The
BMP-1 is a
Soviet amphibious tracked
infantry fighting vehicle. BMP stands for
Boyevaya Mashina Pekhoty 1 (
Russian: Боевая Машина Пехоты 1; БМП-1), meaning "infantry fighting vehicle".
[11] The BMP-1 was the first mass-produced infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) of USSR.
[8][12] It was called the M-1967, BMP and BMP-76PB by
NATO before its correct designation was known.
[13][14]
The Soviet military leadership saw any future wars as being conducted with nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and a new design combining the properties of an
armored personnel carrier (APC) and a
light tank like the BMP would allow infantry to operate from the relative safety of its armoured, radiation-shielded interior in contaminated areas and to fight alongside it in uncontaminated areas. It would increase infantry squad mobility, provide fire support to them, and also be able to fight alongside
main battle tanks.
[15]
The BMP-1 was first tested in combat in the 1973
Yom Kippur War, where it was used by Egyptian and Syrian forces. Based on lessons learned from this conflict, and early experiences in the
Soviet War in Afghanistan, a version with improved fighting qualities was developed, called the
BMP-2. It was accepted into service in August 1980.
In 1987, the
BMP-3, a radically redesigned vehicle with a completely new weapon system, entered service in limited numbers with the Soviet Army.