History
The FV432 was designed to be the armoured personnel carrier in the FV430 series. Production started in 1962 by GKN Sankey and ended in 1971 giving approximately three thousand vehicles.
The FV432 is an all-steel construction. The FV432 chassis is a conventional tracked design with the engine at the front and the driving position to the right. Directly behind the driver position is the vehicle commander's hatch. There is a large split-hatch round opening in the passenger compartment roof and a side-hinged door in the rear for loading and unloading. As in many designs of its era there are no firing ports for the troops carried - British Army doctrine has always been to dismount from vehicles to fight, unlike Russian infantry fighting vehicles that largely incorporate ports. The passenger compartment has five seats either side - these fold up to provide a flat cargo space.
An NBC system on the right side of the hull gives fresh air for the troops. Wading screens and a trim vane were fitted as standard and an extension went on the exhaust pipe. The vehicle has a water speed of about 6 km/h when converted for swimming and was propelled by its tracks. Most of these vehicles have had their amphibious capability removed.
FV432s in service with infantry regiments are equipped with a pintle-mounted L7 GPMG (if not fitted with the Peak Engineering turret). Vehicles with the Royal Artillery, Royal Engineers and Royal Signals were originally fitted with the L4A4 variant of the Bren light machine gun, but they now use the GPMG. When equipped with the GPMG, the vehicle carries 1,600 rounds of belted 7.62mm ammunition; when carrying the Bren LMG, the vehicle carried 1,400 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition (50 magazines, each holding 28 rounds). There are two three-barrel smoke dischargers at the front.
A number of surplus vehicles were sold to the Indian Army after being withdrawn from British service. Seventeen others have since been converted by Armourgeddon in Leicestershire for use in Tank Paintball.
Many FV432s are privately owned in the UK due to the relatively low price they are available for.
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