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Key Points: The M1A2 SEPv3 Abrams tank, widely regarded as the most advanced variant of the iconic platform, boasts cutting-edge upgrades in survivability, firepower, and systems integration.

-Equipped with Trophy Active Protection, advanced armor, and enhanced communication systems, it ensures dominance in mechanized warfare.

-Its 120mm smoothbore gun, remote-controlled machine guns, and advanced ammunition provide lethal firepower, while its 1,500-horsepower engine ensures mobility.

-However, critics question the role of tanks in modern warfare, especially amid evolving drone and anti-tank missile threats.

-Australia’s acquisition of 75 SEPv3 tanks underscores global demand, but mastery of its complex systems will require intensive training.

M1A2 SEPv3 Abrams: The Greatest Tank Ever Built?

You know the M1 Abrams tank is great, but which version would you pick as the best of all time? I vote for the Abrams M1A2 SEPv3 Main Battle Tank as the GOAT.

It is so well-regarded that the Australian Army has ordered 75 new Abrams SEPv3s. They were seen traveling by train to Port Hueneme in California in June. Each tank had the tell-tale Aussie red kangaroo painted on its hull.

This sale is worth a whopping $1.7 billion of “twisted steel and lots of appeal” that should excite Australian tankers to have such an advanced beast serving in their army.

And this might be the best tank ever to be built.

M1A2 SEPv3 : This is the Cadillac of Tanks

The M1A2 SEPv3 is the latest version of the Abrams family of MBTs. There are so many new systems on the SEPv3 that I need a hand from the folks at ArmyRecognition.com to describe them all:

“It features increased power generation and distribution capabilities, enhanced communications and networking, a new Vehicle Health Management System (VHMS), and Line Replaceable Modules (LRMs) for improved maintenance. The tank also includes an Ammunition DataLink (ADL) for airburst rounds, improved counter-IED armor, a Next Generation Armor Package (NGAP), and an Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) to power electronics while stationary.”

More New Systems

Did you get all that? But wait, there are even more goodies.

The SEPv3 has explosive reactive armor and a Trophy Active Protection System for better survivability against incoming rounds or from mines and improvised explosive devices (IED). There is also the Duke V3 counter remote-controlled IED electronic warfare system. Meanwhile, the Trophy system can counter-act incoming rockets and missiles.

Watch Out for These Armaments

The latest Abrams features a 120mm M256 smoothbore gun with a maximum effective range of 4,000 meters. It can send advanced kinetic energy and multi-purpose rounds down range. There is also a remote-control system to fire the 12.7mm machine gun and a 7.62mm M240 machine gun. The fire control mechanism is equipped with FLIR sensors.

The SEPv3’s crew configuration will be familiar to tankers experienced on the Abrams. The driver’s cab is on the forward center hull, the turret is in the middle, and the power pack is at the rear.

The new tank has a Honeywell AGT1500 gas turbine engine that pushes out 1,500 horsepower.

Battle Group Poland Fires an M1 Abrams Remotely

Can You Believe How Old the Abrams Platform Is?

The SEPv3 is so good, it is expected to serve until the 2040s. That is an amazing run for the Abrams which started as a concept under the Carter administration in the 1970s with initial introduction in 1980. All Abrams tanks in service are expected to receive the SEPv3 upgrade by 2027.

What About Performance in Combat?

But here’s the difficult part. All these updates sound awesome on paper but what about in combat? We at 19FortyFive have documented how the older Abrams M1A2 models serving in Ukraine have not exactly set the world on fire. The Ukrainian tankers have not taken to the Abrams in the same manner that they have enthusiastically embraced the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. The Abrams can be difficult to operate effectively without years of training and it can be a challenge to maintain.

Again, We Ask: Is the Tank Obsolete?

Also, critics, in general, wonder if any tank, no matter how advanced, can still be effective on the battlefield. An anti-tank missile or a drone can spell doom for even the most modern tank in the world. A tank is also only good as its doctrine. Can an army determine how to best use a tank as the main tool for mechanized warfare? It takes a precise amount of training and execution for combined arms warfare when you bring in armored personnel carriers and artillery to the mix. The Ukrainians are still learning this but the recent incursion into Russia has shown that they are excelling at using an armored shock force to burst through undefended lines to surprise the inexperienced Russians.

Aerial drone image of an M1A2 Abrams Main Battle Tank crew, from the 1st Armor Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, conducting Table VI Gunnery at Fort Stewart, Ga. December 6, 2016.

Aerial drone image of an M1A2 Abrams Main Battle Tank crew, from the 1st Armor Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, conducting Table VI Gunnery at Fort Stewart, Ga. December 6, 2016.

It will be interesting to see how the Aussies do with the SEPv3 models. These new systems are highly sophisticated and take years to master. If I were advising the Australian army command, I would recommend sending Aussie tankers to the United States for more operation and maintenance training. Even the best operators will need tender loving care from the SEPv3.

Overall, the SEPv3 upgrade package makes the Abrams even more powerful and lethal with great survivability. The new version will probably never see the battlefield in Ukraine, but armored crews will be watching how tank warfare in the age of drones evolves during the fight between Russians and Ukrainians.

The Americans will adjust tactics, techniques, and procedures, take the most modern M1 Abrams SEPv3, and learn to use it with maximum effectiveness.

About the Author: Dr. Brent M. Eastwood

Brent M. Eastwood, PhD, is the author of Don’t Turn Your Back On the World: a Conservative Foreign Policy and Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare, plus two other books. Brent was the founder and CEO of a tech firm that predicted world events using artificial intelligence. He served as a legislative fellow for U.S. Senator Tim Scott and advised the senator on defense and foreign policy issues. He has taught at American University, George Washington University, and George Mason University. Brent is a former U.S. Army Infantry officer. He can be followed on X @BMEastwood.