DARPA’s new tank stresses mobility over armor
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Despite military advances in the field of armor improvements, DARPA’s newest tank concept is based more around evasion.
The Ground X-Vehicle Technology (GXV-T) program is a concept based on the idea of increased mobility – improvements in armor-penetration are moving faster than those in the school of armor protection. For this reason, DARPA opted to design a vehicle based around maneuverability.
“GXV-T’s goal is not just to improve or replace one particular vehicle—it’s about breaking the ‘more armor’ paradigm and revolutionizing protection for all armored fighting vehicles,” DARPA writes on the tank concept’s site.
The GXV-T design allow for U.S. troops to account for more varied combat scenarios in multifarious environments. DARPA wants this tank’s base speed to be double that of other tanks, and wants a weight reduction of at least 50 percent. The plan to achieve this include removing unnecessary crew members. DARPA’s video on YouTube highlights some of the factors playing into the tank’s development.
As more modern military advancements open up new options, designers and engineers need to start thinking outside of the box, DARPA writes – and this could be the next step in military evolution.
