MICV-65 - Background

Background

World War II opened with the concepts of armored warfare relatively undeveloped. Infantry and armor were generally organized as separate units, which led to problems when the armor would outrace the infantry and then have to stop at various obstacles like rivers or strongpoints. As the war progressed the doctrine of combined arms became better refined, and the need for specialist vehicles to keep the infantry in close contact with the armor became increasingly important. Most of these vehicles were half-tracks, arguably the best known being the German SdKfz 251 and US M3. Other forces adopted expedient measures; the Red Army was famed for having their infantry ride on the top of tanks, an extremely dangerous position, while the Canadians introduced a series of converted tanks known as Kangaroos. The Kangaroo pointed the way forward, offering much better armor than half-tracks and able to keep up with the tanks over rough ground.

In the post-war era most armies started introducing fully tracked vehicles in the dedicated armored personnel carrier role, including the Soviet BTR-50, German Schützenpanzer Lang HS.30, British FV432, and perhaps most notable, the US M113. These vehicles generally suffered in terms of range and speed on hard surfaces, and many forces also adopted wheeled vehicles in addition to, or completely replacing the tracked versions. Examples include the British Saracen and most of the Soviet BTR series, which were far more numerous than the tracked BTR-50. In general, wheeled or tracked, these vehicles offered limited protection and were not expected to join in the actual fighting; they would keep the infantry in close proximity with the armor during maneuvers, and then offload their infantry before retreating to safer areas. In US service they were derided as "battlefield taxis".

During the 1950s this mode of combat was increasingly questioned. On a battlefield that was assumed to be littered with chemical and nuclear poisons the idea of unloading the infantry did not seem like a good idea. Further, while the APC's moved to and from combat the infantry section in the back had nothing to do, a claustrophobic environment where the men could not add to the fight. Military theorists turned to the concept of the infantry fighting vehicle (IFV), similar to the APC but with the expectation that the infantry section would be able to stay in the vehicle and fight effectively, thus improving the vehicles firepower. The Soviets were the first to adapt to this new style of combat, issuing requirements and then introducing the BMP in the late 1960s, followed soon after by the German Marder.