Today, Russian motorized infantry is moving on BTR-80 and BTR-82 armored personnel carriers. These machines are time-tested, reliable and easy to operate, but have already begun to lag behind modern requirements.
Until recently, even military experts found it difficult to judge what the technical development of the new Boomerang Russian military equipment designers was. An APC, the photo of which has only recently become available to the general public, is likely to make a real revolution in the tactics of using motorized rifle units.
As the armed conflicts of recent decades have shown, monolithic armor does not create adequate protection for people in vehicles, it can be penetrated by cumulative ammunition. The level of armament also, according to military experts, could be higher so that such a machine more effectively supports the advancing infantry. And yet, a modern armored vehicle must overcome water barriers, without waiting for sappers to build bridges.
Given the requirements of the customer, the engineers of the Military-Industrial Company began to develop a new universal armored platform, on the basis of which it will be possible to build combat vehicles in several versions, in particular, armored personnel carriers. "Boomerang" turned out to be multi-purpose.
The design of the chassis and housing, according to the designers, should be carried out according to the modular principle, thus a high degree of unification can be achieved, which will simplify the supply of spare parts and will allow, if necessary, to modify any sample. Possible options: reconnaissance, sanitary, infantry fighting vehicles, mobile air defense systems and electronic warfare.
BTR "Boomerang" has a multi-layer ceramic-metal armor, significantly superior in strength to monolithic. Strengthened mine resistance. The armament is represented by an artillery tower with telemetric control. A 30-mm quick-firing gun, an automatic grenade launcher and a launcher of the Kornet missile launcher will make up the standard configuration of the combat module, but there are also options with heavy weapons (a 125-mm gun) that make it possible to hit modern armored vehicles.
The information richness of the Bumerang BTR equipment is unprecedented for domestic motorized rifle equipment. In real time, the commander can judge the position of all vehicles on the battlefield, receive information about their damage and make operational decisions based on these data. Thanks to thermal imaging and infrared devices, the Bumerang BTR can move and fire at night and in fog. The unified tactical link management system (ESU TK), currently being created, will create conditions for clear coordination of crew actions, which will significantly increase the overall effectiveness of combat operations.
A 20-ton machine is driven by a 600-horsepower engine with a long motor resource. Depending on the modification, it may be floating.
Until now, not all tactical and technical data of the Bumerang BTR are known. News-2013, photos published in the press, and some information provided by the leadership of the Military-Industrial Company allow us to judge the high combat qualities of the new combat vehicle and its estimated price. It costs, of course, more expensive than BMP-82, but cheaper than foreign counterparts.
It is expected that already in 2015, the Boomerangs will begin to enter the military units.