18 Facts About BMP-1

1.

The BMP-1 was the first mass-produced infantry fighting vehicle of the Soviet Union.

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2.

BMP-1 was first tested in combat in the 1973 Yom Kippur War, where it was used by Egyptian and Syrian forces.

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3.

Large number of variants of the BMP-1 were produced, with the most notable IFV variants being: BMP-2, MLI-84 and Boragh.

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4.

Upgrades of the BMP-1 were performed by KMZ as well as by tank repair workshops of the Ministry of Defence during scheduled and major overhauls.

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5.

BMP-1 is a fully amphibious tracked vehicle, with a front-engined chassis developed especially for it, a welded steel hull with a sharp, sloping front with a conspicuously ridged surface, a centrally located, flat, truncated cone turret and a troop compartment at the rear.

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6.

BMP-1 has three TNPO-170 periscope vision-blocks to provide vision when his hatch is closed.

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7.

BMP-1 has a conical turret equipped with a fume extraction system and an electric traverse drive with a manual backup system.

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8.

BMP-1 carries four ATGMs with their launching rails as a standard.

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9.

BMP-1 was a threat to NATO APCs, light AFVs, and even MBTs of its time, by use of its main gun or ATGM.

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10.

BMP-1 has a maximum road speed of 65 kilometres per hour, which is automatically reduced to around 45 kilometres per hour off-road.

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11.

BMP-1 is amphibious, propelling itself in the water using its tracks, assisted by hydrodynamic fairings on the track upper side covers.

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12.

The BMP-1 can overcome water barriers with a current of up to 1.

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13.

BMP-1 had significant shortcomings in its protection scheme, which only became obvious during the Soviet–Afghan War.

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14.

Armor of BMP-1 IFVs is insufficient to deal with AP cannon rounds – sufficiently thick armor would increase the weight of the BMP-1 considerably and jeopardize its amphibious ability.

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15.

Only a few examples of the BMP-1 were intended for export – mainly to countries with a hot climate.

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16.

BMP-1 can make its own smoke screen by injecting vaporized diesel fuel into the exhaust manifold using the TDA engine thermal smoke generating system.

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17.

The BMP-1 was first seen by Westerners during the 7 November 1967 military parade in Moscow.

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18.

BMP-1 has seen wide use by all factions fighting in the Syrian Civil War due to large numbers being in stock.

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