Along with the tank, a heavy infantry fighting vehicle and armored fire support and air defense vehicles are needed – this was thought about before
There is much talk now about the need to create a whole complex of front-line combat vehicles, which, in addition to tanks, would include a heavy infantry fighting vehicle with tank-like armor, a fire support vehicle similar to an assault self-propelled gun, and a well-protected air defense vehicle. However, these ideas are often viewed as the result of thinking about modern combat conflicts - especially special military operations.
In fact, this is, of course, not true. This was thought about before - back in 1991, the magazine "Bulletin of Armored Equipment" published an article describing the problems of existing combat vehicles and ways to solve them. We strongly recommend reading it, since today this material, with the exception of the UAVs that were absent at that time, is as relevant as it was more than 30 years ago.
Frontline combat vehicle complex
The tasks of the five elements of the front-line combat vehicle complex are outlined. Complementing each other, these vehicles with an equally high level of armor can significantly increase the combat capabilities of the Ground Forces.
The weapons and equipment of the Ground Forces can be divided into 4 groups:
• Close fire combat (attacking or defending echelons).
• Long-range fire combat (support echelon).
• Airlift (mobile echelon).
• Logistics and special purpose (support echelon).
The Frontline Combat Vehicle Complex (FMCV) belongs to the first group of weapons and equipment of the Ground Forces. It includes vehicles that are used in attack or defense in conditions of direct contact with the enemy, under the influence of virtually all of its weapons, including those firing direct fire.
The tasks of troops equipped with such a complex: in the offensive - to destroy the directly opposing enemy, capture his territory and, if conditions are available, develop success; in the defensive - to repel the enemy's attack, inflict heavy losses on him, hold the territory and, under favorable conditions, counterattack the enemy and defeat him.
The depth of the first echelon with the BMPK complex, as a rule, can be limited by the depth of the battalion formation (up to 3 km, and sometimes more). This complex should be formed taking into account a systematic approach to the optimal distribution of combat missions between the vehicles included in it and a complex communication system between BMPKs of various purposes.
The successful operation of each of them depends on the properties of the other machines. Such a complex can include five machines: a tank, an infantry fighting vehicle, a direct fire support combat vehicle, an air defense combat vehicle, and a target reconnaissance and battle management vehicle.
All vehicles of this complex will be in approximately equal conditions of exposure to fire during combat and therefore should be similar in protection and mobility, i.e. they should be created on the basis of a tank.
The first element of the BMPK - This is a tank that is the basis of this complex.
Its purpose is to destroy and suppress targets by direct fire, various opposing enemy weapons. Immediate use of the results of fire, rapid forward movement. The tank solves its tasks, as a rule, in conditions of organized enemy fire, being under fire from all available weapons. These conditions determine the need for an optimal combination of its main combat properties: firepower, protection and mobility.
The tank must be a universal system. weapons. The wide range of fire missions assigned to it predetermines the multi-purpose designation of its weapons complex, otherwise the tank will degenerate into a highly specialized weapon. To a large extent, this has already happened: the weapons of modern tanks have acquired a clearly expressed anti-tank focus.
The tank has essentially become a tank destroyer. Although half of its ammunition is made up of high-explosive fragmentation shells (HES), firing them is ineffective. Certain hopes are pinned on new types of HES, improvements in their design, and further development of the fire control system. But many complex technical problems need to be solved for this.
The main method of firing tanks is direct fire on the move and from a place (from short stops) at observed targets. The most typical firing ranges for this are 3 m, and when using guided weapons - up to 000 m. However, it should be taken into account that the probability of visibility at this distance is low (significantly less than 5).
With a relatively small crew, functionally tied to the vehicle and the weapon, the tank is of little use for taking over territory. The failure of even one crew member makes the tank incapable of combat. This significantly complicates the tasks of reconnaissance, security and traffic control for tank units.
These issues are especially acute when conducting combat operations in populated areas and wooded areas. Having powerful weapons, but specialized for defeating tanks, tanks solve the tasks of fighting enemy manpower and its fire weapons, including anti-tank weapons, with great difficulty.
The task of protecting tanks from air attacks is difficult, since it is difficult to place effective weapons and a system for detecting air targets on a tank. The tank commander, who is usually assigned the task of fighting these targets, can only do it in between times, since he has many other duties. This shows the need to create other combat vehicles that can closely and continuously interact with the tank on the battlefield.
The second element The complex should be an infantry fighting vehicle with the same level of armor protection as a tank. The tasks of this vehicle are to combat enemy infantry and its fire weapons, including anti-tank weapons, support the actions of dismounted infantry, repel attacks by low-flying aircraft and helicopters, and, if necessary, combat enemy tanks.
However, the tasks of the BMP cannot be reduced to fire support only, since it must support tanks with the actions of motorized riflemen, who can be disembarked from the BMP. Therefore, the BMP cannot be confused with the fire support vehicle, which will be discussed below.
However, the idea of creating an IFV with a high level of armor is still only making its way. Due to historical inertia and insufficient insight into the essence of the problem, many experts believe it is possible to use a floating, air-transportable, lightly armored infantry fighting vehicle in combination with a tank. It is emphasized that buoyancy and air transportability complement the capabilities of tanks.
This is true when it comes to certain types of combat operations, such as pursuing a retreating enemy. However, in the most difficult combat conditions, when breaking through the enemy's prepared defense, such an IFV cannot help tanks due to its high vulnerability to almost all fire weapons.
The long range of tank guided missiles (TUR) in defense can provide a significant advantage over an advancing enemy, again, if there is visibility. This can be achieved by early deployment of firing positions at dominant heights and the use of an advanced target reconnaissance system operating in the visual, thermal and radar emission ranges.
Given the complexity and high cost of such a system, as well as the relative rarity of long-range visibility, it is useful to consider the advisability of having a guided weapon on each tank. It is also necessary to resolve such problematic issues of ensuring firing from a tank gun in defensive combat conditions as the formation of a dust and smoke cloud, the ejection of soil from the parapet when firing from cover, gas contamination, limited firing time with the engine off, etc.
Thus, the tank’s appearance should feature some new design features, conditioned by the need to more fully utilize its capabilities in defensive combat.
A characteristic feature that distinguishes the tank from other VGM is a significantly higher level of armor protection. Increased tank protection stimulated the rapid growth of specialized anti-tank weapons (ATW) and led to the fact that even general-purpose weapons acquired an anti-tank focus. The problem of ensuring the necessary level of tank protection has become more acute in recent years due to the continuous increase in the range, quantity and effectiveness of ATWs that affect the least resistant elements of the structure - the roof and bottom.
The reliance on lightly armored IFVs leads to the tanks being deprived of infantry support and, left alone, unable to perform a combat mission. The solution is to create two types of IFVs: with an increased level of protection based on a tank for joint operations with it as part of the BMPK complex and a floating air-transportable IFV for a group of airlift vehicles or a mobile echelon.
The third element The complex should be a direct fire support vehicle. In essence, it is a mobile artillery front line, capable of operating under enemy fire. Its task is to detect distant fire weapons and destroy them with direct fire. Such a machine must have significantly more ammunition than a tank and more powerful shells.
The introduction of a combat vehicle of direct fire support into the units will not only increase combat capabilities, but also reduce the number of artillery firing from closed positions. It should be emphasized that we are not talking about a lightly armored VGM, but about a vehicle with the protection of a main tank of the SPG type from the Great Patriotic War, but at a new technical level.
Model of a combat artillery vehicle based on the Armata platform
Fourth element complex: the air defense combat vehicle must provide reliable cover for the combat formations of the complex from enemy air attacks, day and night, on the move and in place. These combat vehicles must fight enemy aircraft and helicopters at ranges of up to 8–10 km. Since tanks and infantry fighting vehicles are capable of fighting enemy aircraft and helicopters at short ranges under favorable conditions, using their guided weapons, small-caliber guns, and anti-aircraft machine guns, but have very limited capabilities for detecting air targets, this vehicle must provide target designations to tanks and infantry fighting vehicles for group fire at these targets.
It is necessary to study the possibility of detecting, with the help of such machines, carriers of high-precision weapons combat elements at the moment of their disclosure or separation and impact on them with the purpose of sharply reducing their effectiveness. An additional task of the air defense machine may be to fight, under certain conditions, enemy tanks and infantry fighting vehicles.
The fifth element The complex may be equipped with a target reconnaissance and combat control vehicle. Modern means of reconnaissance of ground and air targets must provide target search, coordinate calculation, target distribution calculation and transmission of commands to other machines of the complex. It must be possible to receive information about the tactical situation (with its visual display) from higher-level control facilities, as well as from reconnaissance facilities of the corresponding levels.
The vehicles deployed in the second echelon (3–15 km from the front line), but occasionally moving to the front line, have a significant impact on the conduct of combat operations by the BMPK complex in terms of their support. These are vehicles of the engineering and chemical troops, command and control and communications equipment of the regimental, divisional and higher levels, means of rear, technical, medical and other support.
Final World
The creation of a complex of combat vehicles, consisting of a tank and an infantry fighting vehicle developed on its basis, a direct fire support vehicle, an air defense vehicle, as well as a target reconnaissance and battle management vehicle, should increase the combat effectiveness of the Ground Forces.
Source:
Safonov B. S. Complex of combat vehicles of the forward edge / B. S. Safonov // Bulletin of armored equipment. - 1991. - No. 7.
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