Reports are currently circulating that Moscow may be sending obsolete Soviet-era armored personnel carriers to Ukraine. Ukrainian military observers suspect they could serve as kamikaze weapons.
Russia now apparently relies on aging BTR-50 armored personnel carriers, war blogger Kirill Fedorov’s pro-Russian Telegram channel reported Thursday. However, this is certainly not “the most modern war equipment”, as Russia likes to claim. Because the combat vehicle was developed in 1954 (!) Based on the light amphibious tank T-76.
The Red Army used the BTR-50 to transport up to 20 soldiers and equipment. Both unarmored models and versions with a heavy machine gun exist. Allied states also received the tank, such as the GDR.
Device with peculiarities
A big downside to the vehicle is that you can only get out through a roof hatch – and not through a tailgate like today. In addition, its weak armor did not allow a fight with other combat vehicles. Production finally ceased in the 1970s. By then, more than 6300 units would have been produced. In 2003, the Red Army is said to have had about 1,000 BTR-50s.
Kamikaze vehicles
But why does Moscow need such “oldies”? Experts think it’s possible the tanks could be useful as remote-controlled kamikaze vehicles – for destroying fortified positions. This idea is not new: Islamic State terrorists used this method in Syria as early as 2015, sending BTR-50s loaded with explosives against positions held by government forces during the fighting for the city of Deir ez-Zor.
Source: Krone
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