On a winter morning in the Kursk province, a U.S.-built M1A1 Abrams tank, manned by Ukrainians these days, was traveling down a snow-covered road before it was hit by a salvo of Russian FPV drones.

The modernized M1E3 Abrams is expected to feature integrated armor protection that could include composite materials and enhanced capabilities to reduce its thermal and electromagnetic signatures.

The U.S. Army is investing $107 million to improve the survivability of nearly 400 M1 Abrams tanks, an implicit ...