The Bv Infantry Support Vehicles (update)

[ROCK45]

I didn't know what Bv Support Vehicles were and thought I share what I found. I can see why these vehicles are so important to any mechanized force but didn't know that some were helicopter portable.

Double-Jointed & Popular: The Bv Family of Infantry Support Vehicles (updated)

The BvS-10 is the successor to the wildly popular Bv206, 11,000 of which have been sold to 40 countries around the world – including the USA (M978). It is in use in both Britain and the Netherlands as a key armored vehicle for their respective Marines, and is under evaluation elsewhere. Singapore has developed and manufactured an improved variant of its own called the Bronco ATTC, and Finland and Norway also have their own local Bv-206 variants.

What makes this unusual-looking vehicle family so popular? They aren’t like Hummers or similar wheeled mainstays. They aren’t full armored personnel carriers, either – they’re armored, but Bv family vehicles can’t take the kind of punishment that a Bradley or LAV can absorb. Instead, the secret to their success lies in a remarkable all-terrain capability, and their ability to fill a rare and critical role: air-portable and amphibious infantry enhancement.

Link to full story I found
http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/doublejointed-popular-the-bv-family-of-infantry-support-vehicles-updated-02656/

[Investigator]

Comments deleted.

[ROCK45]

Is this series used currently I was wondering if I posted something outdated? If I did what does the US Army use currently? thanks




Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck (HEMTT)

The Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck (HEMTT) provides transport capabilities for re-supply of combat vehicles and weapons systems. There are five basic configurations of the HEMTT series trucks: M977 cargo truck with Material Handling Crane (MHC), M978 2500 gallon fuel tanker, M984 wrecker, M983 tractor and M985 cargo truck with MHC. A self-recovery winch is also available on certain models. This vehicle family is rapidly deployable and is designed to operate in any climatic condition where military operations are expected to occur.

Link
http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/hmett.htm

[kato]

The Bv-206 has been in use since the early 80s worldwide, in most nations in specialized units - mostly with mountain infantry, though e.g. the US uses them in Alaska, and France also widely uses them as movers in jungle environments such as in French Guyana.

The US designation for the Bv-206 is M973 btw, not M978.

And i think about the only person advertising tactically carrying a Bv-206 by helo would be Mike Sparks within his Air-Mech-Strike brainfarts :rolleyes:
(sadly, DID subscribes to some of his stuff...)

Bv-206 have been helo-carried (such as Canadian Bv in US Chinooks in Afghanistan), but it's a pretty tight fit even after the vehicle has been folded down to minimal size. It does play a certain role in future HTH requirements though.

[Waylander]

I once had the opportunity to get a ride with a Bv-206.

These vehicles are really fun and I was totally amazed by it's ability to climb a nearly vertical obstacle in snowy terrain. Feels weird to drive in the back of it and suddenly it feels like the cabin goes nearly 90°.

The Gebirgsjäger (mountain infantry) to which it belonged liked it also very much.

Aren't our airborn brigades using an uparmoured version of the Bv-206 for their medics?

Could this be one of the main reasons for the HTH requirement?

[Rythm]

Ja, the BV-206S was the first armoured variant, based on the older BV-206. Popularly called "Skalman" after a cartonn character, by Swedish forces. BVS-10 is a newer development with better engine etc. They are licenseproduced in Finland, Norway and Singapore.

[kato]

Aren't our airborn brigades using an uparmoured version of the Bv-206 for their medics?


In Germany:
Bv-206D - unarmored version; some 168 in service since 1984.
Bv-206S - 35 medical versions bought in 2004 (31 KrKw, 4 BAT), 81 APC versions for GebJg ordered (incl command variant as FüInfoSysH carriers), further 42 Bv-206 intended to be bought.

[Waylander]

As always, fast and accurate. :)

Thanks for that.

[OPSSG]

In Dec 2008 (http://www.defencetalk.com/forums/army-security-forces/singapore-supply-armored-vehicles-u-k-andrew-chuter-defencenews-8459/), BAE Systems Global Combat Systems (previously BAE Systems Hägglunds) BvS 10 Mk2 lost to the Bronco made by Singapore Technologies Kinetics (STK) in the Warthog UOR (http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/DefenceNews/EquipmentAndLogistics/TheWarthogIsOnItsWay.htm).

According to Jane's, BAE and STK are now competing for the French Army's Vehicule Haute Mobilité (VHM - High Mobility Vehicle) programme.The initial requirement is for 53 VHM units (this could increase to 129) for the French amphibious and mountain units. A contract award for the much delayed VHM programme is expected later this year or in early 2010.

[h/t to YF for the news]

[sgtgunn]

The Bv-206 has been in use since the early 80s worldwide, in most nations in specialized units - mostly with mountain infantry, though e.g. the US uses them in Alaska, and France also widely uses them as movers in jungle environments such as in French Guyana.

The US designation for the Bv-206 is M973 btw, not M978.

And i think about the only person advertising tactically carrying a Bv-206 by helo would be Mike Sparks within his Air-Mech-Strike brainfarts :rolleyes:
(sadly, DID subscribes to some of his stuff...)

Bv-206 have been helo-carried (such as Canadian Bv in US Chinooks in Afghanistan), but it's a pretty tight fit even after the vehicle has been folded down to minimal size. It does play a certain role in future HTH requirements though.


We used Bv-206 Small Unit Support Vehicles (SUSV) in FYROM in the mid-late 90's. Our squad sized observation post (U55A) had 2 HMMWVs, 2 M113A3s ans 2 Bv-206s assigned to us. We were in very mountainous terriain with very poor roads, and the SUSVs would glide over the mud and snow that would bog down the HMMWV and even the M113s.

Here's a link to a picture of one of our SUSVs:

Picasa Web Albums - Adrian (http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/1xGHv20d-uur0YJn5hnVxw?feat=directlink)

Adrian

[Chino]

...BV-206...BVS-10...license produced in Finland, Norway and Singapore.

I don't think so... Far as I know we produce a similar-looking version called the Bronco, but it is not under license. In theory, it is a different vehicle.

[Chino]

Time for some tank porn, my favourite pic of the Bronco:

[swerve]

I don't think so... Far as I know we produce a similar-looking version called the Bronco, but it is not under license. In theory, it is a different vehicle.
It's a bit bigger, heavier, & more heavily armoured, innit? IIRC those were the reasons the UK decided to buy some, despite being pretty happy in general with its BVS-10s. It wanted better protection from IEDs for vehicles in Afghanistan.

[OPSSG]

Adrian and Chino, thanks for the pixs.

It's a bit bigger, heavier, & more heavily armoured, innit? IIRC those were the reasons the UK decided to buy some, despite being pretty happy in general with its BVS-10s. It wanted better protection from IEDs for vehicles in Afghanistan.

I understand that ST Kinetics sent two Bronco hulls to the UK for the UK boffins to blow them up to their heart's delight (to test their resistance to IEDs).

With the size of the IEDs being found in Afghanistan (and that the IEDs used seem to be growing bigger over time), I'm a little worried about survivability for the Warthog. I understand that the Warthog variant produced for the UK is even heavier than the version of the Bronco (http://www.one35th.com/attc/attc_intro.htm) (which stands at 18 tons) inducted into the SAF. When asked just how much heavier by the local press? The ST Kinetics spokesman refused to comment. Anyway, the growing size and power of IEDs and mines are such a concern that the SAF has inducted a 30 ton class Counter-Mine Vehicle (CMV) called the Trailblazer (http://www.defencetalk.com/forums/army-security-forces/made-singapore-equipment-9285/#post177963), which uses a mine flail system.

[Firn]

Adrian and Chino, thanks for the pixs.



I understand that ST Kinetics sent two Bronco hulls to the UK for the UK squids to blow them up to their heart's delight (to test their resistance to IEDs).

With the size of the IEDs being found in Afghanistan (and that the IEDs used seem to be growing bigger over time), I'm a little worried about survivability for the Warthog. I understand that the Warthog variant produced for the UK is even heavier than the version of the Bronco (http://www.one35th.com/attc/attc_intro.htm) (which stands at 18 tons) inducted into the SAF. When asked just how much heavier by the local press? The ST Kinetics spokesman refused to comment. Anyway, the growing size and power of IEDs and mines are such a concern that the SAF has inducted a 30 ton class Counter-Mine Vehicle (CMV) called the Trailblazer (http://www.defencetalk.com/forums/army-security-forces/made-singapore-equipment-9285/#post177963), which uses a mine flail system.

As I wrote before the very intrinsic qualities of the Bv206 undermine the efforts to greatly increase the protection against IEDs and mines. It was designed to provide unrivaled mobility in the most difficult terrain (swamps, snowclad slopes and so on). I like to refer to it as chamois on stamina.

The Bronco was the logical consequence, as you simply need a very strong chassis to carry a heavy cell designed with IEDs in mind to provide very high levels of protection. If the Bronco was constructed in such a way than it could be magnitudes safer than the Bv206.