As a result of the FY 2022 National Defense Authorization Act’s (NDAA) passage into law, among the beneficiaries of its funding will be the U.S. military’s Abrams tanks, Stryker vehicles, and Maneuver Short-Range Air Defense (M-SHORAD) program, all slated for billions of dollars in improvements.
In all, $1.35 billion are laid out for upgrades to the Abrams tanks, $1.1 billion for Stryker vehicles, and another $331.5 million to craft Stryker chassis for the M-SHORAD program. Some version of the Abrams has been in service since 1980 and currently represents the main battle tank of both the U.S. Army and Marine Corps. The Stryker, an eight-wheeled armored fighting vehicle, first entered the service of the U.S. Army in 2002.
“The funding is critically important for Lima and the Joint Systems Manufacturing Center (JSMC), which supports our troops both at home and around the globe, and its irreplaceable workforce,” U.S. Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) said. “The newest version of the Abrams tank, the M1A2 SEPv3, is a vital investment for our soldiers to meet the realities highlighted in the latest National Defense Strategy, and they come off the line at JSMC in Lima. This funding will ensure that more tanks are upgraded at Lima and provided to our forward deployed soldiers.”
The JSMC, which maintains production for these various vehicles is located in Lima, Ohio. The M-SHORAD program, while just begun in 2020, represents a re-envisioning of the traditional Stryker, altering the Lima-produced infantry transport vehicle into an infantry-supportive anti-air and drone fighter.