The U.S. Army’s New M10 Booker Is Much More Than a ‘Light Tank’

Summary and Key Points: The M10 Booker, the U.S. Army’s new armored combat vehicle, is nearing full production after rigorous tests in extreme cold and desert conditions.

-Often referred to as a “light tank” despite Army objections, the Booker features a powerful 105-mm M35 gun, a .50-caliber machine gun, and a coaxial 7.62-mm machine gun.

Boomer M10. Image Credit: U.S. Army.

-Designed for rapid deployment, two M10s can fit inside a C-17 aircraft, providing crucial firepower for airborne and mechanized infantry.

-Capable of operating in harsh climates, it will bolster U.S. and NATO forces in Europe, significantly enhancing infantry and reconnaissance missions with increased maneuverability, speed, and lethality.

Meet the M10 Booker: The U.S. Army’s Powerful New Infantry Support Vehicle

When a new weapons system graduates from the prototype phase and begins to enter serial production, intricate and exhaustive testing ensues. That is the current status of the M10 Booker combat vehicle, or what most call a light tank.

The Booker, which is sometimes called a light tank (but don’t let the U.S. Army hear that), underwent testing in Arctic-like conditions this year after an evaluation period for its main gun in the deserts of the American Southwest.

M10 Booker Has Arrived 

The Booker’s 105-mm M35 low-recoil gun was put through its paces in January at the Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona. Then it was time to see how the M10 would perform in wintry, icy conditions at Fort Greely, Alaska. The temperatures were often below zero, which made starting the vehicle and operating its armaments difficult. 

“M10 Booker crews will go wherever they are needed, so they need a vehicle that is ready for anything. That is why we test in the harshest environments. I spent a week with professionals from the Arctic Regions Test Site in Fort Greely, Alaska, where we are putting the Booker through a gamut of extreme cold temperature testing in some of the world’s most challenging conditions. These testers regularly live life well below zero degrees,” said Peter George, lead product manager for the M10 Booker program.

Bookers Can Give NATO a Hand

This will prepare the Booker for operations in northern Europe to support NATO-member Nordic countries during missions in any potential battle contingency with Russia. 

The Booker is considered an infantry support vehicle, and not a light or main battle tank. General Dynamics Land Systems began low-rate production of the vehicle last summer with a contract worth $323 million. The Army is purchasing 500 M10 Bookers, with the first significant delivery expected around October 2026.

Don’t Call It a Tank, Compare It to a Bradley Fighting Vehicle

The idea behind the Booker is to increase fire power compared to the 25-mm chain gun of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. Bookers also come with a .50-caliber machine gun on the turret, and a co-axial 7.62-mm machine gun. 

The M10 can reach speeds of up to 40 miles per hour with its 800-horsepower diesel engine. Two Bookers can fit on a C-17 cargo plane to ease deployment efforts. The M10 can be a rapid-response vehicle for infantry that needs to reach hot spots quickly in Europe, potentially serving with the elite 173rd Airborne Brigade and mechanized combat units in Germany.

Putting the Booker Through Its Paces

The Booker was busy at Yuma before its cold-weather training exercises. “In addition to test firing the armaments in both the natural environment and from a cold chamber, the platform is being subjected to a full complement of performance and reliability, accessibility, and maintainability testing. Test vehicles are running across punishing desert road courses, up steep slopes and through a watery fording basin, sometimes while under a full load,” the Army wrote in a press release.

The Booker could also be an interesting addition to an armored cavalry regiment, besides serving in infantry units. It has the speed to keep up with Bradleys. Bookers could travel on the flanks as recon vehicles and then swoop in for the kill. It would be interesting to see how a Booker would interact with drones or other types of air cover in an infantry or cavalry unit.

Executing the Principles of Warfare 

The M10s can help friendly forces seize the initiative with mass, speed, and surprise—critical components of armored warfare. Soldiers can be inserted in airborne or air-assault missions to operate the Booker and keep the main or supporting efforts beefed up during land warfare missions.It would have been interesting to see if the Ukrainians had an armored vehicle like the Booker during the war with Russia. Ukraine has made good use of the Bradley, and if supplied with the M10, it would have likely taken out even more Russian tanks and armored personnel vehicles.

The key to future operations on the American side is infantry units devising tactics, techniques, and procedures to use all of the Bookers’ advantages in combat. Some mechanized units who have experience with Bradleys will be fine, but if Bookers are ever used with light-infantry airborne or air-assault personnel, there could be a learning curve.

However, the Army is aware of these training needs. New tactics can be taught at the National Training Center in Fort Irwin, California, and there are many training installations in Germany to rehearse operations with the Booker when it begins deploying to units in Europe.

The Booker is an exciting vehicle. It will give infantry soldiers better maneuverability, scouting ability, and fire power. Used with Bradleys and M1 Abrams tanks, the M10 will be a force multiplier. The Army may not want to call it a “light tank,” but it will possess some tank-like abilities. What matters is how the troops use it in battle. The M10 has the werewithal to dominate the enemy in the toughest fights under all weather conditions.

About the Author: Dr. Brent M. Eastwood

Brent M. Eastwood, PhD is the author of Don’t Turn Your Back On the World: a Conservative Foreign Policy and Humans, Machines, and Data: Future Trends in Warfare plus two other books. Brent was the founder and CEO of a tech firm that predicted world events using artificial intelligence. He served as a legislative fellow for U.S. Senator Tim Scott and advised the senator on defense and foreign policy issues. He has taught at American University, George Washington University, and George Mason University. Brent is a former U.S. Army Infantry officer. He can be followed on X @BMEastwood.