Sri Lanka Armoured Corps - Equipment

Equipment

At its inception the 1st Recce Squadron was equipped with British Ferret Mk I Scout Cars along with BSA M20 with side cars that were armed with LMGs. By the end of the 1950s BSA M21 motorcycles, Ferret Mk II Scout Cars and Daimler Armoured Cars where added to the Ceylon Armoured Corps.

Following the 1971 Insurrection, British Alvis Saladin armoured cars and Soviet BTR-152 armored personnel carriers (APC) were added. With the start of the norther insurrection in 1980s, British Alvis Saracen APCs and Alvis Stalwarts amphibious vehicles were added.

As the norther insurrection blew out into a full scale civil war the Sri Lankan Army turned towards new sources of heavier weaponry such as the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, China and the Czech Republic.

In 1991, Sri Lanka Armoured Corps received Chinese T-80 light tanks, Type 85 APCs, command vehicles and Type 84 armoured recovery vehicles. That year the SLAC introduced tanks for the first time in Sri Lankan Military history, deploying T-55 A medium tanks and T 55 ARVs brought down from the Czech Republic. In 1992, SLAC deployed Chinese Type 86 infantry fighting vehicles (IFV).

In 1994, Russian BMP-1 IFVs, followed by Chinese Type 63 II APCs and Czech T 54 AVLB bridge-layers were added in 1995. In 1998, BTR-80 APCs and BTR-80 A IFVs were added to the 'A' vehicle fleet.

In 2000, Russian T-55 AM II MBTs, BMP-2, BMP-3 IFVs were added followed by the BMP-2 command vehicles in 2002. In 2009 Chinese WZ551 APCs were added.

The APCs enabled the Armoured Corps to have their own assault troopers to provide close combat support.

Main battle tanks

  • T-55 and T-55AM2
  • Type 69

Light tanks

  • T-80 light tank

Armoured recovery vehicles

  • VT-55 Armoured recovery vehicle

Infantry fighting vehicles

  • BMP-3 Infantry fighting vehicle
  • BMP-2 Infantry fighting vehicle
  • BMP-1 Infantry fighting vehicle
  • Type 86 (WZ501) Infantry fighting vehicles

Armoured cars

  • Alvis Saladin (retired)
  • Daimler Armoured Cars (retired)
  • Ferret armoured cars (retired)

Armoured personnel carriers

  • WZ551 Armoured personnel carrier
  • TYPE 63 (YW531) Armoured personnel carriers
  • BTR-80 Armoured personnel carrier
  • BTR-152 Armoured personnel carrier (retired)
  • Alvis Saracen (retired)

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