BMP-1

Performance attributes:

The BMP-1 combat infantry vehicle is one of the types of the armoured materiel, which considerably increases the power of attack of motorised rifle units of the Soviet Army.

The specific features of construction are absolutely different from other types of the armour materiel.

• The engine compartment is located in the front part of the hull on the right side. The engine compartment houses the engine with the main clutch, the gearbox with the planetary steering gears combined in a common unit, the oil tank with the preheating boiler, cooling system unit with the air cleaner, fuel system assemblies, compressor, water scavenge pump and other equipment.
  The fighting compartment located in the middle part of the hull houses the organic weapons of the vehicle, ammunition load, sights, fire directors and exhaust fan. The seat is installed on the suspended rotating platform and the gunner's hatch, in the turret roof. The seats for stowage of ATGMs with guideways are provided on the right side and the bottles of the automatic fire-extinguishing system are mounted on the engine compartment bulkheads.
• The driving compartment is located in the front part of the vehicle between the hull left side and engine compartment bulkhead. The driving compartment has the entrance hatches and driver's and commander's stations, as well as their sights for operation by day and night. The driver's station has the instrument board, engine starting controls and controls for vehicle movement on land and propulsion in water, as well as the directional gyro, pneumatic system and interphone set. The commander's station is equipped with the radio set and commander's interphone box.
  The troop compartment occupying the hull rear section is divided by the main fuel tank and storage battery containers into two compartments each of which is provided with the stations for four troppers. The trooper stations are equipped with the seats which can be installed in the traveling and combat positions. For boarding and unboarding the troopers there are four hatches in the troop compartment roof and two doors with fuel reservoirs at the rear. Besides the troop compartment contains the food boxes, water scavenge pump, smoke generating equipment pump, air ducts for feeding the purified air to troopers, air intake pipe, powder gases suction fans, two batteries, stowage for grenade launcher, AA guided missile and other equipment.
• The power unit base is formed by the six-cylinder V-shaped four-stroke diesel designed specially for the BMP-1. With the 300 horse power, the power unit provides the adequate mobility on land and in water and gives high capabilities on cross-country to the vehicle. For the engine running, use is made of the purified air, which is drawn by the air intake pipe and is fed over the circular air duct into the cassette-free cyclone air cleaner with ejection release of filtered dust outside. As a result, the crew does not need no longer to take care of the air cleaner in the process of operation. Provision is also made for preheating the air fed to the engine by letting the air flow through the air coolers. As a result, the effective power picked off the engine increases. The vehicle preheating system ensures the start of the engine in cold season rather quickly. The engine is started by compressed air. The alternative method is the engine start by an electric starter. Under difficult circumstances it is possible to use both methods at a time.
• The pneumatic system available in the BMP-1 containing the compressed air bottle, air reducers and pneumatic compressor ensures not only the start of the engine but is also used for control of the antisurge vane, snorkel and makes it possible to carry out the hydropneumatic cleaning of external glasses in the driver's and commander's sighting devices. As a result, it is possible to cross water obstacles from the move and to increase the running speed on the march in the impassability period. The engine protection against penetration of water when crossing water barriers is ensured by the well-proven arrangement of the telescopic snorkel and application of automatic valves preventing the water from getting into the engine from the air cleaner side and through the outlet manifolds. The removal of water penetrated into the casing when afloat is effected by means of three water scavenge pumps. Their high capacity enables the vehicle to maintain the byoancy even in the case of occurence of small punctures in the hull.
• Hydromechanical power transmission makes it possible to change widely the engine torque adapting it to various road conditions. It consists of the components which are combined in a common housing, these being: an engine clutch, five-stage gearbox and two planetary steering gears. The power transmission is controlled from the linkages acting on the hydraulic elements and hydraulic servos. The vehicle steering is ensured by rotating the control wheel. The gear shifting lever (on the right side) and step-down gear (on the left side) are brought out onto the steering column. The engine clutch is provided not only with the hydraulic drive, but also with the standby pneumatic disengagement drive. The drive makes it possible to disengage reliably the engine from the gearbox and automatically maintain the friction clutch smooth engagement mode when the vehicle moves off from rest.
• The ideal design of the BMP-1 power transmission in combination with the convenient drives facilitates the vehicle control and reduces fatique of the driver. The vehicle moves on land and in water by means of the track assembly with the track drive sprockets at the front. The light-weight small-link design of the tracks connected with rubber-bushed track links promotes the movement on land at high speed and makes it possible to cover long distances without replacement of tracks. Propulsion on water is achieved at the expense of reaction of water flow directed by the lower portions of tracks. The increase in speed of propulsion on water is achieved by the design of the vehicle fenders with a special splash deflector, which reverses the flow created by the upper portions of tracks. Thanks to the ideal design of the power transmission, track drive system and good suspension unit, the maximum vehicle speed on highway is as much as 65 km. The low specific ground pressure allows the vehicle to increase the mobility on marshy and snow-covered terrain.
• The BMP-1 is equipped with the PKT 7,62-mm caliber coaxial machine gun and anti-tank missile system which are arranged in the rotating turret. The smooth-bore semi-automatic gun makes it possible to kill tanks at a distance up to 1300 m and is actually the anti-tank means of close combat. The gun may also be used for killing the enemy manpower and fire weapons located in the open or in light shelters within the specified range. The gun ammunition load consists of 40 quick-firing rounds with hollow-charge and common shells; they are arranged in the mechanized stowage of the vehicle fighting compartment. Armoured targets are destroyed at longer distances by anti-tank missiles with a hollow-charge warheads. The day/night image intensifying sight which makes it possible to conduct observation and sighting at night without disclosing the vehicle from the searchlight serves for preparing the aimed firing from the gunnery weapons and aiming the ATGM at the target. The availability of the electrical heating and pneumohydraulic wiper system permits the use of the armament in frost and rough weather. The availability of the semi-conductor electric drive for traversing the turret, which combines the turret high transverse speed with the high smooth aiming of the armament at a target. The increased fire power of the BMP-1 is achieved through the firing ports and vision devices which permit the troppers to use the weapons from the vehicle inside, on the move and at short halts. For this purpose, the troop compartment is provided with eight heated periscopes and firing ports with ball mounts for two light machine guns and fix submachine guns. The cases loaded with machine gun belts and cartridges are located along the compartment sides. Besides, located in the vehicle is the RPG-7 light grenade launcher with grenades, which can be used through the open hatches in the troop compartment roof.

The BMP-1 crew is armed with the AKM submachine guns, F-1 hand grenades and signal flare p[istol with signal flares. The personnel capacity of the vehicle consists of the crew (commander, driver and gunner) and troopers forming the motorised rifle squad. The BMP-1 has the ideal means for protection of the combat crew and equipment from the conventional fire units, nuclear, chemical and bacteriological weapons, as well as from the fire and flooding when the hull is damaged when borned in water. The vehicle is also equipped with the smoke generators for laying smoke screens. The main protection of the combat crew and equipment is provided by the all-round armor plating of the vehicle. In case of a nuclear explosion the protection system provides the automatic stop of the engine, closing of the shutters, ejector dampers and vent valves of the turret and troop compartment, stop of the fans and blower, disconnection of the turret electric drive and connection of the absorbent filter to the air feed line. After passage of the shock wave the driver shall turn on the blower, which ensures the supply of purified air to the habitable compartment at an excessive pressure. In case of detection of toxic or radioactive agents the system ensures the automatic closing of the fan shutters and shutdown of the drive motors as well as the connection of the absorbent filter to the air ducts. The favourable conditions of inhabitation in the vehicle are created at the expense of the air purification and conditioning system, as well as rolling stock of provisions, water and medicines. The normal shock absorbion of the vehicle and convenient design of the crew stations which may be adapted to the effective work in combat and rest on the march bring down fatique of the crew during the long-duration combat operations.