The U.S. Army’s future M1E3 tank will need to address a bevy of new threats. The 60-ton tank will have to deal with drone attacks from the air, top-down anti-tank guided missiles, hit-and-run ambushes from dispersed groups of armed soldiers, and long-range enemy missiles and tank rounds, among other dangers.
To counter these threats, the platform will require new sensors and countermeasures. Several key areas of focus could include on-board electrical power; weight and mobility; vulnerability to anti-armor weapons; obstacles to deployability; and measures to counter the drone threat.
An M1A2 Abrams Tank fires a round at Fort Stewart, GA., June 23, 2025. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. David Resnick)
Soldiers with 1st Battalion, 68th Armor regiment, 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division execute platoon live fire exercises Dec. 7, 2021, Fort Carson, Colorado. Platoon live fire exercises prove a platoon’s ability to engage targets and maneuver together on their M1A2 Abrams main battle tanks. (U.S. Army photo by Capt. Tobias Cukale)
Abrams Upgrades
The Abrams tank is an invaluable armored asset that has achieved numerous historic battlefield successes. It first showed its power when it dominated Iraqi T-72s during the Gulf War. The tank wields a massive psychological deterrent effect. In general, heavy tanks are a key platform for taking and holding enemy territory, as was again demonstrated in Ukraine.
The Abrams has also shown its versatility. Its auxiliary power units (APUs) are designed to increase on-board power to support sensing, computing, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR). Add-on armor kits improve survivability, and the Abrams can now fire an advanced multi-purpose 120-mm round able to combine multiple blast effects into a single munition.
For these and many other reasons, the Abrams tank is likely here to stay for many years.
Its growing ability to network with unmanned systems and improve survivability with top-down protections, drone launching, and AI-enabled sensing, targeting and computing, is especially significant.
An M1A1 Abrams tank from 1st Tank Battalion, 3rd Marines, maneuvers before a live fire assault at Shoalwater Bay Training Area, Queensland, Australia, on May 25, 2001 for Exercise Tandem Thrust 2001. Tandem Thrust is a combined military training exercise involving more than 18,000 U.S., Australian, and Canadian personnel who are training in crisis action planning and execution of contingency response operations.
(DoD photo by Sgt. Bob O’Donahoo, Australian Army. (Released))
Tanks are often distinguished by the range and fidelity of their thermal sights, which and the Abrams’ allowed them to target Iraqi tanks before they were ever detected themselves
The later M1A2 SEP v3 was engineered with third-generation forward-looking infrared targeting technology, which brought breakthrough range and resolution to the platform.
The Abrams, in short, has been continually updated over the course of many years to address deficits, new liabilities, and emerging technical challenges. The M1E3’s development no doubt integrates the latest lessons learned from battlefields such as that in Ukraine.
The upcoming platform is expected to be much faster—it is lighter, at 60 tons—and therefore better suited for expeditionary operations. A smaller, lighter, faster tank could maneuver through urban areas, transit over bridges existing Abrams cannot handle, and pass through narrowly configured passageways.
Ideally, the M1E3’s lighter weight can be achieved without comprising the classic survivability of the Abrams tanks—perhaps using lightweight composite armor materials or a new generation of active protection systems (APSs).
C-UAS on Tanks
Speed itself is a survivability-enhancing characteristic, and it’s likely the M1E3 is engineered with advanced, hemispheric APS better positioned to counter drone attacks and top-down anti-armor strikes.
Counter-unmanned aerial system (C-UAS) capabilities must be a leading priority while designing the M1E3—tanks have been decimated in Ukraine by drones able to loiter then attack from the air.
C-UAS technologies under consideration likely include kinetic interceptor missiles, APS-fired rounds to stop incoming munitions, and possibly lasers designed to incinerate or disable drones.
U.S. Army soldiers assigned to Bravo ‘Bad Bet’ Company, 2nd Battalion, 12th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, conduct Table V exercises with the M1A2 Abrams Tank at Bemowo Piskie Training Area, Poland, July 12, 2024. The purpose of the training is to ensure the Abrams were fully functional and fit to fight. The 1st Cavalry Division’s mission is to engage in multinational training and exercises across the continent, strengthening interoperability with NATO allies and regional security partners, which provides competent and ready forces to V Corps, America’s forward-deployed corps in Europe. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Kali Ecton)
Marines with Bravo Company, 4th Tanks Battalion, fire the M1A1 Abrams tank during a live-fire exercise as part of Exercise Arrow 18 in Pohjankangas Training Area near Kankaanpaa, Finland, May 15, 2018. Exercise Arrow is an annual Finnish multi-national exercise with the purpose of training with mechanized infantry, artillery, and mortar field training skills in a live-fire exercise. This is the first year the Marine Corps is participating in this exercise and the first time the M1A1 Abrams tanks have been in Finland. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. Marcin Platek/Released)
It is nearly certain that the M1E3 also will operate with new generations of electronic warfare. Advanced systems can now help deconflict the spectrum, identify enemy signatures and radio frequency signals, and jam, disable, or even take over attacking drones.
High-powered microwave weapons are also emerging as a key area of counter-drone research.
It would not be surprising to learn that the M1E3 operates with AI-enabled C-UAS and threat-oriented computing able to find, verify, and validate targets, then instantly matches the data with a countermeasure or effector.
During the recent unveiling of the tank in Detroit, Army Chief of Staff General Randy George said AI figures prominently in the M1E3.
Hybrid Electric Tank
By operating with a diesel-electric hybrid engine, the M1E3 will not only be more fuel-efficient and silent, but it also will benefit from added on-board electrical power generated by the diesel-electric engine.
This will provide additional power for supporting electronics, sensors, targeting, and AI-enabled computing without requiring additional APUs.
Manned-Unmanned Teaming
Perhaps the most significant upgrade for the M1E3 will be its ability to operate with robotic unmanned platforms and drones that can deliver ammunition, conduct highly critical reconnaissance and ISR in hostile areas, and even launch attacks when directed by a human.
This would greatly improve survivability and enable the M1E3 to operate as an extremely lethal, forward-operating, multi-domain command-and-control platform.
About the Author: Kris Osborn
Kris Osborn is the President of Warrior Maven – Center for Military Modernization. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a highly qualified expert in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The HistoryChannel. He also has a Master’s Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia.
