The Soviet Army introduced the BMP-1, an infantry fighting vehicle, in 1966. It provided mechanized infantry squads the firepower to take on tanks and entrenched ground troops. That platform has been improved, but has the new version been successful?
It can be joked that paratroopers are at least a bit crazy as they jump out of a perfect good aircraft. Still, the Soviet Union took the concept even further by developing airdropped armored vehicles. Instead of parachuting individually or having the cars arrive in gliders, the crew stayed in the vehicles when they were dropped out of a cargo plane!
The concept addressed that paratroopers often had to fight armor with little more than rifles and machine guns, while their mobility was limited. Theoretically, the vehicle would safely descend to the ground and roll quickly into action.
After landing, the crew would remove the parachute, check for damage, and mount up. On paper, this sounds quite effective.
The History of the BMD-4M
During the Cold War, the Kremlin took the concept of mobility in offensive operations seriously enough that in 1966, the Soviet Army introduced the BMP-1, an infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) that provided mechanized infantry squads with the firepower to take on tanks and entrenched ground troops.
The 14.6-ton BMP-1 packed a machine gun, an anti-tank missile launcher for long-range sniping tanks, and a seventy-three-millimeter low-pressure cannon. It also offered amphibious capabilities to cross rivers and lakes.
Shortly after, Soviet designers placed the same formidable armament package onto the much smaller, lighter aluminum-hulled BMD-1 (Boyevaya Machine Desanta or Airborne Combat Vehicle). It was an armored personnel carrier (APC) that could be dropped from a large transport aircraft with the crew and even passengers inside.
That platform has been improved, and the latest variation is the Russian-made BMD-4M, which is still built around its ability to be dropped deep into enemy territory. As with other Russian IFVs and APCs, it is outfitted with advanced automated fire controls and a modern navigational system, while it is equipped with a targeting system that can engage enemy vehicles while on the move.
It also features an improved hull, engine, and running gear and is armed with the Kremlin’s advanced Bakhcha-U combat module, which consists of 100mm and 30mm main guns and a coaxial machinegun.
As the BMD-4M is significantly lighter than Russia’s main battle tanks (MBTs), it has proven better at dealing with the seasonal mud plaguing some of the Kremlin’s heavier vehicles.
The BMD-4M’s Use in Ukraine: A Success or Failure?
Russia has employed the BMD-4M in significant numbers in the ongoing fighting in Ukraine. However, the platform wasn’t used in the Kremlin’s initial air assault on the Antonov Airport in the opening stages of its ill-fated “special military operation.”
The question is, why?
The answer may lie in the fact that the Kremlin touts its airborne capabilities but has rarely depended on them. Paratroopers didn’t take part in any significant drops in the Soviet Union’s decade-long war in Afghanistan for many reasons, including its terrain, lack of frontlines, and the fact that a lot of equipment would need to be supplied.
The situation is different in Ukraine, where there is a frontline, but Russia may have had a change of heart following the debacle that became the Battle for the Antonov Airport.
Though the paratroopers did take control of the airport, reinforcements were supposed to be delivered via nearly two dozen Il-76 transport aircraft en route to the airfield. The mission was aborted after it came under fire from Ukrainian artillery. The paratroopers were soon driven out of the base, and the battle ended in Russia’s first major setback of the war.
Would the situation have been different had the BMD-4Ms been airdropped?
It is hard to say, but according to open-source reports, as of the end of February, at least 167 of the lightly armored APCs had been confirmed destroyed.
Russia Seeks to Export the BMD-4M
Despite the platform’s lackluster performance, Russia’s need for more equipment, and its continued reliance on antiquated systems, Rosoboronexport is now actively touting the BMD-4M’s capabilities to attract foreign sales.
“We offer to the partners the BMD-4M airborne combat vehicle, which has been tested in real combat conditions and fully corresponds to existing and prospective challenges of the time. The key advantages are powerful weapons and high mobility,” the Russian military arms exporter said in a statement to TASS.
Rosoboronexport further highlighted that up to three lightly armed APCs can be carried in the belly of an Il-76MD-90A(E) aircraft and then dropped by parachute or returned to base, as the Kremlin was forced to do in February 2022!
The BMD-4M Solves a Problem the Russian Army Never Had
The latest batch of BMD-4Ms was only delivered to Russian forces last year, and while still airdrop capable, a question may be: why?
It is almost impossible to conceive that Russia can launch a major airborne assault, given that Ukrainian forces are armed with F-16 Fighting Falcons and MIM-104 Patriot air-defense missiles.
Dropping the lightly armored APCs behind the frontlines could accomplish very little. Even in the Cold War, it was already likely that the days of major airborne assaults were over.
The final question, then, isn’t why the Kremlin continues to produce a platform whose main feature offers so few benefits, but whether it expects to find foreign buyers.
What countries operate large transport aircraft and need to mount an airborne assault?
Yet, even as Russia struggles with production to meet its domestic demands, it continues to seek foreign buyers to help fill its coffers. Whether any foreign buyers step up to adopt the BMD-4M is anyone’s guess, but perhaps Russia has realized it is making a weapon ill-suited to its needs and is looking to unload it on someone else!
About the Author: Peter Suciu
Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].
Image: Shutterstock/ Free Wind 2014.
