roads, and 48 km/h offroad. It can essentially keep up with light tanks for the most part. The frontal turret and hull armor can and will reliably deflect a majority of enemy fire. The side armor is almost equally formidable, especially when angled towards the enemy. HEAT rounds are highly ineffective against the thick skirt armor and thick side turret armor. the only frontal weakspot is a small area right under the gun mantlet which if penettated by HEAT rounds or ATGMs will result in critical turret and gun breach damage. This can be easily remedied by turning the turret so that the cheeks of the turret will deflect the damage. Upgraded and advanced targeting sights enable the M1 Abrams to effectively fire on the move. It’s 105mm main gun has very good alpha damage for its tier and good armor penetration especially with upgraded APDS rounds. However, its raw damage can seem underwhelming when compared to other MBTs of its tier, mainly the Russian T-72B and T-80B. Upgrading it with Improved Ready Racks and the Rapid Fire skill for the loader compensates for this, giving the M1 Abrams exceptional sustained damage output. Overall the M1 Abrams represents the potential of the M1 series as formidable kings of the battlefield.
