Heavy duty: overhaul under way for Abrams tank engine.

• Author: Colucci, Frank
• Position: ENERGY CRUNCH

The Army is revamping its Abrams tank engines in an effort to curtail soaring operating costs. Under a program called total integrated engine revitalization, or TIGER, the goal is to double the meantime between depot repairs for the M1 Abrams tank power plant.

The Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command estimates that the Honeywell AGT1500 gas turbine engine accounts for about 42 percent of overall M1 support costs. "It's the number one target for reducing the cost of operating the tank," says Abrams Product Manager Lt. Col. Michael Flanagan.

The Army now has more than 6,000 M1 Abrams tanks and bought the last of the approximately 12,000 new AGT1500 engines in 1994. With its high power density, the thirsty 1,500-horsepower turbine made the Abrams a success in fast-moving Operations Desert Storm and Iraqi Freedom. "The lethality of this tank is in the speed at which we can move around the battlefield," says Flanagan. "That's why we took a hit on fuel consumption when we selected this very good engine."

However, the time between AGT1500 depot-level overhauls has declined from 2,000 operating hours for a brand-new engine to 700 hours for one returned to stock from the depot. The Army nevertheless established a compelling business case for improving the AGT1500.

"The tank for all intents and purposes was built around this engine," says Flanagan. "You either improve what you have, or you buy a brand-new engine." The Army leadership concluded that "this is the most affordable and cost-effective approach to address the operating and support costs of our Abrams fleet."

Ultimate savings from the TIGER program are difficult to quantify, but the effort aims to cut depot visits in half. The intent is to extend time between depot repairs to at least 1,400 hours with improved durability, a standard engine configuration, efficient supply-chain management, fact-based maintenance and expanded field support.

Honeywell, TACOM, the Life Cycle Management Command and Anniston Army Depot integrate all the engineering and implementation steps necessary to cut engine support costs. According to Honeywell AGT1500 engineering manager, John Mason, "There's no single silver bullet out there."

By 2012, the Army plans to reduce its Abrams fleet to 2,500 tanks with 4,000 engines installed, in depot, or in war stocks. The TIGER program will renew approximately 1,000 engines a year for four years. In January, the Army awarded Honeywell a 12-month contract with three...