Outlining at the beginning of the 1960s, the establishment for the Bundeswehr, new and effective means of intelligence – combat reconnaissance vehicles (BRM), German military command felt that this armored car not only need to have good permeability and high movement speed, but to have maximum maneuverability, the ability to quickly get out of enemy fire. Therefore, military experts and suggested to be based on the already tested and sufficiently established pattern with dual controls on the basis of four-axle chassis with all-wheel drive.
The order for production was made by the company Daimler-Benz (“Daimler-Benz”) and a consortium of companies led by the firms Krupp (“Krupp”) and Henschel (“Henschel”). In 1968, both sides put on one prototype to the test. At first they took place in the army centre in Trier-grünberg, then moved to cold Norway, and then – in the mountains and heat of Italy, and ended only three years later, in 1972, During this time, each of them was almost 200 thousand km.
Testing revealed the advantage of the example of Daimler-Benz, which was transferred on completion and mass production reconnaissance vehicle, dubbed Spahpanzer Luchs (“Luka”) and the index of the SpPz. In December 1973, the war Department issued a production order for parts of the Bundeswehr series of 408 cars. The first of these was issued in may 1975 and in September turned over to the army BRM “Lux” is not the usual layout diagram in which the engine is mounted in the Central part of the machine, while the office, of course, is the front: here is the core mechanic-the driver – front. It has three surveillance device, one of them may be in night time is replaced by an infrared night vision device (NVD). This driver takes its place in the input hatch, the cover is not tilted, and rotated-opens to the right. Second – the rear is aft. By the nature of the core of his expertise – he is a radio operator and involved in the management of an armored car only in extreme circumstances. Although forward and backward it can reach the speed of 90 km/h. the order about the change of direction given by the commander.
Immediately behind the hatch is a fighting compartment with a double tower TS-7 manufacturing company Rheinmetall AG (“Rheinmetall”), It is located slightly ahead of center of the body: it is done to reduce “dead” space in front of the car. On the left it is commander, right gunner. Tower – welded, cone, rotary. To review the area with hatches closed their lids installed prismatic observation devices: seven – the commander and five from the gunner. This number allows both conduct all-round monitoring.
BRM “Luka” of the Bundeswehr. Armed with 20-mm cannon and 7.62-mm machine gun. A 300-horsepower engine allows a 20-ton machine to reach the speed of 90 km/h
Manhole covers both crew members are knocked back.
In the center of the turret is fitted with 20-mm automatic cannon MK 20 Rh202 automatic feeder. It also has electro-hydraulic mechanisms for horizontal and vertical aiming. The gun is located between the seats of the carriage, it is covered in a special airtight compartment.
Here is the ammo in two boxes with 375-th shells; in addition, a special container, which when shooting going liners. For removal of powder gases in the tower there are installed ventilation devices.
The rate of fire of the gun – 1000 RDS./minutes of the Ammunition rounds 20×139 mm consists of high-explosive DМ81, armor-piercing-tracer DМ43А1. armor-piercing DМ63. Effective range of fire of 600 – 800 m. Range of shooting horizontally and 360° vertically from -17° to +80° , allowing to conduct aimed fire on air targets flying at speeds of 100 -200 m/s For reducing recoil the gun barrel has a muzzle brake.
In case of sight shooting the crew uses a rangefinder and a periscope devices PERI-Z-11A-1. When you use an infrared scope at night, the illumination is infrared floodlight, which is on the left side of the tower.
A 7.62 mm MG3 machine gun mounted on the turret in front of the commander’s hatch has the firing angles vertical from -15° to +55° which allows you to fire as being close to manpower and low-flying air targets. Machine gun ammo – 1000 rounds.
BRM SpPz. Luchs
BRM “Lux”:
1 – 20-mm gun MK-20,2 – IR illuminator backlight; 3 – 7.62 mm machine gun МG3; 4 – the commander’s sight; 5 – turret machine gun; 6 – block rocket-propelled grenades; 7 – tower armored car t s-7; 8 – antenna; 9 – cap radio operator hatch; 10-louver cooling system; 11 – the screw propeller; 12 – side escape hatch
The left and right side of the turret there are four grenade smoke-screens.
Frontal turret armor provides protection in it the commander and gunner from 20-mm artillery shells, all-welded machine body from small arms fire and shell splinters.
In the Central part of the body, under the tower, is located in the engine compartment. It is a single power block integrating the motor and gear box with torque Converter.
Engine Daimler Benz multi-fuel 10-cylinder OM 403 VA liquid-cooled V-row. In the first case, it develops the capacity of 360 HP at 2500 rpm, the second 390 HP On it the air filter is installed with a cyclone dust collector. Transmission – automatic ZF 4 PW 96 H1. To start the engine in cold periods the heater is installed. The Department has automatic sprinkler system.
Designers BRM perfectly insulated compartment gas tight bulkheads, the engine not only has a silencer, but the silencer of the air intake. This allowed so to reduce the noise level that the car is not audible even at a distance of 50 m. in addition, the exhaust pipe brought out in the aft compartment, where he worked a powerful fan, mixing exhaust gases with the incoming outside air, which greatly reduces their temperature, making the armored car “invisible” to thermal devices of the enemy.
BRM at an army training ground
Special the undercarriage of the vehicle wheel formula 8×8 allows you to make a turn only with a radius of 5.73 m. To do this, the front and rear pairs of wheels are deployed in different directions
Another feature of the reconnaissance vehicle “Luks” – it is amphibious. This significantly affected the design of its chassis. For example, its transfer case, which is passed to the power point from the main transmission has a drive shaft inside the housing, and transfer case shafts all four axles are already under the floor outside. Transfer box itself is sealed and retained on the sealing gaskets. Axis wheels have dual hydraulic shock absorbers and mounted on spiral springs. Front and rear pairs of them are provided with balance weights, leveling the loads on the wheels.
To improve maneuverability of the machine designers made it possible to make at low speeds (50 km/h) turns with the participation of all four axes; for example, turning left in the same direction takes place in their front pair, and rear – on the contrary, in reverse, to the left. At high speed, the machine disables two of the rear axle, and rotation is performed only using the two front. In the first case, the minimum turning radius of 5.75 m, and the second increases to 9.5 m.
The wheels of the armored car is equipped with antibio-kirovckoe brake system ABS.
For the movement afloat in an armored car, there are two four-bladed propeller located at the aft compartments. Both work independent from the propeller drive. Screws – swivel on the return stroke they are turned to 180°. The maximum speed on the water -10 km/h To pump the ingress of water in the hull the bilge pump capacity 460 l/min.
BRM is equipped with on-Board navigation equipment FNA-4-15. When the machine data from giocoroulette and the sensor associated with its transmission are processed by a computer. The location is constantly indicated on the display unit of the course and coordinates (liquid crystal). System accuracy – 1% of distance traveled with correction every 15 min.
Reconnaissance vehicle “Luks” was adopted by the Bundeswehr in 1976 and was in the platoon, the reconnaissance battalions of the army units. In each platoon, numbering 50 people, there were six sections with two cars each.
In all there were 450 BRM. According the end of 2011 in troops consisted of 132 units.
In the Bundeswehr “Luks” decided to replace the more promising reconnaissance Fennek armored car wheel formula 4×4 with a 240 HP engine, armed with 12.7-mm machine gun and 40mm grenade launcher.
V. TALANOV
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In the encyclopedic reference book “Tanks” Hagle, published in 1935, stated that “with the installation of the dual control of the military value of the vehicles… can be enhanced as they are able to reverse it, and no u-turns”. In the early years of construction of armored vehicles were produced armored cars with two drivers occupying the front and rear control stations. An example is the armored AMD White (“white”), adopted at the armament of the French army in August, 1917, or Landsverk-185 (“the land sverk-185”), produced in Sweden in 1933 and Later, in 1951, again, the French have created even armor tank destroyer Panhard EBR75 (Panar) with 75-mm cannon, which also had dual controls.