The M1 Abrams MBT is the main weapon system of the armor battalions of the U.S. Army, the Army National Guard and the United States Marine Corps. Like the Leopard 2, the Challenger 1 and the T-80 the Ml Abrams belongs to the 3rd generation of main battle tanks that was developed after the end of World War II. In the 1980s and 1990s the Ml Abrams replaced all M48 and M60 main battle tanks in service by then within the U.S. Armed Forces. Most Ml Abrams main battle tanks entered service during the final decade of the Cold War. Along the Iron Curtain the armed forces of NATO and Warsaw Pact faced each other. The ground forces on each side could muster thousands of main battle tanks and in case of a conflict it was anticipated that large tank battles would have taken place on the plains of Germany. As a result of this the Ml was originally designed to dominate the battlefield and to be superior in the duel tank against tank. Originally it had been intended to replace the M48 and M60 main battle tanks with the Main Battle Tank 70. The Main Battle Tank 70 was a bi-national Project involving Germany and the U.S.A. Initiated in 1963 the project was terminated in 1970 due to skyrocketing costs, missed deadlines and technical difficulties. Prior to this several prototypes had been built and tested. Main features of the MBT 70 were an XM150 152mm Gun/Launcher that could fire conventional tank ammunition as well as launch Shillelagh missiles, a 20mm machine cannon on the turret roof, a sophisticated fire control system, a three man crew with all crew members sitting inside the turret, an automatic loader, a hydro-pneumatic suspension system and a combat weight of 47 tonnes powered by a Continental AVCR-1100-2/3 air cooled diesel engine. In the U.S.A. General Motors Corporation was strongly involved in the development of the MBT 70.
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