M60A2

This page is about the American medium tank M60A2. For other uses, see M60 (Disambiguation).

M60A2

T95

M1128

M60A2

T95

M1128

USA

VI Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
8.3	8.3	8.3

Class:

Medium tank

Research:135 000

Purchase:380 000

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Description

The 152 mm Gun Tank M60A2 is a rank VI American medium tank with a battle rating of 8.3 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.69 "Regia Aeronautica".

General info

Survivability and armour

Smoke grenades

Creation of a smoke screen in front of the vehicle

Armourfront / side / back

Hull108 / 70 / 40

Turret220 / 124 / 50

Crew4 people

Visibility170 %

The M60A2 shares the hull with the other M60 variants. That means that the front hull armour is sufficient to stop 100 mm/105 mm kinetic ammunition of the same tier, while it does not protect you against hollow charge shells with a calibre of 90 mm and above. It also has the same 114 mm thick turret base, which is a weak point. The centre part of the turret is a cast 220 mm plate in front of the cannon breech, which while not thick enough to protect you against any shells of even outdated guns, often eats shots (at cost of the cannon breech). The outer parts of the turret are significantly lower than the breech and rounded like in most post war soviet tanks. If not hit head-on, these sides can bounce most of the incoming shots. On top of the turret is a massive cupola for the commander, which is a big weakpoint and often gets your commander killed, even the whole tank if your opponent is firing shells with explosive filler. The side armour on the hull is thick enough to withstand cannon fire of up to 25 mm (excluding APDS and the part around the gearbox), while cannons with a calibre of up to 40 mm will have significant problems and the tank may withstand a large number of shells. It will however not stop shells fired out of cannons of equal tier. The back of the hull can even be penetrated by HMGs. The turret side is around the cannon is 120-140 mm thick and will resist most shots if angled. The lower part however will most likely get penetrated often due to the reduced thickness the further towards the turret back you get. The hull is completely filled with ammunition, ammo is placed to the left, right and behind the driver (which is sitting in the middle of the front hull). Taking a reduced amount of shells is therefore advisable. The crew is well spaced, a solid shot in the front turret will likely only kill a single crew member, since all crew members sit next to each other and not behind each other like in most other tanks, but this obviously increases the chance to get destroyed due to a side-shot. Overall the armour will not completely protect you, but you have good chances to eat a bigger amount of shells than most other tanks.

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB53 / 10 km/h

RB and SB48 / 9 km/h

Number of gears6 forward

2 back

Weight51.9 t

Engine power

AB1 431 hp

RB and SB750 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB27.6 hp/t

RB and SB14.5 hp/t

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	53	10	51.9	1,162	1,431	22.39	27.57
Realistic	48	9		663	750	12.77	14.45

The mobility of the vehicle is average for its tier. With a top speed of 48 km/h (RB) and -11km/h in reverse, it is not as fast as other tanks like the Leopard 1, but fast enough to get where you want quickly. The manoeuvrability is average to bad: you lose a lot of speed while turning. You can, however, turn on the spot thanks to neutral steering.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB4 477 → 6 178

RB4 952 → 6 833

SB6 792 → 9 372

Total cost of modifications111 000

194 000

Talisman cost2 300

Crew training110 000

Experts380 000

Aces1 400

Research Aces830 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

140 / 200 / 250 %

208 / 208 / 208 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tracks Research: 8 100 Cost: 13 000 270 Suspension Research: 5 400 Cost: 8 600 180 Brake System Research: 5 400 Cost: 8 600 180 Filters Research: 7 500 Cost: 12 000 250 Transmission Research: 9 800 Cost: 16 000 330 Engine Research: 9 800 Cost: 16 000 330	Improved Parts Research: 2 400 Cost: 13 000 270 Improved FPE Research: 1 600 Cost: 8 600 180 Crew Replenishment Research: 7 500 Cost: 12 000 250	Horizontal Drive Research: 8 100 Cost: 13 000 270 Adjustment of Fire Research: 5 400 Cost: 8 600 180 152mm_usa_MGM61B_HEAT_ammo_pack Research: 5 400 Cost: 8 600 180 Elevation Mechanism Research: 7 500 Cost: 12 000 250 Smoke grenade Research: 7 500 Cost: 12 000 250 Artillery Support Research: 9 800 Cost: 16 000 330 Laser rangefinder Research: 9 800 Cost: 16 000 330

Armaments

Laser rangefinder

Reduces the error and increases the maximum measurable distance of the rangefinder

Main armament

152 mm M162 gun/launcher

Two-plane stabilizer

Reduces the swing of the gun in two planes while moving

Ammunition46 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

15.6 → 12.0 s

Vertical guidance-10° / 20°

152 mm M162					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	46	-10°/+20°	±180°	Two-plane	38.1	52.7	64.0	70.8	75.3	15.60	13.80	12.72	12.00
Realistic					23.8	28.0	34.0	37.6	40.0

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
M409A1	HEAT	380	380	380	380	380	380
M657A2	HE	38	38	38	38	38	38
MGM-51B Shillelagh	ATGM	431	431	431	431	431	431

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile Mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive Mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
M409A1	HEAT	682	18.9	0	0.1	3,730	62°	69°	73°
M657A2	HE	682	22	0.1	0.1	4,300	79°	80°	81°
MGM-51B Shillelagh	ATGM	323	27.8	0	0.1	3,600	80°	82°	90°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the M60A2

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	5th rack empty	6th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
46	46 (+0)	39 (+7)	33 (+13)	25 (+21)	12 (+32)	1 (+45)	No

Vertical rounds: 33 (+13)
Empty turret: 25 (+21)

Machine guns

12.7 mm M85 machine gun

Two-plane stabilizer

Reduces the swing of the gun in two planes while moving

Ammunition1 080 rounds

Belt capacity180 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate626 shots/min

Vertical guidance-15° / 60°

7.62 mm M73 machine gun (coaxial)

Ammunition5 500 rounds

Belt capacity250 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate500 shots/min

The M60A2 is equipped with a coaxial 7.62 mm LMG and a 12.7 mm HMG on top of the turret. Like on most American vehicles, this allows you to engage lightly armoured vehicles and slow aeroplanes at small to medium ranges.

12.7 mm M85
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Pintle	1,080 (200)	626	-15°/+60°	±180°

7.62 mm M73
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Coaxial	5,500 (250)	500	N/A	N/A

Usage in battles

The M60A2 Starship is the perfect combination of armour, firepower, and speed. Based on the chassis of the M60, it has decent mobility and armour. While the addition of the 152 mm gun/launcher allows the player to reliably pierce enemy tanks armour at its tier. The Shillelagh missile unlocks the possibility on long-range sniping, along with the powerful HEAT shell. Or if you are a more aggressive player, flank the enemy and hide your position using your smoke grenade launchers. However, reload time is not that great so immediately go back to cover after you take a shot. Suggested roles are support, sniper, and flanker.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Very fast turret rotation
• Turret front is hard to predictably penetrate due to its odd design
• Has smoke launchers
• Same ammunition as the M551 Sheridan
• Stabilizer allows for accurate firing on the move and fast reaction time, especially for a vehicle with the ability to launch ATGMs
• The armour can be very good

Cons:

• Slow - off road the Starship struggles to reach 30 km/h on a slight downhill
• Cannot fire from cover like the IT-1 or Raketenjagdpanzers
• Cupola is one huge weak point sticking out up top
• ATGM has a reload several seconds longer than normal ammunition
• Can only hold 7 ATGM ammunition total
• ATGM has a very low starting speed making it hard to hit moving targets at closer ranges

History

Design

M60A2 at American Armoured Foundation Museum in Danville, Virginia.

The M60A2 used the Type B turret which featured an unconventional low profile design. The turret base was disc shaped and was very low profile, while the center part was much larger and consisted of a lane running front to rear that mounted the gun breach and behind that the commander's position. The gunner was seated under the disc portion of the right side of the turret, while the loader was located on the opposite side under the disc portion. The commander was located in a a rotating cupola at the rear of the center part of the turret. The turret received an interior Kevlar spall liner. A basket was mounted to the rear of the turret for stowage. A bank of four M226 smoke grenades is located on each side of the turret for a total of eight smoke grenade launchers. Additionally, a xenon white light or infrared spotlight could be fitted to the left of the gun for night operations.

The M60A2's main armament consisted of a two-plane stabilized 152 mm M162 gun/launcher mounted in the center part of the turret. The M162 could fire both HE and HEAT conventional rounds as well as the MGM-51 Shillelagh ATGMs. The HE rounds were used against enemy infantry or emplacements, the HEAT rounds were used against enemy armour at close range (it had an effective range of 1.5 km), and the ATGMs were used against enemy armour at longer ranges of up to 3 kilometers for the MGM-51B and C variants. 33 conventional rounds and 13 missiles could be carried in the tank.

Testing of the weapon system found a number of issues. Notably, there were a number of misfires and premature detonations caused by leftover propellent in the gun barrel and breech. As such, a fume extractor was fitted which was later replaced by a Closed Bore Scavenger System (CBSS) which used compressed air to push the fumes out of the gun.

Secondary armament of the M60A2 consisted of two machine guns. One was a coaxial 7.62 mm M73 machine gun and the other was a 12.7 mm M85 machine gun in the commander's cupola. These were later replaced by the 7.62 mm M240 and 12.7 mm M2HB Browning respectively. 5,560 rounds of 7.62 mm ammunition and 1,080 rounds of 12.7 mm ammunition were carried.

The M60A2 received the M51 Missile Guidance System (MGS), produced by Ford's Aerospace Division. The M51 MGS included an AN/WG-1 ruby laser rangefinder as well as an infrared beam system for control of the MGM-51 Shillelagh ATGMs. The MGM-51 was guided after launch by IR beam which the gunner had to keep on the target (by way of his aiming sight) the entire flight in order to hit the target. The M60A2 was one of if not the very first production tank used by the US Army to include a laser rangefinder. The laser rangefinder allowed accurate ranging of the target up to 4,000 meters to provide the gunner with a firing solution. On the other hand, the laser rangefinder was ineffective at night and was only accurate out to 600 meters at 25% moonlight.

The hull of the M60A2 was originally identical to that of the M60A1. It was powered by a 750 horsepower Continental AVDS-1790-2A engine coupled to the General Motors CD-850-5 cross-drive transmission with two forward and one reverse gear, allowing the M60A2 to reach a top speed of 48 kilometers per hour. It used the standard T97 track assembly. Many M60A2s were later upgraded to the RISE standard with an improved AVDS-1790-2C engine and T142 tracks.

Production and Service

After the M60A1E2 prototype was designated as the Tank, Combat, Full Tracked: 152-mm Gun/Launcher, M60A2 in 1970, the US Army ordered the M60A2 in 1971. Production lasted from 1973 to 1975 with the total production of the M60A2 at 540, all of which were produced at the Chrysler Tank Plant in Warren, Michigan.

The first US Army unit to receive its M60A2 tanks was the B Company, 1st Battalion, 32 Armor Battalion in June 1975.

Ultimately the M60A2 tank was a failure, mostly down to the weapon system. The MGM-51 Shillelagh proved to be an extremely expensive and problematic system due to its advanced technology. There were issues with the propellent as well as the tracking and guidance systems. Not only this, but the fact that the MGM-51 was the only means of anti-tank capability at range limited the anti-tank capability of the M60A2 greatly; the gunner had to keep the target in his sight during the entire flight of the ATGM from the gun barrel to the impact point. Additionally, the MGM-51 ATGM could not be fired while on the move despite the fully stabilized gun, as well as the fact that the MGM-51 was much more expensive than a conventional round.

These issues, among others, contributed to a poor opinion of the tank by the US Army. The M60A2 even gained the unofficial nickname of "Starship" due to it's unconventional turret appearance and advanced technology. The M60A2 was removed completely from service by 1981. Many former M60A2s had their turret removed and replaced by the more conventional M60A3 turret and were put back into service. M60A2s were also converted to noncombat variants in 1985, including the M60A1 AVLB bridge layer and the M60 Panther MDCV mine-clearing vehicle. Many M60A2s were also converted to the M728A1 CEV (combat engineering vehicle) variant as well.

The M60A2 was never cleared for export.

M60A1E1 Prototype at AMVETS Post 93 in Armada, Michigan. Vehicle since repainted.

Variants

XM66 - Designation for Type A, B, and C turret concepts.

M60A1E1 - M60E1 hulls with Type A turret fitted with XM81 gun/launcher.

M60A1E2 - M60A1 hull with Type B turret fitted with XM81E13 gun/launcher. The M60A1E2 was accepted for service, with modifications, as the M60A2.

M60A1E3 - M60A1E2 experimentally fitted with 105 mm M68E1 rifled gun.

M60A1E4 - Concept of M60 hull fitted with Type C turret with remote weapons system. Only a turret mockup was built.

M60A2 - Production version of the M60A1E2, fitted with M162 gun/launcher and received minor modifications such as a laser rangefinder.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the M60A2 from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

The Shooting Range #52 - Metal Beasts section at 02:24 discusses the M60A2.

The M60 family discusses the M60A2 at 5:22 - War Thunder Official Channel

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the vehicles;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• other literature.

Chrysler Defense
MBTs
M48 Patton	M48A1
M60	M60 · M60A1 (AOS) · M60A2 · M60A1 RISE (P) · M60A3 TTS
M1	XM1 (Chrysler) · M1 Abrams
Export
M48	M48A2 C · M48A2 G A2 · ␗M48A1 · Magach 1 · Magach 2
M60	␗M60A3 TTS · M60A1 "D.C.Ariete" ·
Note	Chrysler Defense was purchased by General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) in 1982.