As new threat profiles emerged from the Cold War, the Australians recognized that their existing fleet of Centurions and Leopards for the Royal Australian Armoured Corp (RAAC) was becoming obsolete in being able to protect the crew against these threats. To provide the Australian Army with the best protection capabilities against these threats and continue fighting in a combined arms fashion, the Australian government sought to replace their existing tank fleet with 59 M1A1 AIM tanks from the United States. The M1A1 AIM (“Abrams Integrated Management”) are refurbished Abrams tanks with additional sensors and communication platforms for better integration with the new information space on the battlefield. The M1A1 AIM were put into service by the Australian Army in 2007.