BMD-2 (Boyevaya Mashina Desanta)

History

The BMD-2 is a development of the BMD-1 family of amphibious light infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) designed to be airdropped to await Soviet paratroopers. A scaled-down version of the full-scale BMP-1 series of infantry fighting vehicles, the BMD-1 entered service in 1969 and was a formidable vehicle until the arrival of the main force. As the BMP-1 line evolved into the improved "BMP-2" series in the 1980s, consideration was given to installing its new turret configuration into a modified form of the BMD line, which eventually led to the planned designation "Obyekt 916". This led to the "BMD" -2" development. Design work on the new car continued from 1981 to 1985, after which the new BMD-2 was used in the Red Army.

Production is handled by the Volgograd Tractor Plant. Like the BMD-1 and BMP-1 (and the BMP-2, by the way), the BMD-2 was used in combat missions with the Soviet armed forces during the war in Afghanistan.

Externally, the BMD-2 mimics most of what came before the BMD-1. The basic form of the BMP family has largely remained on a smaller scale. The hull is very boat-like in design, with a raised front end for wading water sources and a high-slope guard that provides basic ballistic protection. The driver took up a position on the front hull, the fighting compartment was just behind.

The turret is located forward amidships and the engine is located aft. The fuselage consists of a landing gear consisting of five wheels with the necessary track idlers, drive sprockets and track return rollers. The top of the hull is essentially flat, and the sight baffles provide the driver, commander and gunner with limited viewing windows to observe the action ahead. The armor is welded from aluminum alloys, providing minimal protection for the occupants, but the overall vehicle is lighter. Since the BMD series has always been designed for airborne troops, it should also be able to be airdropped onto parachute trays emerging from passing transports.

With a total weight of 11.5 tons, the standard combat crew consists of four people (driver, commander, gunner and machine gunner) and accommodates four combat-ready troops.

The weapon is mainly housed in a small turret with a 30mm 2A42 gun. Like later production versions of the BMD-1, the BMD-2 could fire anti-tank missiles to achieve truly devastating ranges against all modern tanks of the time. A turret-mounted 7.62mm PKT machine gun was used as a secondary weapon. An additional 7.62mm PKT machine gun is located in the bow to enhance defense.

Carried 300 rounds of 30mm ammunition, divided into armor-piercing and high-explosive warheads, for armored and non-armored targets, respectively. The machine gun also carried 2,940 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition.

Power for the BMD-2 comes from a liquid-cooled 5D-20 6-cylinder diesel engine producing 241 hp at 2,600 hp - roughly on par with the BMD-1's system. The top road speed is reported to be 80 km/h and the range is 450 km. The fuselage is suspended on a torsion bar suspension system, and the ride height can be adjusted by the driver. The BMD-2 also retains the amphibious character of the BMP-1/BMP-2/BMD-1 series, making it a more adaptable tactical combat instrument.

The boat is propelled in the water by a pair of water jets mounted to the rear of the hull. This is trend-setting, considering that Western Europe is likely to be the battleground of choice for the Cold War.

BMD-2 is present in only three notable variants. "BMD-2" is used to designate the basic initial combat vehicle, while "BMD-2K" designates the command vehicle with additional communications equipment. The BMD-2 was subsequently modernized under the "BMD-2M" brand, which introduced support for smoke grenade launchers on both sides of the turret. Additionally, the production run of the BMD-2 has only changed slightly from the initial deployment. BMD-2 operators (outside Russia/USSR) include India, Ukraine and Uzbekistan.

Russia remains the largest of such operators today, with hundreds still in service and more than 1,000 in mothball.

During the development of the BMD-2, another version was designed, corresponding to a full-scale version of the BMP-2 turret. This model became the "BMD-3" in 1990 (described in detail elsewhere on this site).

The name "BMD" stands for "Boyevaya Mashina Desanta", which means "Airborne Combat Vehicle".

NATO refers to the BMD-2 as "BMD M1981/1"

Specification

Basic

Roles

Dimensions

Performance

Performance

for everyone else in our database)

Armor

300 x 30mm projectile

3 x ATGM missiles

2,940x7.62mm ammo

Changes