BRDM-1

BRDM-1
BRDM-1 in Polish Army museum in Warsaw.
Type	Amphibious armoured scout car
Place of origin	Soviet Union
Service history
In service	1957–1980s (USSR)
Used by	See Operators
Production history
Designer	V. K. Rubtsov
Designed	late 1954 – 1957
Produced	1957–1966
Number built	10,000
Variants	See Variants
Specifications
Weight	5.63 tonnes
Length	5.7 m (18 ft 8 in)
Width	2.25 m (7 ft 5 in)
Height	2.9 m (9 ft 6 in)
Crew	3–4
Armor	Welded steel 10 mm maximum
Main armament	none (BRDM-1 obr. 1957 and BRDM-1 obr. 1958) 7.62 mm SGMB medium machine gun on the front pintel mount (BRDM-1 obr. 1959 and BRDM-1 obr. 1960) 12.7 mm DShK 1938/46 heavy machine gun or 14.5 mm KPV heavy machine gun (Late BRDM-1)
Secondary armament	none (BRDM-1 obr. 1957, BRDM-1 obr. 1958 and BRDM-1 obr. 1959) 2 × 7.62 mm SGMB medium machine guns on the side pintel mounts (optional) (BRDM-1 obr. 1960) 3 × 7.62 mm SGMB medium machine guns on pintel mounts (two optional) (Late BRDM-1)
Engine	GAZ-40PB 6-cylinder in-line gasoline 90 hp (70 kW) at 3,400 rpm.
Power/weight	16 hp/tonne (12.4 kW/tonne)
Suspension	Leaf springs with hydraulic shock absorbers
Ground clearance	340 mm
Fuel capacity	150 litres
Operational range	Road: 750 km (470 mi) Water: 120 km (75 mi)
Speed	Road: 90 km/h (56 mph) Water: 9 km/h (5.6 mph)

The BRDM-1 (Bronirovannaya Razvedyvatelnaya Dozornaya Mashina, Бронированная Разведывательная Дозорная Машина, literally "Armored reconnaissance/patrol vehicle") was an amphibious armored scout car used by Russia and the former Soviet Union. It was originally known simply as BRDM but when the BRDM-2 entered production and service with Soviet Army in 1962, it received the designation BRDM-1. The BRDM (also known as the BTR-40P) first appeared in 1957, and was in production until 1966. Total production was around 10,000 vehicles, less than 600 remain in the reserves of a number of countries.

During exploitation of the BTR-40 armoured personnel carrier by the Soviet Army it became apparent that the inability to cross water obstacles was a substantial problem on the modern battlefield. As a result, in late 1954 work, led by designer V. K. Rubtsov, began at the A. Dedkov OKB design bureau on a new amphibious version of the vehicle. Intended simply to be an amphibious variant of the BTR-40 wheeled APC, it received the designation BTR-40P.

The design reused many components from the BTR-40, but as work progressed the design concept changed. The vehicle ended up being an amphibious armoured scout car. Consequently, the vehicle was renamed to BRDM which was an acronym for Boyevaya Razvedyvatelnaya Dozornaya Mashina. The first prototype vehicle was completed in February 1956. Detailed trials were conducted in the Black Sea area, and it was accepted in service in 1957 with production beginning that year.

The vehicle's most unusual feature are the four additional chain-driven belly wheels, which are lowered by the driver to allow trench crossing. The vehicle also has a tire pressure regulation system which later became standard in Soviet wheeled military vehicles. The initial version of the vehicle, the BRDM obr. 1957, had an open roof, but the next production model, the BRDM obr. 1958, added a roof with twin hatches over commander's and driver's station and two hatches at the rear.

The vehicle is a conventional 4×4 design, with a welded steel chassis, an engine at the front and crew compartment at the rear. The driver sits on the left, with the commander to his right. The vehicle is not fitted with an NBC system, and has no night-vision equipment by default. The vehicle has four infra-red driving lights and a single white light searchlight is mounted on the drivers side of the vehicle. When in combat BRDM-1's front windscreens are protected by armoured shutters with integral vision blocks. When the shutters are in their open position they protect driver and commander from being blinded by the sunlight and ensure that the windscreens won't be obscured by rain or snow. The GAZ-40PB V-8 gasoline engine is based on a US Dodge truck engine, and is coupled to a manual gearbox with four forward gears and one reverse with a single dry-plate clutch. The four additional belly wheels which can be lowered to improve the vehicles cross-country performance by reducing its ground pressure, and to allow it to cross trenches up to 1.2 meters wide. Tire pressure in the main tires can also be raised and lowered by the driver for better performance.