M1128 Mobile Gun System
The M1128 Mobile Gun System (MGS) is an eight-wheeled assault gun of the Stryker family, mounting a 105 mm tank gun, based on the Canadian LAV III light-armored vehicle manufactured by General Dynamics Land Systems for the U.S. Army. The MGS program emerged after the 1996 cancelation of the Army's M8 Armored Gun System, the service's planned replacement for the M551 Sheridan light tank. The MGS was procured in limited numbers. It will be retired by the end of 2022 due to design and operational deficiencies. M551 Sheridan replacement process Following the end of the Cold War some theorists believed that the existing suite of U.S. armored vehicles, designed largely to fight Soviet mechanized forces in Europe, were not well suited to the lower-intensity missions U.S. military would be tasked with. This led to the development of a new armored fighting vehicle designed for lower-intensity combat, rather than large-scale battle. By 1992, the Armored Gun System emerged as a top priority procurement program for the Army. The Army requested proposals for a 20-ton air-droppable light tank to replace the M551 Sheridan. The Army sought 300 AGS systems to go to the 82nd Airborne Division and the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment. Four competitive bids emerged. In June 1992, the Army selected the FMC Close Combat Vehicle, Light proposal. This was later type-classified as the M8 Armored Gun System. In 1996, the Army canceled the AGS due to the service's budgetary constraints. Interim Armored Vehicle The General Dynamics Mobile Gun System originated from the Canadian Armoured Combat Vehicle requirement. In partnership with General Motors, General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS)–Canada integrated its Low Profile Turret (LPT) onto a LAV III in January 1999. The turret was an updated version of the one used on the GD–Teledyne Expeditionary Tank, which was entered into the Armored Gun System competition in the 1980s. In October 1999, U.S. Army Chief of Staff Eric Shinseki laid out his vision for a lighter, more transportable force.
