New Soviet BMP-2 Unveiled

New Soviet BMP-2 Unveiled (Ed. Note: Information for this article was derived from DE-

FENCE UPDATE INTERNA-

TIONAL, No. 64, and Threat Branch, DCD, Fort Knox, KY.) Faced with the combat inadequacies of their BMP-1 armored personnel carrier in the Yom Kippur War of 1973, and later in Afghanistan, the Soviets have produced a new model - the BMP-2. There has been a change in the main armament; the turret has been relocated, and the infrared (IR) and other optical equipment is different. Additionally, the new vehicle carries fewer infantrymen. The BMP-2 is in service in Afghanistan and has been photographed there as well as at a recent May Day parade in Moscow. The BMP-1 was highly vulnerable to fire from heavy infantry weapons, medium antiarmor weapons, and artillery fire. Its main gun, the 73-mm 2A20 low-pressure smoothbore firing the PG-9 fin-stabilized projectile, proved ineffective due to the limited range of the round and its vulnerability to winds while in flight. Moreover, the gun’s semiautomatic loading system not only slowed the rate-of-fire, but also jammed frequently. And because the gun automatically moved to 3.5 degree elevation after firing, the gunner’s sight was moved off-target. The gun had a theoretical rate-of-fire of four rounds per minute, but this was rarely, if ever, achieved in combat. The gun’s limited range of elevation and depression -from -3 degrees to +33 degrees - was another disadvantage. The BMP- 1’s coaxial 7.62-mm machine gun was similarly limited in elevation and depression. The BMP-1 also carried the AT-3 Sagger missile, fired from a launch rail over the main gun. Reloading the missile launcher entailed nearly complete exposure for the gunner. To track the missile in flight, he had to keep the sight’s crosshairs on the target with his right-hand joystick and traverse the turret with his left hand. While the new BMP-2’s main gun is of smaller caliber than the 73-mm of the BMP-1, it is a more efficient weapon. It is a 30-mm rapid-fire cannon stabilized in two planes. It has a dual-feed system for AP-T or HE-T ammunition. It has three firing modes: single-shot or two rates of autofire - 200-300 rounds per minute or full auto at 500 rounds per minute. The 30-mm AP-T shot can penetrate, at zero degrees angle of obliquity, 55 mm of armor at 500 meters and 50 mm at 1,000 meters. Five hundred rounds of main gun ammunition are carried, as are 2,000 rounds of 7.62-mm ammunition for the coaxial machine gun. The BMP-2’s square mantlet, as opposed to the BMP-1’s protruding mantlet, allows the gunner to elevate the gun to a maximum of 74 degrees, which gives it excellent antiaircraft (AA) capabilities, especially against low-flying planes ~ 24 ARMOR The Magazine of Mobile Warfare January-February 1986

I 8 ”...The human engineering is virtually unchanged.. . I I and helicopters. The 30-mm gun’s maximum effective AA range is 2,000 meters. The AT-3 Sagger antitank guided missile (ATGM) of the BMP-1 has been replaced on the BMP-2 by the AT-5 Spandrel ATGM. This newer missile has a range of 4,000 meters and a semi-automatic guidance system. The gunner fires the Spandrel from its over-the-turret launching rail. The special guidance optical equipment for the Spandrel sets just below the launcher. The crew can reload the missile launcher from inside the turret. The BMP-2 carries one Spandrel ATGM in the ready position on the launch rail and four more inside the vehicle. Some sources also report that the BMP-2 is alternately armed with the AT-4 Spigot ATGM that has a range of only 2,000 meters. There are three grenade-launcher pods on either side of the turret, capable of firing HE or smoke grenades. Similar pods have been seen on the newest T-72/80 tanks. In addition to the smoke grenades, the Soviets also inject diesel fuel into the exhaust system to produce smoke. The most noticeable visible feature of the new BMP-2 is that the turret is further back, compared to the BMP-1. The BMP-2 turret ring is two meters in diameter, about one-half a meter larger than the ring on the BMP-1. The commander sits on the gunner’s right and has a large revolving overhead hatch. Both the commander and the gunner have three integrated periscopes. The BMP-2’s radio antennae are behind and to the right of the turret. The third crew member, the driver, sits forward in the hull. In the BMP-1, the commander sat up front behind the driver, and we know that many BMP-1 commanders used the gunner’s seat instead, despite the consequent problems in the turret. The hull-mounted IR searchlight on the BMP-1 has been moved to the BMP-2’s turret hatch, and a new white-light and IR gunner’s sight are mounted to the right of the Comparison of this photo of the BMP-1 with the drawing of the BMP-2. opposite page, indicates changes in rear deck hatches and reflects reduction in infantrymen carried inside the new model. There do not seem to be any thermal sights on the BMP-2. Armor on the BMP-2 offers the same protection as the BMP-1. Maximum hull armor thickness is 19-mm and that of the turret is 23- mm. The BMP-2 is proof against .50 caliber all around and against 7.62- mm from above. The BMP-2 has only two hatches, whereas the BMP-1 had four. The BMP-2’s hatches are directly above the rear doors. These doors also serve as fuel cells, as on the BMP-1. Moving the BMP-2’s turret further to the rear has reduced the number of infantrymen the vehicle can carry. The BMP-1 could carry eight, but the BMP-2 can only carry six. Theoretically, the infantrymen can fire their weapons through hull ports just beneath the turret ring. In practice, however, this hasn’t worked because of the crowded interior. The vehicle’s poor ventilation system can’t handle the high concentrations of cordite gases. This is known to have happened repeatedly in the BMP-1 during the Mideast wars. Another identification point on the BMP-2 is the addition of a third shock absorber to the second forward pair. The new vehicle weighs in at 14.3 tons and is 6.858 meters long. It stands 2.077 meters high to the top of its turret and can travel up to 80 km/hr on roads. It has a road range of 450-500 km and can cross a trench two meters wide. An onboard fire extinguishing system is provided as well as a gyrocompass and an antiflooding system for the engine during amphibious operations. Also an exterior optical-cleaning device is fitted. Although the BMP-2’s firepower has been upgraded with its 30-mm rapid-fire cannon and the new Spandrel ATGM, the human engineering is virtually unchanged. The vehicle’s survivability on the battlefield does not seem to have been significantly improved over its predecessor and like the BMP-1, the BMP-2 is still highly vulnerable to mines. main gun and slaved to it. _ _ - January-February 1986 ARMOR The Magazine of Mobile Warfare 25