What is a tank? A tank is a machine that has a large gun tube that ispropelled across the battlefield by a powerful engine. It also incorporatesmassive armor shielding to protect the crew that operates it. Modern tankscan destroy given enemy targets at a distance of up to 3 km, and can moverapidly across the battlefield, allowing the commander in charge of itto exploit weaknesses in enemy forces before they have a chance to react.In order to accomplish this daunting task, the M1A1 is so complex thattakes four soldiers to operate it to its fullest capacity.

In order to understand the almost organic coupling that takes place betweenthe human tank crew and their machinic complement, one must understandthe function of each crew member in relation to the machine. There arefour; the driver, the loader, the gunner, the loader, and the tank commander.