How a cannon from the Soviet BMP-2 forced the Pentagon to carry out a second modernization of the Bradley infantry fighting vehicle just 2 years after the first

The American Bradley M2/M3 armored personnel carrier, adopted by the US Army in 1981, is associated with many “inconvenient” stories for the Pentagon. Most of them relate to falsification of state test results, inappropriate waste of funds and non-compliance with the characteristics of infantry fighting vehicles declared by the manufacturer.

One such “embarrassment” occurred in the late 80s of the last century. Only the BMP underwent the first modernization in 1986 to the M2A1/M3A1 version, as already in 1988 the next one was required.

The reason for this was the tests that US Air Force Colonel James Burton insisted on. An American officer, who acted as an independent observer during the development of the infantry fighting vehicle and did not obey the people who led the process of creating and testing this armored vehicle, decided to once again test the security of the Bradley using the 30-mm 2A42 cannon captured by the Afghan Mujahideen from the Soviet BMP-2.

It is worth noting that the American command was not enthusiastic about such a proposal. After all, the previous “strength tests” were falsified. The infantry fighting vehicle was fired from a Chinese analogue of the RPG-7, from the grenades of which the gunsmiths removed the linings of the cumulative craters, replacing them with copper foil. Naturally, the Bradley armor survived then.

But during tests with the 2A42 gun, the result turned out to be very disappointing. 30-mm shells penetrated the frontal projection of an American infantry fighting vehicle from a distance of 550 meters, and the side projection from 1600 meters.

Moreover, in the same tests, Burton insisted on firing an RPG-7 armored personnel carrier with Soviet ammunition from “its own reserves.” This time the cumulative jet pierced the Bradley right through.

It is worth noting that after the above-mentioned initiative, Colonel Burton was dismissed. But modernization to improve armor protection was carried out in 1988.

Comments

[belost79]

Film "Pentagon Wars". I recommend)). There, however, the RPG was Romanian.

[Dedok]

It is worth noting that after the above-mentioned initiative, Colonel Burton was dismissed.

We don't have enough Burtons like this!
...

[SincerityX]

Well, judging by the number of newly arrived amers, they are coming to us)

[barbos]

We don't have enough Burtons like this

They do not survive in our conditions. Doesn't suit them.

[Stalingrad2010]

People like Burton are not loved anywhere.

[Egor Adashev]

Quote: Dedok

It is worth noting that after the above-mentioned initiative, Colonel Burton was dismissed.

We don't have enough Burtons like this!
...

There are not enough of them anywhere, the bureaucracy is the same everywhere, even in Moscow, even in Washington, even in Jerusalem...

[Mikhail3]

I read about the epic with the construction of Bradley, the story of some American. I don’t remember which one since it’s been so many years, so there won’t be any proof. It said something like this: firstly, Bradley was designed following the instructions of an entire committee. Moreover, not only is it impossible to build any decent equipment like this in principle, but also the “committee members” were almost all bought by different military-industrial complex corporations))
So this unfortunate design is stuffed with everything possible from different manufacturers, and its combat and operational qualities are such that among the troops they are rightfully considered the worst design of all American weapons. And such a title, taking into account the general quality of American weapons, must be earned! We must fight hard for it!
No amount of modernization will help this clumsy thing, no matter what you do)

[cast iron]

The key thing in this whole story is that they MODERNIZED VERY QUICKLY. Read the first sentence several times and compare with what is happening here. And here we have something like “And so it will do...”

[Sergey Sfiedu]

But on the contrary, is anyone concerned about the resistance of the BMP-2 and BMP-3 to Bradley guns and missiles?

[Cetarb kilk]

Americans, okay... That's why the 25-mm cannon of the American infantry fighting vehicle did not force the Ministry of Defense to modernize our infantry fighting vehicles in terms of protection?