Tanks have been a part of military history since World War I, when trench warfare was introduced to the battlefield, and America needed a response that could tackle the trenches. World War I was the start of a new era, using mechanized warfare to mainstay an upper hand on enemies on foot, and on the ground.
Tanks were designed for combat on the front-lines with strong armor and heavy firepower, and are equipped with the ability to maneuver in nearly any setting due to their powerful engines. The M1 Abrams is the United States Army and Marine Corps’ main battle tank and has served for the past four decades.
Pictured below are eight must-see photos of tanks in mid-firing action.
In March 2018, Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany hosted a Combined Arms Live Fire Exercise (CALFEX). At this exercise, an M1 Abrams tank from the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, fires rounds for practice.
(U.S. Army photo by Spc. Hubert D. Delany III)
At Bemowo Piskie Training Area in Poland, U.S. Army Sgt. Ryan Duginski performs a tank remote-fire procedure. As a Master Gunner assigned to Battle Group Poland, he is aiming to ensure firing capabilities function properly.
(Photo by U.S. Army 1LT Christina Shoptaw)
An M1A1 Abrams Main Battle Tank with 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, fires its 120 mm smoothbore cannon during a live-fire event as part of Exercise Eager Lion 2015 in Jordan, May 9, 2015.
(U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Devin Nichols/Released)
1st Infantry Division Soldiers conduct a live-fire accuracy screen test, on Nov. 13, 2014, at the Udairi Range Complex, Camp Buehring, in Kuwait.
(U.S. Army photo by 1st Lt. Austin McGuin)
Staff Sgt. Scott Colson and Sgt. 1st Class Joseph Maughon, a Master Gunner, remote fire a tank during calibration fire at Grafenwoehr Training Area, in Germany.
(U.S. Army photo by Capt. John Farmer, 1st BCT, 1st CD Public Affairs).
Marines with tank platoon, Battalion Landing Team 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, fire the M256 smoothbore gun of an M1A1 Abrams tanks on static targets during Realistic Urban Training Marine Expeditionary Unit Exercise 14-1 (RUTMEUEX) at Fort Hunter Liggett, Calif., March 20, 2014.
(U.S. Marine Corps photo by Gunnery Sgt. Rome M. Lazarus/Released)
At Fort Irwin, Calif., Tank Crews of the 1st Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment conducted a Crew Gunnery Skills Test, to check accuracy and speed of fire commands for the tanks.
(SPC Adam Hoppe, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment)
At Fort Stewart, Ga., a tank crew fires at a target during qualifications exercises, on Aug. 8, 2017.
(Staff Sgt. Antonio Vincent/U.S. Army)
