BMD-1

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BMD-1
BMD-1 in Russian service, 2011.
Type	Airborne infantry fighting vehicle
Place of origin	Soviet Union
Service history
In service	1969–present
Used by	See Operators
Wars	See Service history and Combat history
Production history
Designer	Volgograd Tractor Plant
Designed	1965–1969
Manufacturer	Volgograd Tractor Plant
Produced	1968–1987
Variants	See Variants
Specifications (BMD-1)
Mass	7.5 t (7.4 long tons; 8.3 short tons)[1] 8.3 t (8.2 long tons; 9.1 short tons) (combat weight)[2][3][1]
Length	5.41 m (17.7 ft)[2][3][1]
Width	2.53 m (8.3 ft)[2][3][1]
Height	1.97 m (6.5 ft)[2][3][1]
Crew	2 (driver + gunner) + 6 dismounts (commander + machine gunner + 3-4 troopers)[4]
Armor	welded aluminium alloy 26–33 mm gun mantlet 6-23 mm turret 15 mm lower hull[1][5] 10 mm rest of the hull[6][7]
Main armament	73 mm 2A28 "Grom" smoothbore gun (40 rounds) 9M14M / 9M111M / 9M113 ATGMs (3 rounds)[4][8]
Secondary armament	7.62 mm PKT coaxial tank machine gun (2,000 rounds) 2x 7.62 mm PKT hull machine gun (4,000 rounds)
Engine	5D-20 6-cylinder diesel engine [5][9] 241 hp (180 kW) at 2,600 rpm[5][10]
Power/weight	32.1 hp/tonne (24 kW/tonne) 18.1 hp/tonne (13.5 kW/tonne) (loaded with equipment)
Suspension	hydraulic independent torsion-bar[11]
Ground clearance	Adjustable[5][11] 100 mm to 450 mm[10][11]
Fuel capacity	300 L (79 US gal)[10]
Operational range	600 km (370 mi) (road)[2][3][1] 116 km (72 mi) (water)[10]
Maximum speed	80 km/h (50 mph) (road)[2][3][1] 45 km/h (28 mph) (cross country)[2][3][1] 10 km/h (6.2 mph) (swimming)[2][3][5][10]

The BMD-1 is a Soviet airborne amphibious tracked infantry fighting vehicle (IFV), which was introduced in 1969 and first seen by the West in 1970. BMD stands for Boyevaya Mashina Desanta (Боевая Машина Десанта, which literally translates to "Combat Vehicle of the Airborne").^[12] It can be dropped by parachute and although it resembles the BMP-1 it is in fact much smaller. The BMD-1 was used as an IFV by the Soviet Airborne Forces (VDV). An improved variant of the BMD-1 was developed, the BMD-2. The BMD-1 also provided a basis for the BTR-D airborne multi-purpose tracked APC.