M2 Bradley

Overview:

The M2 Bradley IFV (Infantry Fighting Vehicle) and M3 Bradley CFV (Cavalry Fighting Vehicle) are American infantry fighting vehicles manufactured by BAE Systems Land and Armaments, (formerly United Defense). As with other infantry fighting vehicles, the Bradley is designed to transport infantry while offering at least some armored protection and while providing covering fire to dismounted troops and suppressing enemy tanks and armored vehicles. The M2 holds a crew of three: a commander, a gunner and a driver; as well as six fully equipped soldiers. The M3 mainly conducts scout missions and carries two scouts in addition to the regular crew of three. The Bradley IFV was designed largely in response to the Soviet BMP family of infantry fighting vehicles, and to serve as both an APC, and a tank-killer. One specific design requirement was that it should be as fast as the new M1 Abrams main battle tank so that they could maintain formations while moving, something which the older M113 Armored Personnel Carrier could not do, as it had been designed to complement the older M60 Patton. The 25 mm cannon fires up to 200 rounds per minute and is accurate up to 2500 m depending on the ammunition used (HE or APDS-T). The twin TOW2B missiles are capable of destroying most hostile tanks at a maximum range of 3750 m. A large drawback of the TOW is that it can only be fired while the vehicle is stationary. The Bradley also carries an M240C coaxial 7.62 mm medium machine gun, located to the right of the 25 mm chain gun. It is highly capable in cross-country open terrain, in accordance with one of the main design objectives of keeping pace with the M1 Abrams main battle tank. Whereas the M113 would float without much preparation, the Bradley was initially designed to float by deploying a flotation curtain around the vehicle. This caused some drownings due to failures during its first trials. Armor upgrades negate this capability. The vehicle hull is of aluminum construction, one of the points used by critics to deride the vehicle. Aluminum armor tends to vaporize in the face of HEAT warheads; this and the storage of large quantities of ammunition in the vehicle initially raised questions about its combat survivability. Spaced laminate belts and high hardness steel skirts have been added to later versions to improve armor protection, although this increases overall weight to 33 tons. Actual combat operations, however, have not shown the Bradley to be overtly deficient as losses have been few. In friendly fire incidents in Desert Storm, many crew members survived hits that resulted in total losses for lighter USMC LAV 25 vehicles. USAF LTC James Burton conducted highly publicized live fire tests where it was found that the center of the vehicle was most likely to be hit. His efforts to redesign the Bradley were not fully implemented; Bradleys still store their fuel dangerously in the vehicle center, whereas M113A3s have their fuel stored on the left and right rear to prevent fires/explosions inside the troop compartment. Despite this perceived vulnerability, the Bradley Fighting Vehicle has proven to be highly survivable when hit by enemy fire. The Bradley series has been widely modified. Its chassis is the basis for the M270 Multiple Launch Rocket System, the M4 C2V battlefield command post, and the M6 Bradley Linebacker air defense vehicle. Armed with a quad Stinger surface to air missile launcher (instead of the TOW anti-tank missiles) and maintaining the 25 mm autocannon, the M6 Bradley Linebacker Air Defense Vehicle (no longer in service) possessed a unique role in the U.S. Army, providing highly mobile air defense at the front line. Its suspension system was also been used on upgraded versions of the US Marines' Amphibious Assault Vehicle. The total cost of the program is $5,664,100,000, and the average unit costs $3,166,000. The Bradley is equipped with the M242 25 mm chain gun as its main weapon. The M242 has a single barrel with an integrated dual-feed mechanism and remote feed selection. The gun contains ammunition in two ready boxes of 70 rounds and 230 rounds each for a total of 300 ready rounds and carries 600 rounds in storage (in the M2 Infantry Fighting Vehicle variant) or 1200 stowed rounds (in the M3 Cavalry Fighting Vehicle variant). The two ready boxes allow selectable mix of rounds such as the M791 APDS-T (Armor-Piercing Discarding Sabot (with) Tracer), and M792 HEI-T (High Explosive Incendiary (with) Tracer) rounds. The tungsten APDS-T rounds proved highly effective in Desert Storm being capable of knocking out many Iraqi vehicles including several kills on T-55 tanks. There have even been reports of kills against Iraqi T-72 tanks (at close range). Subsequent ammunition developments resulted in the M919 APFSDS-T (Armor-Piercing Fin Stabilized Discarding Sabot with Tracer) round, which contains a finned depleted uranium penetrator similar in concept to armor piercing munitions used in modern tanks. The M919 was used in combat during the 2003 invasion phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). It is also armed with a M240C machine gun mounted coaxially to the M242, with 2,200 rounds of 7.62 mm ammunition. For engaging heavier targets (such as when acting in an anti-tank fashion), the Bradley has a TOW missile system onboard, which was changed to fire TOW II missiles, onwards from the M2A1 model. M2 infantry Bradleys also have turreted firing ports for a number of M231 Firing Port Weapons or FPWs, providing a button-up firing position to replace the top-side gunners on the old ACAV, though the M231 is rarely employed. Initial variants carried six total, but the side ports were plated over with new armor used on the A2 and A3 variants, leaving only the two rear-facing mounts in the loading ramp. No versions of the M3 CFV carry firing port weapons, though early versions had all six firing port mounts fitted and plated over, while newer versions retain the two ramp mounted firing ports (again, plated over). All versions are also equipped with two four-barreled smoke grenade launchers on the front of the turret for creating defensive smoke screens, and can also be loaded with chaff and flares.

Specifications:

Type

• Infantry fighting vehicle/Armored Personnel Carrier.

Place of Origin

• United States.

In Service

• 1981-present.

Used By

• United States Army.
• Saudi Arabian Army.

Weight

• 30.4 short tons.

Length

• 6.55 m.

Width

• 3.6 m.

Height

• 2.98 m.

Crew

• 3 + 6 (7 in M2A2 ODS/M2A3).

Armor

• Spaced laminate armor.
• Front Armor protects against 25 mm APDS from classified distance.
• Hull base is Aluminum 7017.

Primary Weapons

• 25 mm M242 Chain Gun.
• 900 rounds.
• TOW Anti-Tank Missile.
• 7 TOW Missiles.

Secondary Weapons

• 7.62 mm M240C machine gun.
• 2,200 rounds.

Engine

• Diesel.
• 600 hp (447 kW).

Power/Weight

• 19.74 hp/tonne.

Suspension

• Torsion bar.

Operational Range

• 483 km or 300 mi.

Speed

• 66 km/h or 41mph.