Right side view of UR-67 mine clearance vehicle on display in a museum as seen in 2008.
Source: ShinePhantom -
© CC BY-SA 3.0
The UR-67 is an early Cold war era mine clearance vehicle of Soviet origin. The UR-67 was first introduced in 1968 to provide a rapid mine field clearance capability in support of motor rifle and tank divisions of the Soviet army. These vehicles were built using existing chassis of BTR-50PK armored personnel carrier. The low rate production of the UR-67 mostly took place after production of the BTR-50 series had already stopped.
The UR-67 is based on the tracked chassis of the BTR-50PK armored personnel carrier. A trainable two rail launcher for mine clearance line charges is located on the engine deck. The rockets of the line charge are loaded in the launcher, while the attached line charges are located in what used to be the crew compartment. The explosion of the line charge should cause anti-tank mines to explode, or throw them out of the cleared path.
The UR-67 retains the 7.62mm SGMB or PKB machine gun of the BTR-50PK for self-defense purposes. A trainable two rail launcher for mine clearance line charges is fitted. These are launches at ranges of 200 to 350 meters for the UZ-67, or up to 500 m for the later UZP-72 and UZP-77. These line charges have a length of 83 or 93 meters and are laced with 600 to 700 kg of explosive. These clear a path of 75 to 90 meters long and 6 meters wide. Reloading both charges takes 30 to 40 minutes.
Steel armor protects the crew of the UR-67 from small arms fire and shells splinters. Being based on a later iteration of the BTR-50PK chassis the NBC filters are likely present. Although intended to operated near minefields there is no additional protection against mines.
The BTR-50 tracked chassis provides the UR-67 with good all terrain performance. Ground pressure is low, making it effective in swampy or snow covered terrain. The UR-67 retains the amphibious capability of the BTR-50 chassis. A 240 hp provides propulsion. Maximum speed is rather low at about 40 km/h.
The UR-67 was adopted by Soviet forces for mine clearing for mechanized forces. It was also exported to a small number of Soviet allies and saw combat in the Middle East. Low rate production ran into 1978, at which point it was replaced in production by the UR-77 Meteorit, a newer system based on the hull of the 2S1 Gvozdika. Soviet doctrine issued the UR-67 in two vehicles per motorized rifle or tank division or six vehicles per engineer obstacle clearance battalion.
The UR-67 was succeeded by the UR-77, an updated system based on the chassis of the 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer.
© WeaponSystems.net | All rights reserved.