GDLS signs deal to develop new M1E3 Abrams main battle tank

General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) has been awarded a $150 million contract for the Abrams Engineering Program to provide new technologies for the US Army’s next-generation M1E3 Abrams main battle tank (MBT). The GDLS bid calls for a completion date of June 30, 2027.
In 2023, the US Army announced a roadmap for modernizing the M1E3 Abrams tank, building on its commitment to produce the M1A2 SEP v4, which is intended to produce a next-generation tank that will be operational through 2040. The M1E3 Abrams will be developed using a modular, open-systems architecture to accommodate rapid upgrade packages. This process would allow the US Army to design a “stronger, lighter tank.” The M1E3 is expected to be ready for initial operational capability in the early 2030s.
The replacement of thousands of M1A2 tanks weighing over 67 tons will be one of the largest industrial programs of the latest generation.
According to GlobalData’s military equipment inventories, the US Army has approximately 2,400 M1A1 and M1A2 MBTs, delivered by GDLS since 1980. A lighter, more agile MBT is of strategic importance in a modern battlefield saturated with drones and other threats. It is conceivable that the M1E3 could weigh between the M1A2 SEP v2/3 and the now-discontinued M10 Booker light tank (about 40 tons).
The Abrams M1A2 series uses the M256 120 mm smoothbore main gun, a license-built variant of the Rh-120 system from Germany’s Rheinmetall.
Rheinmetall has developed a 140 mm tank gun as part of the European Main Ground Combat System, which is effectively a next-generation tank program. The new M1E3 is expected to feature hybrid guidance, a potentially unmanned turret, and both active and passive protection systems.