M8 armored gun system

The M8 armored gun system, also called the AGS or the Buford, is an American light tank that was meant to replace the M551 Sheridan with the 82nd Airborne Division and the 2nd Armored Cavalry Regiment. It began as the close combat vehicle light, a private venture of FMC Corporation started in 1983, and the first prototype was finished in August 1985. In June 1992 the Army chose FMC's design over three rival teams and awarded a contract that covered six test vehicles. The tank carries a 105 mm gun with a 21-round autoloader, a slide-out powerpack and modular armor, and it was designed to be airdropped. Its power came from a Detroit Diesel 6V-92TA multifuel diesel engine of 550 hp. The Army type classified it as the M8 but cancelled the program in 1996 for budget reasons, so it never entered service. Later proposals for it as a mobile gun system and a protected firepower vehicle also lost out.