No real need for a new MBT or IFV, since ours are still some of hte best on earth.
The Abrams is hard as nails, no doubt about that. But as a former Bradley passenger and driver, I've heard a lot of negatives about the platform and very little positive. What makes you say it is one of the best?
What I wrote is in no way an endorsement of the Bradley, IFVs, or APCs in general. They have their utility, but they all give me the willies. Matter of fact, it was my considered opinion (on which I acted) that I would rather jump out of cargo planes & fastrope outta helos than ride around in a thin-shelled metal box on the battlefield. <shudder>
But, I'll give credit where it is due: the Bradley has what a contemporary IFV needs:
- Cannon good vs everything up to med armor in the 25mm
- Heavy ATGM capability provided by the TOWtally Stupendous TOW*
- World-beating FLIRs with the IBAS & CITV*
- Armor that is, uh, OK
- Decent trafficability
It does lack in capacity & armor. Some folks carp about the 25mm cannon's inferiority vis a vis larger (medium) cannon. I am not convinced. About the only advantage the bigger 40mm cannons have is stowed kills. Even a 40mm Supershot is still not going to knock out a tank this side of a T55, inclusive.
OK, rank promotion aside, I think that its EO/IR sensors are what set it apart. The reports our boys in uniform sent back about their utility and how much they liked them caused no little boost in morale up in McKinney, Texas. (Same with LRAS & ITAS by their users.)
If one treats it like what it really is (decently armed battle taxi) it can do its job.
FWIW, if I had to go to battle in a metal box, I would want that box to be an Abrams. I would accept no substitutes. Anything else I consider field-expedient, above-ground, mobile sepulcher.
richyoung has it: the BMP2 is the other widely-fielded, tracked, med cannon & ATGM-equipped IFV.
Most other armored troop carriers are light, wheeled vehicles (like the LAV, Stryker, BTR) or old-school APCs (M113, MTLB). The light wheeled vehicles have even less armor, cross-country mobility, and firepower. The APCs have less armor & firepower & are slower.
So, yeah, the Bradley has its shortcomings, but relative to the others it is arguably the best.
I would like to hear any input from Europeans or east Asians about new or up & coming home-grown IFVs that might be in the works or technically on par with the Bradley.
* Yes, there is some rank promotion going on, here. So sue me.