First upgraded M1A2K Abrams Main Battle Tank MBT delivered to Kuwait Army.

According to information published on the Twitter account of the Kuwait Armed Armed Forces GHQ on July 29, 2021, Kuwait took delivery of the first recapitalized version of the M1A2K Main Battle Tank (MBT) during an official ceremony that was held in the United States.
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First M1A2K Abrams delivered to the Kuwaiti army on July 29, 2021 (Picture source: Twitter account of Kuwait Army GHQ)

On behalf of the Chief of the General Staff of the Army, a delegation from the Kuwaiti Land Force headed by the Assistant Commander of the Land Force, Brigadier General Abdullah Ali Al-Jaba’a, accompanied by a number of commanding officers, attended the official ceremony for the Kuwaiti army’s receipt of the first M1A2K tank in the U.S. The M1A2K will gradually replace the current fleet of 218 M1A2 Abrams delivered between 1994–97, as planned in 2017.

In December 2016, the United States Defense Security Cooperation Agency has announced a possible foreign military sale to the Government of Kuwait for recapitalization of 218 M1A2 tanks and related equipment, support, and training. The estimated cost is $1.7 billion. 

The Government of Kuwait has requested a sale in support of its recapitalization of 218 M1A2 main battle tanks, to include two hundred and forty (240) .50 Cal M2A1 machine guns; four hundred and eighty (480) 7.62mm M240 machine guns; two hundred and forty (240) AN/VRC-92E SINCGARS radios; and one thousand and eight five (1,085) AN/PVS-7B Night Vision Goggles. 

Also included is the incorporation of cooling system/thermal management systems; Common Remotely Operated Weapons Station (CROWS) II – Low Profile Stabilized Weapon Stations; special armor; 120mm gun tubes; 2nd generation Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) sights; embedded diagnostics; gunner’s primary sights; Counter Sniper and Anti-Materiel Mount (CSAMM) hardware; upgrade/maintenance of engines and transmissions; depot level support; training devices; spare and repair parts; support equipment; tools and test equipment; technical data and publications; personnel training and training equipment; U.S. Government and contractor engineering, technical, and logistics support services, and other related elements of logistics support.

According to the analysis of the Army Recognition editorial team, the M1A2K is fitted with a 12.7mm heavy machine gun mounted above the 120mm gun as for the Israeli Merkava IV MBT (Main Battle Tank). The roof of the turret is now fitted with a CROWS (Common Remotely Operated Weapon Station) gyro-stabilized turret armed with one 12.7mm heavy machine gun. Other changes include mission system upgrades and a new armor package. The tank is now fitted with new Auxiliary Cooling and Power System (ACPS) mounted at the rear of the turret.

The M1A2K keeps the same main armament that includes one 120mm M256 smoothbore gun, developed by Rheinmetall Waffe Munition GmbH of Germany able to fire M865 TPCSDS-T and M831 TP-T training rounds, the M8300 HEAT-MP-T and the M829 APFSDS-T which includes a depleted uranium penetrator.