British Tank Force falls to the lowest level since WW1....

The USMC maintains 440 M1A1 to sustain 2 x regular USMC Tk battalions & 1 x reserve. The UK is trying to do the same with 148, making the same mistake as Oz by running a fleet to small to sustain the overall capability. Repair & attrition stock matter if you want to make LOT. https://t.co/zRCGl3sl76

— Eli Lea (@EliLea1) April 19, 2019

First let me tell you straight away that I don't believe for one minute that the USMC maintains 440 M1A1 tanks.  Maybe in storage but not in active duty!  Not by a LONG shot!

Second I find it stunning that the USMC alone has more tanks on active duty than the British Army (heck I might need to add the German Army into this mix too but I don't recall the actual numbers).

What does this mean?

Either armored warfare is changing in ways that I haven't globbed onto, the Brits are hopelessly adrift/in need of funding/adult supervision, or perhaps even all of the above.

I remember when the first round of cuts started slicing the Brit military and many of the pundits in the UK stated that they were the canary in the coal mine.

I don't think so.  At least not for the US.  Too much political capital is invested in the military from Vets, Business, Community and Corporations (not to mention politicians that seek to be seen supporting the military) that cuts will never be allowed to a level that sees responsible spending forced on the Pentagon.

But in other countries?  Yeah.  Domestic issues will force moderation.  The UK is dealing with Brexit.  France, Spain, Italy, Greece and others are all dealing with their own internal problems and populations that demand less action overseas and more work at home.

So what was the deal with this little bit of musing?

What we're seeing in the UK might not be coming to America but it WILL be heading toward at least a few of our allies.