M60A3 Tank Used by US Army... Acquired at $1 Million Each
Ongoing Upgrades Including Replacement with 120mm Smoothbore Gun and Enhanced Armor Protection
Photo of an M60A3 tank conducting live-fire during Taiwan military's amphibious landing training Photo by Taiwan Ministry of National Defense
[Military Analyst Kim Daeyoung]Recently, the tension level between China and Taiwan, that is, cross-strait relations, has been rising day by day. In addition, military conflicts between the U.S. and China are also escalating. China is conducting simultaneous large-scale joint military exercises at three maritime locations surrounding Taiwan. This is interpreted as a pressure offensive targeting Taiwan and the U.S., as well as a show of force.
For the Chinese military to invade Taiwan, which is an island, a landing operation is essential in case of emergency. Therefore, the Taiwanese military places great importance on counter-landing operations, which involve the joint use of all available means and methods by the army, navy, and air force to block and annihilate enemy landings. To prevent Chinese landings on the coast, the Taiwanese army currently possesses about 1,000 tanks. Among these, the most numerous are the M60A3 tanks.
A total of about 460 units are deployed and operated by Taiwan’s armored and mechanized brigades. The M60A3 tanks used by the Taiwanese army are second-hand tanks previously used by the U.S. Army, introduced from 1994 to 1996 at a cost of 1 million dollars per unit, approximately 1 billion Korean won at current exchange rates. Not only the Taiwanese army but also the naval infantry units similar to our country’s Marine Corps operate some of these tanks. More than 15,000 M60 series tanks were produced from 1959 to 1983.
Among them, the M60A3 is the last tank produced in the M60 series. Manufactured from 1978, the M60A3 tank has the same mobility as the previously used M60A1 but with enhanced protection and is equipped with a digital fire control system. In particular, it uses a laser rangefinder and a semiconductor ballistic computer that enable precise firing. On the other hand, the tank sight uses an image intensification method. Image intensification amplifies ambient light to allow visibility at night as if it were daytime.
However, the image intensification method has the drawback of reduced detection range in bad weather. Eventually, the later models of the M60A3 tank adopted thermal imaging equipment in the tank sight. Thermal imaging equipment detects and reproduces images based on the difference in radiant temperature emitted by objects themselves, regardless of the presence or absence of light. Therefore, it is less affected by weather conditions. The later M60A3 models equipped with thermal imaging are separately named TTS (Tank Thermal Sight).
The M60A3 tanks operated by the Taiwanese army are known to be the TTS type. In the future, the Taiwanese military plans to acquire about 100 latest M1A2T tanks from the U.S., but independently, the M60A3 tanks will continue to be operated. It is also reported that they are preparing for long-term operation by upgrading the performance of the M60A3 tanks themselves. The National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology, which can be considered Taiwan’s defense science research institute, has proposed an upgrade plan to replace the 105mm tank gun of the M60A3 with a 120mm smoothbore gun, improve the fire control system, and simultaneously enhance protection.
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