M88A2 Hercules
OEM: BAE Systems
First Produced: 1997
Status: Active
Role: Armored recovery vehicle
Primary Operator: U.S. Army / U.S. Marine Corps
OEM Website: baesystems.com
The M88A2 Hercules is the U.S. Army's heavy armored recovery vehicle, designed to tow, hoist, and winch disabled M1 Abrams main battle tanks off the battlefield. Its 70-ton main winch and A-frame boom make it the only recovery platform in the U.S. inventory rated for the Abrams; older M88A1s remain in service for lighter vehicles.
The improved M88A3 variant, now entering production at BAE Systems' York, Pennsylvania plant, adds a seventh road wheel, more powerful engine, and upgraded winch to safely recover the ever-heavier Abrams SEPv3/v4. Hercules crews are indispensable to armored maneuver operations but often overlooked in public discussion of land warfare.
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