BVP M-80

BVP M-80 ICV/IFV

M-80A
Type Infantry fighting vehicle
Place of origin  Yugoslavia
Specifications
Weight 13,850 kg
Length 6.42 meters
Width 2.90 meters
Height 2.20 meters
Crew 3+7
Armor Aluminum/Aluminum oxide/Titanium boride
Main
armament

20 mm M-55 (HS 804) cannon

400 rounds

9M14 Malyutka (AT-3 Sagger) ATGW

2 Missiles or ATGM launcher

Secondary
armament
 coaxial 7.62 machine-gun 2,000 rounds
Engine Daimler Benz OM-403
320 hp
Power/weight 22.6 hp/tonne
Suspension torsion bar
Operational
range
 500 km
Speed

65 km/h on land

8 km/h in water

The BVP M-80, is a full tracked Yugoslavian made infantry fighting vehicle, produced from the 1980s until the country's collapse in the 1990s.

Development

Early research and development of the M-80 began in 1969, with testing of the first completed prototype in 1974. First examples of the BVP M-80 rolled out in 1979 but full entry to service happened in 1982. An upgraded model was unveiled a year after with a designation M-80A. This variant had a more powerful engine and somewhat better armor. Around 800 vehicles were produced before the breakup of the country.

The first production variant was the M-80 which was only made in small numbers. The vehicle used a French built engine with an output of 260 hp, the same engine as used in AMX-10P. After only a year, Yugoslavia started license production of Daimler-Benz's 320 hp engine in domestic FAMOS factories. This variant received a new designation as M-80A.[1]

At the time it was produced, M-80A had similar characteristics with existing IFVs like Russian BMP-1 or French AMX 10P. Although many foreign experts compare M-80A with Russian BMP-1, the Yugoslav IFV is a true original design. Unlike the BMP-1 which had 6 support wheels and was armed with 73 mm gun, M-80A had 5 support wheels and had 20 mm gun. M-80A incorporates numerous elements from the newer BMP-2 and the French AMX-10P giving it more power and better protection over its counterpart. All M-80As are amphibious and are equipped with twin AT-3 launchers.

It was used extensively during the Yugoslav Wars.[1]

Characteristics

The M-80A is armed with one 20 mm gun, co-axial machine gun 7.62 mm and twin launcher for wire guided anti-tank missiles. It is NBC protected, fire suppression system, inside heating and water ejecting system. It’s fully amphibious and can perform crossing of any water barrier without previous preparations. Max. speed at water is 7 km/h. Crew consist of three, driver, commander and gun operator and in the after compartment there is space for six fully equipped infantrymen who can engage the enemy with personal armament through six gun slits on both vehicle sides and back doors and one squad leader who commands infantry upon exiting the vehicle. Infantry leaves IFV through two doors at the back of the vehicle.[2]

Variants

Operators

Map of M-80 operators in blue with former operators in red

Current operators

Former operators

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to BVP M80.
  1. 1 2 "The BVP M80 IFV". Tanknutdave.com. 2010-04-14. Retrieved 2010-09-07.
  2. ↑ ARG. "M-80A at". Military-today.com. Retrieved 2010-09-07.
  3. ↑ (Serbian)
  4. ↑ (Serbian)
  5. ↑ (Serbian)
  6. ↑ Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 8/2/2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.