DarkRange55
Enlightened
- Oct 15, 2023
- 1,699
Do you think tracked vehicles will be rendered obsolete?
As much as I have been impressed by the speed of modern tanks, wheeled vehicles are typically more maneuverable and faster. (I think small missiles will beat tanks. At a few thousand dollars a pop versus a few million a pop, the missiles can easily have the numerical advantage, and the intelligence to make them smart missiles is becoming readily available). However, IEDs may change the type of vehicle dramatically to favor cheap, relatively expendable, autonomous vehicles.
Tracked vehicles will decline in the long run with dedicated MBT/IFV units and everything else being wheeled. The savings of going to wheels in manpower costs and logistics is too much to pass up. For example: an M1A2 needs a prime mover to ship it to a location quickly and reduce wear. The Army now needs two vehicles and 6 men for one system. A comparable tracked vehicle can self-deploy.
Bulldozers need treads for traction because they push. Vehicles like bulldozers are unlikely to become obsolete here on earth, but they will be pretty useless in the asteroid belt...
As much as I have been impressed by the speed of modern tanks, wheeled vehicles are typically more maneuverable and faster. (I think small missiles will beat tanks. At a few thousand dollars a pop versus a few million a pop, the missiles can easily have the numerical advantage, and the intelligence to make them smart missiles is becoming readily available). However, IEDs may change the type of vehicle dramatically to favor cheap, relatively expendable, autonomous vehicles.
Tracked vehicles will decline in the long run with dedicated MBT/IFV units and everything else being wheeled. The savings of going to wheels in manpower costs and logistics is too much to pass up. For example: an M1A2 needs a prime mover to ship it to a location quickly and reduce wear. The Army now needs two vehicles and 6 men for one system. A comparable tracked vehicle can self-deploy.
Bulldozers need treads for traction because they push. Vehicles like bulldozers are unlikely to become obsolete here on earth, but they will be pretty useless in the asteroid belt...
