The first Abrams tank, the M1, entered military service in 1980 and is named after General Creighton Abrams. Only two other Abrams tanks have been brought to military service since then, the M1A1 and the M1A2.
Despite being a powerful tank, the Abrams tank is often criticized because of it's size and weight. The M1A2 weighs almost 70 tons, and is difficult to transport by air. The tank is so heavy, it can't even cross bridges! The newest model, the M1A3 is planned to be lighter and more maneuverable than tanks before it.
One of the ways the tank is going to she'd a few pounds, is by switching the Abrams internal computer system which uses metal cables, to a more modern computer system that uses fiber optics. This switch will cause the tank to lose 2 tons!
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