Tank origin

At the same time the troubled M60A2 was in production, development was being done on the next upgrade to the M60A1’s design: the M60A3. Unlike the A2, the A3 retained its predecessor’s 105mm gun. Added to the armament were several enhancements, including a ballistic computer, a laser rangefinder, a thermal gun sleeve, and thermal night vision equipment. The M60A3 remained in front-line service with the U.S. military until 1997, almost twenty years after the first units rolled off the line.