If and when the M1 Abrams series becomes obsolete and is replaced with a new MBT,who are some likely candidates to name the new vehicle after? General Schwarzkopf(sp) comes to mind.
Well, since tanks are named after generals, and the Civil War collection was exhausted in WW2, and the WW2 collection since then, I think it'll have to be a post-WW2 general. Or maybe Eisenhower. But that has too much of a political background, him having been president and all. What about the Kennedy. Everything in America is called the Kennedy-something.
Actually Roel,Eisenhower is better remembered for his role in Europe during WWII than for his Presidency. Kennedy was a Navy man and has an aircraft carrier named for him already.
Well, that definitely makes him a candidate. Is there a Marshal vehicle out there by the way? George C. Marshal certainly played a big part in WW2.
Well, for my money, Eisenhower and Schwarzkopf are too much of a mouthful to make a good tank name. Maybe they will reach into the past, and go with 'Washington'?
Most folks wouldn't like names that are odd or difficult to pronounce or spell. The tradition of naming tanks after Generals came fron the Brits. They gave us Lee, Grant, and Sherman. There is no hard rule about having to name an AFV after a general, remember the SGT York project? I would think there would be some intersted in that line of thought. There can also be more than one tank bearing the same name, like the Pattons. Here's the names that I know have been used. Can anybody add to them? Lee; Grant; Sherman; Stuart; Jackson; Chaffee; Pershing; Patton; Sheridan; Bradley; Abrams;
Call it a 'Roel' - because it 'Roels' over the enemy! (When 'Pedantic Man' is away, 'Bad Pun Man' takes his place!)
I'm not going to complain about the pun, though. I Roel! :lol: JCalhoun: I think you've summed them up nicely. That leaves plenty of possibilites doesn't it? I've always found it ironic how the British called the tanks they recieved Lee, then adapted them and called them after his great rival, Grant!
I don't know but when i saw that thing on the Discovery Channel wich supposed to be the next US MBT i would say Darth Vader is a good name.... BTW Roel is also a good name!
I had to register at this forum just to post my suggestion. I would suggest naming it after the commander of the last major military operation in Iraq, Tommy Franks. Won't it be fun to read a press report in 2015 from Korea talking about a truck convoy going to Pyongyang accompanied by a platoon of M-? Franks tanks? I think it would be fitting to name the succesor of the Bradley after Powell. It's a shame that the Army didn't honor Marshall although I had read somewhere that his was the first proposed name for the M-1. I wonder if now due to tighter budgets the USMC will probably use much of the same heavier vehicles as the Army if the Marines would want some sort of occasional input of honorary names. As an aside it was nice to read about the ceremony about the last Seawolf class submarine being named after Jimmy Carter. Seeing how Bush was in the Air National Guard, maybe they can name a new stealth plane after him; you know something that can't be seen or detected where ever there's combat going on.
:lol: Welcome to the forum, col.klink. I say it's time to honour either Eisenhower or Marshal, and that the rest of them will have to wait. Though Franks tanks do have a ring to them...
