The BA-30 was a

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

half-track armored car developed in 1937. Only a small number were built.

Developments

Developed at the NATI Institute, it was hoped that the BA-30 would be an improvement on the off-road performance of the previous BA series and was based on the chassis of the NATI-3 half-tracked transporter, whereas its armored hull was fully welded like the

BA-20 The BA-20 (russian: Broneavtomobil 20, italic=yes) was an armored car developed in the Soviet Union in 1934. It was intended to replace the FAI and its field trials were completed in 1935. The BA-20 was then used in the early stages of World Wa ...

. The tracks on the BA-30 used 4 small and two large wheels, along with one return roller which was also incorporated on the NATI-3 and

GAZ GAZ or Gorkovsky Avtomobilny Zavod (russian: ГАЗ or Го́рьковский автомоби́льный заво́д, , Gorky Automobile Plant) is a Russian automotive manufacturer located in Nizhny Novgorod, formerly known as Gorky (Го� ...

-60. When used in snowy environments two skis could be added to the front wheels. The BA-30 was noted for having good performance over varying terrains. It was fitted with a 71-TK-1 radio with its antenna on the hull, armed with a 7.62

DT machine gun The Degtyaryov machine gun (russian: Пулемёт Дегтярёвa Пехотный, Pulemyot Degtyaryova Pekhotny literally: "Degtyaryov's infantry machine gun") or DP-27/DP-28 is a light machine gun firing the 7.62×54mmR cartridge that was ...

, while the vehicle needed manning by a crew of three.

Unapproved

Only a few BA-30s were built and tested, with some taking part in the

Winter War The Winter War,, sv, Vinterkriget, rus, Зи́мняя война́, r=Zimnyaya voyna. The names Soviet–Finnish War 1939–1940 (russian: link=no, Сове́тско-финская война́ 1939–1940) and Soviet–Finland War 1 ...

of 1939 between the Soviet Union and Finland. However this armored car was not approved for mass production as it was felt to be too heavy compared to other lightly armored cars.

References

External links

Bronetehnika.info
World War II armoured cars World War II armoured fighting vehicles of the Soviet Union Half-tracks of the interwar period Military vehicles introduced in the 1930s {{mil-vehicle-stub