Written by:
Finn Seiffert
Supervised by: Elise Alsteens and Kevin Whitehead
Edited by: Sarah Khossossi
Abstract:
This paper examines the performance of tanks in modern warfare in the context of new technological threats and devastating tank losses, addressing the question of the viability of the Main Battle Tank on modern and future battlefields. It outlines the role of the tank, the new threats it faces, and successes and failures in its employment in contemporary conflicts. Additionally, it examines what kind of technological adaptations future tanks will require and the current state of European tank development. It shows that while new threats are serious and have left tanks more vulnerable, bad performances by tanks on the battlefield are more closely related to the way they are employed. Furthermore, it finds that European governments and manufacturers have drawn appropriate lessons from such observations, are investing significantly in modern tank development, but the diffusion of different competing projects between various groups of European states makes the progress of such development uncertain.
