The BMP M-80A is of Yugoslav origin. The Yugoslav company “Famos” has been developing infantry fighting vehicles since the early 1970s. The first Yugoslav M-80 BMPs were shown in 1975, and a modernized M-80A BMP was displayed at an arms show in Cairo in 1984. It soon went into mass production and became the main combat vehicle of mechanized units.

The fully enclosed body of the M-80A BMP originates from armor plates up to 30 mm thick and provides protection against the fire of large-caliber machine guns. The upper front plate is vertically mounted at a wide angle. The roof of the hull is horizontal across the entire machine. The sides of the crate above the pallet racks have a rational angle of inclination. The vertical aft wall is equipped with two doors opening to the sides.

In the front part of the fuselage of the BMP M-80A, the power compartment is on the right, and the driver’s seat is on the left. Behind it is the machine commander’s workplace, and the middle and rear sections are reserved for the placement of paratroopers. Infantry are placed in the middle of the landing section in two rows, one behind the other. Landing and landing of paratroopers is carried out through two doors in the aft wall of the hull.

Also, on the roof of the landing section there are two oval hatches. Covers are also mounted above the places of the driver mechanic and the commander of the machine. For firing from personal weapons, three battlements are made on each side, which are closed with armored covers, the same battlements are also located in the rear doors.

The main armament of the M-80A BMP is the 20 mm HS-804 automatic cannon from Hispano-Suiza and a paired 7.62 mm MG-53 machine gun. This weapon is installed in a single circular rotation turret. This provides vertical guidance at angles from -5 to +75 °, which allows you to fight not only ground, but also air targets.

The turret and guns are equipped with electric drives, which in case of failure are duplicated by manual mechanisms. To combat armored targets, two 9М14М “Malyutka” PTKR launchers were installed in the tower. For fire control, the vehicle commander uses a combined day and night sighting device, and the gunner has a combined day and night sight.

The power plant of the BMP M-80A is a 10-cylinder FAMOS 10V003 diesel engine that develops a maximum power of 320 hp. (235 kW at 2500 rpm). The manual transmission provides four forward gears and one reverse gear. Torsion suspension is used in the chassis. There are five rubber support rollers and two support rollers on each side. There are telescopic type hydraulic shock absorbers on the suspension units of the first and last support rollers. The guide wheels are located at the front. The upper arm and support rollers of the rails are covered with a steel screen.

When driving on the highway, the car develops a maximum speed of 64 km / h, overcomes a rise of up to 30 degrees on rough terrain, a vertical wall 0.8 meters high and a ditch 2.4 meters wide. The floating movement is carried out due to the rewinding of the caterpillars. Before entering the water, the wave deflector is brought to its working position and the water pumping pumps are started. The maximum speed of the BMP M-80 on water is 8 km/h.

Tactical and technical characteristics of the BMP M-80A:

• Combat mass: 14 tons
• Crew: 3+7 people

Overall dimensions:

• body length, mm – 6420;
• width, mm – 2990;
• Height from PU PTKR, mm – 2670;
• ground clearance, mm – 400;
• reservation, mm – up to 30

armament:

• 20 mm automatic cannon HS-804 Hispano-Suiza (4000 shots);
• 7.62 mm machine gun MG-53 (2000 cartridges);
• PU PTKR 9M14M “Malyutka” (4 PTKR).

Engine:

• FAMOS 10V003. 10-cylinder liquid-cooled diesel
• Power – 320 liters
• Range – 500 km
• Fuel reserve – 510 liters

Overcoming obstacles:

• rise, hail – 30;
• wall height, m ​​– 0.8;
• width of the trench, m – 2.4.