This is the US army tank the m1a2 with it’s computer controlled firing systems and digital communications. It’s the first informations age tank. It’s more like a computer behind the shield. It’s extremally powerfull. The gas turbine engine delivers unbelievable 1500 horse power. It weights 68,5 tones fully combat loaded, and It can drive with maximum speed 72 km/h. The armor on a tank has to provide protection for the wehicle and it’s crew, but if It’s carries too much armor it can’t move fast enough.

The challenge is to gain maximum protection with minimum weight. For the m1a2 the armor is cut from steel plate. In places protection is up to 30 centymeters thick. Each tank is held together by two and a half kilometers of weld. Tanks are built in two separate parts. Inside the hull are pipes and cables to link the digital processors with control the tank.

The systems are high tech but the tanks mobility still depends on a continuous tracks invented eighty years ago. They are designed to spread the weight of a tank over a large surface area. On the m1a2 each track is 15 meters long made of 79 metal segments with replaceable rubber blocks.

The killing power of a tank is determinated by it’s firepower. The main armament of m1a2 is the 120 millimeters smooth board gun. Before it’s installed into the tank every gun is tested with live ammunition. Tank’s are controlled by computer and every last electrical component must be checked. When the turret and the hull are completed they are joint together and it provides protection from a chemical attacks on battlefield.

Each tank consists of over 5000 parts and costs one and a half million dollars. The final stage is to paint using camouflage colors. From start to finish it takes four months to build each tank. Before any tank is delivered to the army it has to pass some tests to make sure it’s fully functional. If there are any problems they are easy to identify. The advanced suspension system is tested on the factories pumped track.

This tank can go from 50 km/h to a full stop in 10 meters. It can hold steady on a 60 degrees level and it can cross a river up to 2 meters deep.