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OT-90

The OT-90 [OT standing for "Obreney Transporter" - literally Armoured Transporter] is an amphibious armored tracked vehicle, based on the BMP-1. Pursuant to the Conventional Forces in Europe [CFE] treaty, Czechoslovakia was obliged to reduce its number of heavy armed carriers. Due to a 73-mm gun, the BMP was considered not as APC's, but as IFV's (the criterium for that was a gun over 20mm caliber and ATGM launchers) and as such, they didn't fit the limits imposed by the treaties. To avoid disposing quite large numbers of BMP vehicles, the turret and the weapons system were modified and thus the tank was could classified as light armored vehicle.

The primary difference between an IFV (Infantry Fighting Vehicle) is that the troops carried by the vehicle can fight from within the vehicle, without the need to dismount. With an APC the troop need to exit the vehicle to engage the enemy, rendering them vulnerable to the hazards of battle - hence the nickname "battle taxis". If the APC is engaged by small arms fire - or worse - the troops tend not to dismount and are thus rendered ineffective. The IFV marked a revolution in AFV (Armoured Fighting Vehicle) design when it appeared in the middle of the 1960s.

The country decided to attach OT-64 turrets (considered light armament as there is no gun), whereof it had loads on stock, to its numerous BMP-1 tracked personnel carriers. The original 73-mm gun with a rotating turret was substituted by a turret that is identical to the OT-64 SKOT. Thus, the OT-90, called also “Havel's Tigers”, named after the famous president, were born.

In order to keep within the treaty terms, it had to be done quickly, in much less time than such an undertaking would normally take. In 1990 and 1991, 620 BMP's were converted this way. Some considered the result a disaster. The obvious problem was the firepower reduction. Furthermore, the "new" turrets were manually operated, which was difficult to do in high speeds. Due to time constraints and the fact a lot were done in the field, the quality of these conversions was very low: for example, the new turret rings were not made properly, and the whole turret tended to get stuck.

Having no gun and much lighter turret made the vehicles even stronger in heavy terrain. Moreover, the turret being broader, the crew feels much less claustrophobic in the back. The 3-member crew - driver, commander, gunner is carried with 6 landing crew members. Driving with the lids closed is simple as well with excellent visibility (for armor) looking through the periscopes. The commander in the second seat and the gunner have pretty good views as well since they can swivel their sights and vision blocks. The riders in the rear compartments (left and right can't mix in the BMP) don't have as good a view but each position has a periscope and a gunport with a vision block, at least on the BMP-1 and OT-90.

The advantages of the OT over the BMP are additional shock absorbers on the second set of road wheels (does make a difference off-road) and the smaller turret cuts the weight a bit whilst the lack of autoloader means crew can easily enter the turret from the left hand rear door. Downside is there is no turret hatch so the gunner has to exit via the troop compartment. The turret is not powered but the gearing is light enough to operate easily. It's quite spacious in there without the weaponry installed, the main gun does take up a lot of room. The KVPT is upwards of 6' long and nearly half of that is inside the turret. The "new" turret was too cramped, it was extremely difficult to load the gun with ammo, the turret also had no ventilation (to remove the fumes caused by firing the weaponry) and the vehicle in general was not lit properly inside.

Due to the alterations which affected the transfer of the center of gravity, the OT-90 control is worse than the original BVP-1. One issue is the incredible complicated routing of plumbing. Air, fuel, and water is pumped all through the vehicle. A couple years ago all the units on the market disappeared as they were bought for Afghan and Iraqi armies. However this should mean parts for years to come. At least 90% of routine maintenance can done with just the front deck lifted - this is hinged ahead of the swim vane and has a sprung prop to keep it open. This gives access to almost the entire engine/drive train and controls , brakes, and rear of the I/P for electrical's etc.

Starting from 1992, several modernizations were made (OT-90M1, M2, M3), that removed the worst problems. Slovakia (after the split) went its own way too and the Slovak OT-90M has a different turret altogether. Various versions existed (including an armored ambulance, armored command post or an artillery spotting vehicle). In 2010, 15 OT-90's were sold to Yemen.