As new threat profiles emerged from the Cold War, the Australians recognized that their existing fleet of Centurions and Leopards for the Royal Australian Armoured Corp (RAAC) was becoming obsolete in being able to protect the crew against these threats. To provide the Australian Army with the best protection capabilities against these threats and continue fighting in a combined arms fashion, the Australian government sought to replace their existing tank fleet with 59 M1A1 tanks, modernized to M1A1 AIM standard from the United States. Tanks modified this way were also known as M1A1 SA ("Situational Awarness") The M1A1 AIM ("Abrams Integrated Management") are refurbished Abrams tanks with additional sensors and communication platforms for better integration with the new information space on the battlefield. The M1A1 AIM were put into service by the Australian Army in 2007.
The Australian M1A1 SA was introduced in Update 2.57 "Heavy Cavalry" as a British squadron vehicle. This M1A1 is identical to its counterpart in the American tech tree aside from visual differences. Players benefit from the tank's upgrade to the AIM variant, featuring an improved armour array and fire control system that make better use of the Abrams' excellent capabilities. While the KE-W APFSDS round has lower penetration values than the M1A1's M829A1, it still packs enough power to pose a threat to most targets the M1A1 SA can be expected to face.
