Fighting engineering machine Buffalo
History create
As a result of the fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq, the need was identified for special vehicles capable of countering the threats of the use of mines and improvised explosive devices (IEDs). For example, in Afghanistan, more than half of the losses of coalition forces are precisely those threats. Specialized vehicles were called MRAP (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected, armored vehicles with enhanced mine protection).
Buffalo roots originate from the South African border war in Namibia 1966-1989. In this conflict, Soviet and Cuban mines posed a mortal threat to South African troops along the border with Angola. Because of its policy of racial apartheid, international sanctions were imposed on South Africa, and therefore South Africa had to independently search for solutions to its problems. To combat the threat of mines, South African engineers developed armored vehicles with a V-shaped hull to divert the blast wave from the crew compartment. Buffalo was widely used by the police and armed forces of South Africa in the 1980s. The South African Casspir was successfully used to detect mines during peace missions in Bosnia and Herzegovina at the end of the 1990s.
At about the same time, the Soviet army faced a similar problem in Afghanistan, but did not begin to create special low-resistance cars, but used tank mine trawls or engineering clearing vehicles. This did not provide protection for the crews from mines and IEDs, and the fighters began to be placed on the armor, not protected from the rifle weapons fragments of mines and directional land mines.
The Israel Defense Forces went the other way. Tanks were forbidden to travel on paved roads, and, in addition to tank mine trawls, they used an X-NUMX-tonne bulldozer D-60, which with its bucket, to remove an impressive part of the ground, in order to clear the route. The very bulldozer, thanks to its considerable height, reliably protected its crew from the effects of an explosion. So, in the 9 year, the armored D-2006 hit a powerful landmine for the tanks following it. As a result of a powerful explosion, the crew was not injured and, as the driver put it, “we only stalled the bulldozer”. Recently, the D-9 has been increasingly used with remote control.
By the 1999 year, as part of the Ground Standoff Mine Detection System (GSTAMIDS) program, the US Army began comparative testing of two South African Casspir and Lion II vehicles to determine which one could serve as the basis for GSTAMIDS vehicles. At the beginning of 2001, Lion II was chosen, which, after further improvements and design improvements, became Buffalo A0.
The Buffalo MPCV (mine-protected clearance vehicle) combat engineering vehicle belongs to the class of combat vehicles for mine clearance and is the largest MRAP currently used. The car is used for mine protection of the third category, clearance of the route, clearance of explosive devices, protection of objects, as well as command and control. Buffalo is manufactured by Force Protection Inc. Force Protection Inc was founded in 1996 in Ladson, South Carolina. The company initially tried to deal with aviation equipment, however, after September 11, 2001, due to the decline in demand in the aviation market, she was forced to change the direction of her activities. Until 2005, the company employed only a few dozen people, and its turnover amounted to only $ 1.5 million. Three years later, its staff amounted to more than 1000 people, and sales exceeded $ 900 million. Currently, Force Protection Inc is part of General Dynamics.
In 2002, four Buffalo were deployed in Afghanistan to clear the Bagram airfield. After the first successful use of Buffalo in Afghanistan in 2002, its appearance in Iraq was only a matter of time. Buffalo is remembered by former program manager Dennis Haag: "If he can find mines, he could also find IEDs." The US Army was in a hurry to adopt equipment for demining the routes of columns in Iraq and began its purchase at the very beginning of the war. Together with a small team of engineers, Haag worked on the Buffalo 16 project for hours a day, six or seven days a week. He repeatedly personally traveled to Iraq in December 2005 of the year to observe the car in action and communicate with the soldiers using it. According to another member of the engineering team GSTAMIDS, more 25 changes were made to the car, including the integration of the fire extinguishing system, additional armor and other elements of survivability. “When we started the development, we didn’t communicate with the user,” Haag recalls. No one was actually on the battlefield with the soldiers. Soon, the situation changed and Haag’s numerous recordings, based on soldiers ’feedback, had a decisive influence on the design of Buffalo and other RCVS.
MPCV Buffalo Construction
Structurally, Buffalo is a three-axle all-wheel drive heavily armored off-road vehicle, which has increased protection against damaging factors: mine explosions and improvised explosive devices, including through the V-shape of the double-bottom armored capsule. Buffalo is able to accommodate up to six crew members, including the driver and the second driver. The car is 8200 mm long, 2690 mm wide and 3960 mm high. Empty weight - 22 tons, maximum loading capacity - 12.4 tons. Buffalo is equipped with Michelin 16 R 20 XZL wheels with aluminum rims, providing the ability to drive with flat tires. The cabin is sealed by providing overpressure of the cleaned air from the damaging factors of the WMD. Buffalo is not equipped with a winch. Loading and dismounting from a vehicle can be done through one tailgate and six upper standard hatches. Buffalo is equipped with a metal-clamped 9-meter hydraulic metal-operated manipulator equipped with a day / night video camera and sensor equipment for remote disarming of explosive devices. The manipulator can be controlled from the cab of the car, watching what is happening on the monitor or through armored glass 130 mm thick. Buffalo metal wheels, when detonating mines, take the impact of an explosion, providing the crew with additional protection. In addition to mine protection, Buffalo is equipped with powerful ballistic protection. Ballistic protection is provided for the radiator, tires, battery compartment, fuel tanks, engine and transmission. Thus, Buffalo provides protection against improvised explosive devices weighing up to 21 kg, exploded under any wheel or 14 kg under the car body. Ballistic protection is able to withstand 7.62 × 51 mm bullets, while aluminum armor from BAE Systems L-ROD protects the vehicle from RPG-7 attacks. Ballistic protection can be enhanced to counter shots from SVD. In addition, the car is equipped with an automatic engine and cabin fire extinguishing system and manual fire extinguishers. The car is fully adapted to accommodate remote-controlled weapons when it performs the functions of an armored personnel carrier or ambulance. One of the machine guns of the M2 caliber 12.7 mm, the M249 caliber 5.56 mm, the M240 caliber 6.73 mm or the 40-mm automatic grenade launcher Mk19 can be mounted on it.
Orders and deliveries
Buffalo has been ordered by several countries. In February 2008, four Buffalo cars were ordered by the Italian Ministry of Defense. They were produced at a plant in Ladson, South Carolina. In July, 2008, Buffalo’s third category of protection was ordered by the French military in accordance with the M67854-07-C-5039 contract with a total value of $ 3.5 million, the order was completed in November of the same year. In October, 2008 of the US Army ordered the 27 Buffalo A2 models under the contract W56HZV-08-C-0028 in $ 26.2 million. In November, the US Army ordered another 2008 Buffalo A16 for $ 2 million by 15.5, the delivery was made in the 2009 year. In addition, the Buffalo 14 vehicles were delivered to the UK Department of Defense in October 2009 for the year under the M67854-06-C-5162 contract. In November 2008 of the year, the Canadian government, under the M67854-07-C-5039 contract, ordered 14 Buffalo A2 for $ 49.4 million. Deliveries were made during 2009 year. The command of the Canadian Expeditionary Force ordered five Buffalo, which were delivered in the 2007 year. In July, 2009, the company Force Protection Inc signed a contract with the US Army for $ 52.8 million for the production of 48 Buffalo. The delivery was completed by the end of 2009. In April, the US Marine Corps 2011 placed an order worth $ 46.6 million for the supply of the MPCV Buffalo 40. In June, the US Army additionally ordered 2011 for 56 Buffalo for $ 63.8 million. Deliveries were completed by July 2012 of the year. In the 2008 year, around 200 Buffalo cars took part in the fighting. The US Army plans to procure 372 Buffalo A2 for use in engineering units for demining columns, in demining platoons and in engineering training centers such as the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.
Engine
The Buffalo was originally equipped with a Mack ASET AI-400 I-6 turbocharged diesel engine with XHUMX horsepower and a five-speed gearbox. Subsequently, a six-cylinder engine C450 with a volume of 13 liters was installed on Buffalo. It provides power in 12.5 horsepower at 440 rpm and 1800 horsepower at 525 rpm. The engine develops torque in 2100 nm at 1483 revolutions per minute. The Buffalo's maximum speed on the highway is 1400 kilometers per hour, the cruising range is 90 kilometers with the 520 and liter fuel tank.
Troops on the battlefield appreciated the many advanced protective capabilities of Buffalo. Senior Sergeant Ryan Grandstaff (Ryan Grandstaff), who carried out de-mining operations on the routes of the 612 Engineer Battalion of the Ohio National Guard, told CBS News in 2005 the year that Buffalo made him feel "in 100 percentage security," and added: "I went through countless explosions and I'm still here to tell you about it."
"Since their deployment in Iraq in 2003-year Cougar and Buffalo, these vehicles used by engineering units defused explosive devices around 1000 without losing a single human life," said Wayne Phillips, vice president of the company. in charge of the program for the marines.
In a recent incident, Buffalo blew up on an anti-tank mine, blew off a wheel and destroyed a car bridge. There were no injuries among the crew, and the car retained its mobility and left the minefield on its own. It was repaired overnight and returned to service the very next day.
Performance characteristics
Crew: driver, second driver-mechanic; besides them, the machine can hold up to four fighters
Manufacturer: Force Protection
Length: 8200 mm
Width: 2690 mm
Height: 3960 mm
Internal body length (behind the front seats): mm 3800
Maximum weight: tons of tons
Loading capacity: 10.2 tons
Empty weight (with armor): 24 tons
Engine: 13 six-cylinder Caterpillar C12.5
Transmission: Caterpillar CX31, 6-speed
Transfer Case: Cushman 2-x Speed with Neutral
Power: 440 HP @ 1800 rpm, 525.l.s @ 2100 RPM
Torque: 1483 nm @ 1400 rpm
Maximum speed on the highway: 90 km / h
Power reserve: 530 km
Fuel tank capacity: 320 l
Power density: 15.4 hp / t
Front suspension: 13.6 tons
Front axle: AxleTech, steering axle drive
Rear suspension: 10.4 tons (each side)
Rear Axle: AxleTech
Brakes: Pnevmanichsky, brake chambers are protected
Wading depth (without preparation): 1000 mm
Entry angle: 25 °
Departure angle: 60 ° with rear staircase folded
Side bias: 30 °
Ground clearance: 450 mm front; 635 mm under transfer case cover; 380 mm rear
Air Transport: Aircraft C-17
Climate control system: air conditioning (80.000 BTU, one front and 2 rear); direct air ventilation system
Spare Parts: Enabled
Connection: Stand with power distribution center
Power supply: 24V with 12V outputs
Batteries: 4 by 12V
Seat belts: Four-point seat belts
Information