The Philippines is looking for a light tank. I imagine this is for the cost rather than utility. I don't think recon units should have light vehicles if they are up against heavy opponents.
There are not a lot of light tanks as their used to be. There is still a need for light armored vehicles armed with a 105mm gun to carry out armed reconnaissance and provide fire support for the infantry. These duties have largely been taken over by 8x8 wheeled vehicles or IFVs armed with a 105mm gun.
Cavalry is supposed to seek out enemies to provide information on the enemy during an advance; and on defense force an enemy to deploy and provide information on where the enemy main effort is.
It seems as if the longer there is conventional war peace the lighter recon units get. But my memory is that the Israelis discovered from combat experience that only heavy recon units could fight and survive to provide information. And Cold War American cavalry regiments were outstanding heavy combined arms outfits (God, I miss them).
With the advent of armed drones that can evade air defenses designed to take down higher flying aircraft, I sincerely doubt that cavalry scouts will be less vulnerable at the forward edge of the battle area than they were in the past.
Seriously, artillery and supporting drones without their own weapons are scary enough.
I think American efforts for light tanks make little sense. I'd rather attach excess tanks to our lighter formations, as I argued in Army magazine. And get air defense drones, as I argued for in another Army article.
UPDATE: Here's a view from OPFOR on using light (but heavily armed) armor to scout for heavy armor.
I still have my doubts but these guys are experts. Maybe the addition of persistent surveillance makes the team lethal despite enemy artillery.
Although in my defense this OPFOR use is a tight targeting team rather than scouts well forward of the main force, as I worry about.
UPDATE: Although in the offensive role, my notion for an infantry fighting vehicle with reachback for the squad would work very nicely in the OPFOR usage. See my article in Infantry magazine.
UPDATE: This isn't my first rodeo on heavy cavalry advocacy. Sometimes I'm shocked at how many times I address the same topic but forgot about it. I'm consistent if nothing else.
