Allison Transmission Secures $97M Contract to Deliver Propulsion Systems for 2026 Abrams Tank

Allison's cross-drive transmission has powered the Abrams since its inception 5 decades ago.

Military tank M1 Abrams in action.
Military tank M1 Abrams in action.
iStock/Photofex-AT

INDIANAPOLIS, IN. - Allison Transmission, a propulsion solutions company for defense and commercial vehicles, has been awarded a $97 million contract to support the U.S. Army's Abrams Main Battle Tank program. Allison's X1100 cross-drive transmission has powered the Abrams platform since its inception, delivering performance for nearly five decades.

Dana Pittard, Vice President for Defense Programs, Allison Transmission, said, "Allison has been an integral part of the Abrams program from the beginning. From its 1970s origins to today's advanced variants, our transmissions have enabled the Abrams to maneuver with precision and resilience in the world's most demanding environments, when failure is not an option."

Allison's X1100 cross-drive was engineered to meet the Army's ambitious mobility and survivability goals with follow-on enhancement and changes to meet the battlefield requirements. Combining steering, braking and gear shifting into a single compact unit was revolutionary at the time, enabling seamless power transfer and high-torque capacity under extreme conditions.

The X1100 continues to fulfill the Army's evolving operational needs, including its renewed emphasis on maintainability, modularity and lifecycle readiness. Since the start of the Abrams program, Allison has enabled transmission repair activity at the Army's Anniston depot by providing enhanced access to diagnostics, components and service protocols under the Army's recent right to repair initiative.

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