Heavy Armor: The Tank’s Role in the Future of War

Patrick Donahoe

U.S. Army, United States

Slow" -relative. The Speed that matters isnt about getting into the greasy grass quickly, its about winning there.  

Recently, an article was posted on War is Boring concerning the first arrival of U.S. M1 tanks in the country of Georgia for an exercise. In response, I posted the following on Twitter.: "Slow" -relative. The Speed that matters isnt about getting into the greasy grass quickly, its about winning there.

This thought is short for Twitter’s sake and a reference to Custer and his foray up the Little Big Horn, a river the Lakota Sioux called the Greasy Grass. One recalls that his expedition doesn’t end well, partly for leaving cannon and gatlings behind in favor of travelling light.

This brings us to the present day with all the questions of the utility of the tank as we look at the past decade of counterinsurgency fighting. The future of the tank is secure. Men first mastered animals to move faster on the battlefield than their foes afoot, and it continues today. Men build machines that are faster, but more importantly to protect them from weapons on the field, and enable them to carry more devastating firepower than they could on foot. This is the magical combination of mobility, firepower, and protection that all armored vehicles balance in some way, shape, or form.  And remember, before the U.S. embarked on a long COIN fight in Iraq, tanks and infantry vehicles fought and bested Iraqi tanks and BMPs in armored slugging matches that superior soldiers and equipment won at every turn.
We must not forget that the tank was not developed to defeat the tank. It was developed in World War I to defeat the machine-gun and to penetrate layered defenses in torn terrain. The ultimate goal was to  to restore mobility to the infantry, punch holes in the defense, and unleash cavalry to exploit those holes. The chore remains virtually unchanged since the British deployed tanks at Cambrai in 1917. The tank enables maneuver. But as the British learned in the mud of the Western Front, the tank restores maneuver to the battlefield only when coupled with all arms—fires and aviation—including that which air forces bring.