Currently, more and more new combat vehicles are invented annually . Some are used solely for defense, others for attacking actions and suppression of enemy fire. One thing is for sure: there are fighting vehicles of the world that surprise with their armor, speed and capabilities, including destructive ones. Let's talk about the most interesting and well-known models, consider their key features, capabilities in a conflict, and much more. We will pay special attention to equipment for transporting personnel, since it is very interesting.
A bit of general information
As noted above, for the most part we are talking about equipment for transporting infantry, for example, armored personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles. In fact, they practically do not differ from each other. The key difference between BMPs is that such equipment is capable of supporting allied infantry on the battlefield, while armored personnel carriers can only transport it to its destination. But at present, all these machines are used for the same purpose. The Marder tank, for example, is a fairly well-known Bundeswehr vehicle. The equipment weighs about 33 tons. It was adopted in 1970 and to this day is among the ten best infantry fighting vehicles. Serves for the transport of infantry (7 people). The crew of the BMP consists of three people. This, of course, is a worthy German car, however, it did not participate in the hostilities.
The best fighting vehicles of the world: M1114
This armored car is originally from America. Seeing him in the photo, you can immediately guess that this is the same legendary "Humvee". Around the 1990s, it was decided to replace the M998 chassis, which was not effective enough in a military conflict. At the same time, the task was set for the developers: to improve speed, anti-fragmentation and anti-mine armor and fit into a weight of 5 tons. All this has been achieved. In addition, impressive firepower was added. In particular, removable weapons consist of anti-tank missile systems, remotely controlled 12.7 mm machine guns, as well as light machine guns on the roof.
Today, Humvee is a symbol of the US Army, as this armored mobile wheeled vehicle has been used in all conflicts for 30 years. According to some reports, about 200,000 various modifications of the Humvee are currently manufactured. Of course, this armored vehicle was very often subjected to shelling, breaking down, catching fire, stalling and exploding, but the crew's survival rate was quite high.
Universal Carrier and Sonderkraftfahrzeug 251
The first tank is from Britain. He, in fact, is an armored personnel carrier tractor. The appearance of the Universal Carrier is rather ugly, however, with a crew of 5 people, the car moved at a speed of 50 km / h and had a fairly good cross. During World War II it was used on almost all fronts. The mass of the car is 4 tons with an armor of 10 mm. From 1934 to 1960, about 110,000 of these machines were manufactured, after which they were discontinued.
Quite famous is a half-track armored personnel carrier with the name SdKfz 251. This is a very fast, roomy and fairly secure vehicle. Most likely, that is why she fell in love with the Germans. The crew consisted of only two people, in the back, 10 landing troops could fit. Protected personnel armored 15 mm thick. During the Second World War, the SdKfz 251 survived quite a few modifications. Various monitoring and communication devices were installed, as well as such weapons as a multiple launch rocket system.
World Infantry Fighting Vehicles: Achzarit and BMP-1
Achzarit is Israel heavy equipment used exclusively for defensive purposes. This is currently the most protected armored car of its kind. “In the forehead” is a 200 mm thick armor plate, which has been enhanced by dynamic protection and carbon fibers. All this added an armored personnel carrier of 17 tons of weight, but significantly increased the chances of personnel to survive. Achzarit is ideal for fighting in urban environments. This is due to the thick armor plates. The machine is not afraid of shots from grenade launchers even at point blank range, let alone fragmentation damage.
BMP - infantry armored vehicle, has armored plates with a thickness of 15-20 mm, which allows you to protect personnel from small arms, fragments, as well as small-caliber shells. The speed of the highway is about 75 km / h, and afloat - 7 km / h. Although this machine is in the TOP of the best, it has a lot of disadvantages. In particular, due to getting into the fuel tanks, the BMP turned into a fire trap; in addition, the armor can be pierced from the DShK machine gun. For this simple reason, soldiers prefer to ride on armor rather than on it.
Leopard 2A7 and Abrams
These are the only tanks that withstood 10 of 12 tests in simulated tank battles. "Leopard" - a full-fledged warrior who can storm and defend in the city and open areas. It is equipped with a 122 mm cannon and has 1300 mm turret armor in the forehead, which makes it completely invulnerable. The weight of the Leopard is 67 tons, but even so it shows good dynamics and accelerates to 75 km / h. This model can even be found in the magazine of the DeAgostini publishing house. The fighting vehicles of the world, collected in the editions of this popular magazine, no doubt deserve attention. "
Abrams "and" Leopard "repeat each other. The only key difference is that the Abrams’s frontal armor is 1,000 mm, which is also quite a lot.
T-90 - one of the best
The Russian-made T-90 tank also deserves attention. It is equipped with a 120-mm smoothbore gun, which can fire armor-piercing, sub-caliber, cumulative, high-explosive fragmentation and anti-tank missiles. A 12.7 mm machine gun is installed on the roof, capable of delivering up to 900 rounds per minute, which can fire at air targets. A 7.62 mm machine gun with a range of up to 2 km is also provided. In general, this is an excellent tank, for which a separate collection is reserved. The fighting vehicles of the world presented in this article are real. But some of them have long been in museums, while others are actively involved in conflicts around the world.
Briefly about the "M2 Bradley"
This American infantry fighting vehicle has earned many awards and is widely recognized for its protection. Indeed, quite a lot of attention has been paid to the survival of the crew (dynamic protection, 50 mm thick multi-layer armor and much more). There is also excellent weapons, allowing personnel to conduct aimed fire at the enemy. We can say that today these are the most popular models. Fighting vehicles of the world of this type are manufactured today. Already issued about 7,000 copies.
Conclusion
So we reviewed with you the most rated and well-known combat vehicles. Among them, as you can see, there are tanks that simply cannot be ignored. Without a doubt, there are a large number of techniques worthy of attention, but a lot of time will be required to describe everything. In any case, decent models are available from France, Great Britain, India, Russia and so on. But the most commonly used or those that were previously exploited, we examined. All equipment is mobile and provides good protection for the crew and landing. In addition, engineers are constantly trying to improve weapons, which allows them to support allies during a military conflict.