Army May “Hybridize” Abrams Tanks With Electric Propulsion

Video Above: Soldiers Controlling Robot Tanks

By Kris Osborn – President & Editor-In-Chief, Warrior Maven

What if an Abrams tank were able to surge forward into enemy territory with much greater range, endurance and offensive combat success due to needing less fuel and logistics support? What if armored vehicles could silently hide from enemy detection without emitting a heat or noise signature? This might enable clandestine scout and reconnaissance missions, enable surprise attack or simply allow focused attention of computing, communications, networking and weapons. 

Army Climate Strategy

These advancements are fast-becoming more realistic, in part due to the Army’s recently published Climate Strategy. While the strategy is comprehensive and wide-spanning in its sphere of topics and areas of focus, one interesting and potentially impactful area of focus relates to “hybridizing” commercial, non-tactical and tactical vehicles with electric propulsion and operational technologies. The goal, as cited in the strategy, could be described in terms of interwoven, mutually reinforcing concepts … making constructive environmental changes while also introducing extremely significant new combat advantages to the force.

A perhaps lesser recognized yet impactful element of this initiative relates to the multitude of ways in which introducing the hybridization of heavier combat vehicles could measurably improve tactical performance, perhaps even saving lives in combat.

“While these steps are focused on reducing greenhouse gasses, every one of these steps is going to make us a better and more effective fighting force,” Mr. Paul Farnan, Acting Assistant Secretary of the Army, Installation, Energy and Environment, told a group of reporters when talking about the new Climate Strategy.

Hybridizing Abrams Tanks

A mechanized column of armored vehicles including Abrams tanks, could certainly surge forward into enemy territory to “close with an enemy,” is a much faster and more efficient way should fuel requirements be drastically reduced. Heavily armored vehicles require so much fuel to advance forward, yet they need substantial logistics support in the way of continued fuel and other supplies. Transporting things like fuel of course introduces an element of risk, making advancing forces more vulnerable. An ability to surge farther without needing as much of a logistics chain can therefore introduce very significant tactical advantages, as explained by Farnan.