FV 432

FV432
FV432 at the 2012 War and Peace Show
Type	Armoured personnel carrier
Place of origin	United Kingdom
Service history
In service	1963-present
Production history
Manufacturer	GKN Sankey
Specifications
Weight	15 tons (15.3 t)
Length	5.25 m
Width	2.8 m
Height	2.28 m
Crew	2 + 10 troops
Armour	12.7 mm max
Main armament	7.62 mm L7 GPMG
Secondary armament	smoke dischargers
Engine	Rolls-Royce K60 multi-fuel 240 hp
Power/weight	15.7 hp/tonne
Suspension	torsion-bar, 5 road wheels
Operational range	580 km
Speed	32 mph (52 km/h)

The FV432 is the armoured personnel carrier variant of the British Army's FV430 series of armoured fighting vehicles. Since its introduction in the 1960s, it has been the most common variant, being used for transporting infantry on the battlefield. In the 1980s, almost 2,500 vehicles were in use, with around 1,500 now remaining in operation - mostly in supporting arms rather than front-line infantry service.

Although the FV432 Series was to have been phased out of service in favour of newer vehicles, such as the Warrior and the CVR(T) series, 500 have been upgraded to extend their service into the next decade.

In light of the army's need for additional armoured vehicles in the Afghan and Iraqi theatres, the Ministry of Defence announced in August 2006 that an extra 70 vehicles would be upgraded by BAE Systems in addition to the 54 already ordered as part of their force protection initiative. The improvements take 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. In addition, plates lined with Kevlar have been added to the bottom hull. This is intended to provide better protection against improvised explosive devices. 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.

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. 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.