Tanks have had the same basic design since they were first used to crash through the barbed wire barriers in Europe at the end of World War I, but DARPA is working on a new design that’s smaller, faster, and more efficient. This could be the beginning of the end for the big, hulking battle tank. The prototype design is called the Ground X-Vehicle Technology (GXV-T), but you might notice a striking resemblance to the Warthog light recon vehicle from Halo.
The trend in armored vehicle tech in recent decades has been to add more armor to increase survivability.
That’s great when you can’t get out of the way in time, but it’s also made tanks slower and heavier than they need to be. Some of the most widely used battle tanks can take a lot of punishment, but barely hit 40 mph and often need to keep to roads because of their size and weight. The GXV-T scales down the entire vehicle and goes for speed and stealth over sheer toughness.Most current generation battle tanks rely on a crew of four including a commander, gunner, loader, and driver. The GXV-T would reduce that to just a driver and gunner with a combination of automation and improved communication. The vehicle would be physically smaller and much lighter, allowing it to go off road in almost any type of terrain, while also presenting a smaller target for enemies. It wouldn’t be loaded down with armor to survive a direct hit by powerful weapons–it would endeavor to avoid being hit in the first place.
DARPA has several concept designs for the GXV-T, all of which do away with the traditional tread system that has defined flagship armored vehicles for decades. This is why the concept images end up looking a lot like the Warthog. It’s possible with modern manufacturing and materials to create wheels and smaller treaded pads that offer improved mobility while still taking a lot of punishment. With the right loadout, the proposed vehicle could double current armor speeds.
Work will begin next year to develop a working prototype of the GXV-T, which is expected to take about two years. At that point, we can probably expect some neat videos that could be confused with a trailer for the new Halo game. Master Chief would approve.