Scorpion
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Saudi Arabia requests another 153 Abrams tanks
The US Department of State has approved the sale of 153 M1A2S Abrams main battle tanks and 20 M88 Hercules armoured recovery vehicles (ARVs) to Saudi Arabia that, together with related equipment and services, are worth an estimated USD1.15 billion, the US Defense Security Cooperation announced on 9 August.
A still from footage shown by Al-Masirah TV, which supports Ansar Allah, shows one of its reporters in front of a Saudi Abrams tank that was apparently knocked out during fighting on the Yemen border in August 2015. (Al-Masirah TV)
The Saudis requested 153 M1A1/A2 "structures" for conversion into 133 M1A2S tanks and 20 "battle damage replacements for their existing fleet", the DSCA said. It said the 20 M88A1/A2s would also be subject to conversion.
The package outlined by the DSCA includes 153 M2 .50 calibre machine guns, 266 7.62 mm M240 machine guns, 153 M250 smoke grenade launchers, 169 AN/VAS-5 Driver Vision Enhancer (DVE) thermal imaging systems, and 133 AN/PVS-7B night vision devices.
It also includes training ammunition, gunnery training systems, communication equipment, spares, and support from US government personnel and contractors.
Saudi Arabia originally bought 315 new M1A2 tanks that were delivered in the mid-1990s. A programme was begun in 2008 to upgrade the entire fleet, as well as another 15 acquired from the United States, to the Saudi-specified M1A2S standard. The last conversion contract appears to have been awarded to General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) in December 2014 and was expected to be completed by July 2016.
GDLS was also awarded a USD132.7 million contract in January 2013 to procure another 69 surplus US Abrams and convert them to the M1A2S standard for Saudi Arabia. That contract was expected to be completed by July 2014, at which point 399 Abrams would have been delivered to Saudi Arabia.
http://www.janes.com/article/62868/saudi-arabia-requests-another-153-abrams-tanks
The US Department of State has approved the sale of 153 M1A2S Abrams main battle tanks and 20 M88 Hercules armoured recovery vehicles (ARVs) to Saudi Arabia that, together with related equipment and services, are worth an estimated USD1.15 billion, the US Defense Security Cooperation announced on 9 August.
The Saudis requested 153 M1A1/A2 "structures" for conversion into 133 M1A2S tanks and 20 "battle damage replacements for their existing fleet", the DSCA said. It said the 20 M88A1/A2s would also be subject to conversion.
The package outlined by the DSCA includes 153 M2 .50 calibre machine guns, 266 7.62 mm M240 machine guns, 153 M250 smoke grenade launchers, 169 AN/VAS-5 Driver Vision Enhancer (DVE) thermal imaging systems, and 133 AN/PVS-7B night vision devices.
It also includes training ammunition, gunnery training systems, communication equipment, spares, and support from US government personnel and contractors.
Saudi Arabia originally bought 315 new M1A2 tanks that were delivered in the mid-1990s. A programme was begun in 2008 to upgrade the entire fleet, as well as another 15 acquired from the United States, to the Saudi-specified M1A2S standard. The last conversion contract appears to have been awarded to General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) in December 2014 and was expected to be completed by July 2016.
GDLS was also awarded a USD132.7 million contract in January 2013 to procure another 69 surplus US Abrams and convert them to the M1A2S standard for Saudi Arabia. That contract was expected to be completed by July 2014, at which point 399 Abrams would have been delivered to Saudi Arabia.
http://www.janes.com/article/62868/saudi-arabia-requests-another-153-abrams-tanks
