FV432
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The FV432 is the
armoured personnel carrier An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world. Acc ...
variant in the
British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
's
FV430 series The FV430 series covers a number of armoured fighting vehicles of the British Army, all built on the same chassis. The most common is the FV432 armoured personnel carrier. Although the FV430 series has been in service since the 1960s, and som ...
of
armoured fighting vehicle An armoured fighting vehicle (British English) or armored fighting vehicle (American English) (AFV) is an armed combat vehicle protected by vehicle armour, armour, generally combining operational mobility with Offensive (military), offensive a ...
s. Since its introduction in the 1960s, it has been the most common variant, being used for transporting infantry on the battlefield. At its peak in the 1980s, almost 2,500 vehicles were in use. Although the FV432 was to have been phased out of service in favour of newer vehicles such as the
Warrior A warrior is a guardian specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal society, tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracy, social class, class, or caste. History ...
and CVR(T), 500 were upgraded to extend their service into the 2020s. In light of the army's need for additional armoured vehicles in the Afghan and
Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
i theatres, the
Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...
announced in August 2006 that an extra 70 vehicles would be upgraded by
BAE Systems BAE Systems plc is a British Multinational corporation, multinational Aerospace industry, aerospace, military technology, military and information security company, based in London. It is the largest manufacturer in Britain as of 2017. It is ...
in addition to the 54 already ordered as part of their "force protection initiative". The improvements took the form of an engine upgrade, a new steering unit and a new braking system, as well as improvement in armour protection to a level similar to that of the Warrior. Plates lined with
Kevlar Kevlar (para-aramid) is a strong, heat-resistant synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed by Stephanie Kwolek at DuPont in 1965, the high-strength material was first used commercially in the early 1970s as ...
have been added to the bottom hull to provide better protection against
improvised explosive device An improvised explosive device (IED) is a bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional warfare, conventional military action. It may be constructed of conventional military explosives, such as an artillery shell, attached t ...
s. It is intended that these FV432s will free up the Warrior vehicles for provision of reserve firepower status and/or rotation out of theatre. The updated version is called the Bulldog.


History

The FV432 was designed to be the armoured personnel carrier in the FV430 series. Production started in 1962 by GKN Sankey and ended in 1971, after constructing approximately 3,000 vehicles. The FV432 is of all-steel construction. The chassis is a conventional tracked design with the engine at the front and the driving position to the right. Directly behind the driver's position is the vehicle commander's hatch. There is a large round opening in the passenger compartment roof, which has a split/folding (concertina) hatch, and a (right hand) side-hinged door in the rear for loading and unloading. A 'Boiling Vessel' is mounted on the rear door to provide hot water and heating food. As in many designs of its era, there are no firing ports for the troops carried – British Army doctrine having been for troops to dismount from vehicles to fight, unlike Russian infantry fighting vehicles that largely incorporate ports. The passenger compartment has five seats on either side – these fold up to provide a flat cargo space. An
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
(nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons) system is fitted, normal ventilation provided by a fan mounted in the forward right hand side of the vehicle, air being drawn through a paper element filter (mounted externally on the right hand side of the hull), filtered air being distributed by a duct running around the perimeter of the interior at roof level, extending into the driver's compartment. Provision is made to add carbon filters in case of gas attack, and the system can accommodate heaters and/or air conditioning units. A roof-mounted relief valve allows a constant minimal pressure to be maintained and prevent ingress of foreign matter in the event of blast or alterations in external atmospheric pressure. Wading screens and a trim vane were fitted as standard and an extension provided to elevate the exhaust pipe. The basic vehicle, which could be readied for wading in approximately five minutes, has a water speed of about 6 km/h when converted for swimming and was propelled by its tracks. Most of these vehicles have had their amphibious capability removed. FV432s in service with infantry battalions are equipped with a pintle-mounted L7 GPMG if not fitted with the Peak Engineering turret. Vehicles with the Royal Artillery, Royal Engineers and Royal Signals were originally fitted with the L4A4 variant of the
Bren light machine gun The Bren gun (Brno-Enfield) was a series of light machine guns (LMG) made by the United Kingdom in the 1930s and used in various roles until 1992. While best known for its role as the British and Commonwealth forces' primary infantry LMG in Worl ...
, but they now use the GPMG. When equipped with the GPMG, the vehicle carries 1,600 rounds of belted 7.62mm ammunition. When carrying the Bren LMG, the vehicle carried 1,400 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition in 50 magazines, each holding 28 rounds. There are two three-barrel smoke dischargers at the front. The
Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia. It is a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army ...
evaluated two pre-production FV432s during 1962 and 1963, but decided to purchase M113 armoured personnel carriers instead. The trials undertaken in
Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
demonstrated that the M113's performance was superior to that of the FV432. A number of surplus vehicles were sold to the
Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...
after being withdrawn from UK service.


Variants

The FV432 has been produced in three major variants, the Mark 1 (with a Mark 1/1 minor variant) with
petrol Gasoline (North American English) or petrol ( Commonwealth English) is a petrochemical product characterized as a transparent, yellowish, and flammable liquid normally used as a fuel for spark-ignited internal combustion engines. When formul ...
engines, the Mark 2 with a Rolls-Royce K60 multi-fuel engine and the Mark 3 with a diesel engine. The Mark 2 minor variant, the 2/1, has its NBC pack flush with the hull side. An uparmoured variant, for use in Iraq and Afghanistan, of the Mark 3 was known as Bulldog. This name now appears to be extended to all Mark 3 versions of the FV432. The FV432 has proven to be flexible in use and can be converted from one role to another with reasonable ease using 'installation kits' (IK), or more permanently with minor modifications to the hull. Major or more significant modifications have usually led to a new FV43n number. In addition to the normal
armoured personnel carrier An armoured personnel carrier (APC) is a broad type of armoured military vehicle designed to transport personnel and equipment in combat zones. Since World War I, APCs have become a very common piece of military equipment around the world. Acc ...
role, it has been used as: *a command vehicle, with seven crew, two mapboards and extra communications equipment (with an additional canvas "penthouse") *an ambulance, with spots for up to four stretchers or two stretcher and five seated patients but would not carry any armament other than the smoke dischargers. *a cargo carrier, for up to 3,600 kg *a communications vehicle *a recovery vehicle. Designated as the FV434, it includes a rear cutout to a "pickup-truck" box to carry a spare engine/other stores with tool store below, an internally mounted winch, and a 2.5-tonne lift arm. Frequently equipped with the canvas "penthouse". *anti-tank guided missile launcher (designated FV438) with two Swingfire ATGM launchers that were reloaded from an internal magazine of 10 missiles. Swingfire was a command line of sight wire-guided missile controlled from a sight mounted on the top of the FV438. The missile range was 4,000 metres. The launch tubes were to the left and slightly behind the CLOS sight. Royal Armoured Corps, Infantry and Royal Artillery units were equipped at various times with FV438. FV432s used by combat infantry units have also been equipped with: * WOMBAT recoilless rifle early models carried this armament internally, using ramps and a hand winch to deploy and recover the weapon. Later models mounted it externally above the rear hatch. In this arrangement the weapon had limited-traverse (30° lateral, +7.5° −3° elevation), but it could also be demounted as in the earlier arrangement. * 84mm Carl Gustav recoilless rifle mounted on a bar across the top of the troop compartment. *
81mm mortar An 81-mm mortar is a medium-weight mortar. It is a smooth-bore, muzzle-loading, high-angle-of-fire weapon used for long-range indirect fire support of light infantry, air assault, and airborne units across the entire front of a battalion zo ...
on a turntable in the rear of the hull can be traversed through 360° firing through the roof hatch; 160 mortar rounds are carried; crew consists of a driver, commander and two men. *Peak Engineering turret with the L37A1 variant of the 7.62mm GPMG, replacing the roof hatch. * 30 mm RARDEN-gun equipped turret (taken from the Fox scout car; 13 converted). These were used by the
Berlin Brigade The Berlin Brigade was a US Army brigade-sized garrison based in West Berlin during the Cold War. After the end of World War II, under the conditions of the Yalta and Potsdam agreements, the Allied forces occupied West Berlin. This occupation las ...
(usually in the distinctive urban camouflage used there). One of these, of the Royal Hampshires, was driven by their honorary colonel,
Diana, Princess of Wales Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997), was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William, ...
, on her visit to Berlin in 1985 These were later bought by the tank driving and paint-balling company Armourgeddon (who also converted more). These have been modified with a compressed air cylinder on the rear of the turret for the paintball gun. *ZB 298 Elliott Automation Grounds Surveillance Radar *
MILAN Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
anti-tank missiles (two missile teams, deployed away from the vehicle) FV432s used by the
Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...
have been equipped with: *a battery command post with FACE fire control computer *a battery command post with BATES battlefield artillery target engagement system *
Cymbeline ''Cymbeline'' (), also known as ''The Tragedie of Cymbeline'' or ''Cymbeline, King of Britain'', is a play by William Shakespeare set in British Iron Age, Ancient Britain () and based on legends that formed part of the Matter of Britain concer ...
mortar-locating radar *sound ranging equipment *observation post vehicle with ZB 298
Elliott Automation Elliott Brothers (London) Ltd was an early computer company of the 1950s and 1960s in the United Kingdom. It traced its descent from a firm of instrument makers founded by William Elliott in London around 1804. The research laboratories were o ...
Grounds Surveillance Radar FV432s used by the
Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...
have been equipped with: *a towed layer for L9 anti-tank Bar Mine *a launcher for L10 Ranger Anti-Personnel Mine *a towed Giant Viper mine-clearing system *a
Thales Group Thales S.A., Trade name, trading as Thales Group (), is a French multinational corporation, multinational aerospace and defence industry, defence corporation specializing in electronics. It designs, develops and manufactures a wide variety of aer ...
SWARM
Remote Weapon System A remote controlled weapon station (RCWS), remotely operated weapon system (ROWS), or remote weapon system (RWS), is a remotely operated light or medium-caliber weapon system, often equipped with a fire-control system, that can be installed on Co ...


Bulldog

The need to upgrade the FV432 to extend its service life further led the MoD to sign an £85m contract with BAE Systems Land Systems to update over 1,000 FV 432s to Mark 3 standard. Major changes include a new diesel engine and braking system. Initially, only FV432 and 434 models were converted, but other variants are being considered. The first 500 of the batch were handed over to the British Army in December 2006. For service in Iraq and Afghanistan, air-conditioning, enhanced
reactive armour Reactive armour is a type of vehicle armour used in protecting vehicles, especially modern tanks, against shaped charges and hardened kinetic energy penetrators. The most common type is ''explosive reactive armour'' (ERA), but variants include ...
and IED jammers were added. Initially, only these further enhanced versions were known by the name Bulldog. The term now applies to all Mark 3 vehicles.


Operators


Current operators

* : 40 received in 2013 * : The British government is providing an unspecified number of FV432 Mark 3 Bulldogs to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. *


See also

*
List of FV series military vehicles The following is a partial listing of FV ("fighting vehicle") numbers as used by the British Army. Some vehicles do not have FV numbers (e.g. the AS-90). 0–999 *FV100: Series of vehicles based on heavy chassis **FV101: Heavy assault tank **FV ...
* * * * *


Bibliography

*Howard, Les "Winter Warriors – Across Bosnia with the PBI", Critical account of a British army Peacekeeper operating from FV 432s at the end of the Bosnian civil war


References


External links


Sloppy Jalopy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fv432 Amphibious armoured personnel carriers Armoured personnel carriers of the Cold War Armoured personnel carriers of the United Kingdom Tracked infantry fighting vehicles Tracked armoured personnel carriers Military vehicles introduced in the 1960s