Currently, in addition to the UK army, Warrior is also employed in the Kuwaiti army. Its role is to provide fire support for infantry, while providing armor protection.
Since World War II, the development of motor vehicles and the military doctrine of armored vehicles led to the introduction of armored personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles. They are likened to the guardians of infantry on the battlefield.
Until now, infantry fighting vehicles are an indispensable part of the equipment of the ground forces. For the British military, Warrior is an adaptable and reliable platform that has since proven successful in military actions during the 1991 Gulf War, throughout the Bosnia and Kosovo conflict and, most recently, in the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Needless to say, the Warrior has distinguished itself in many-an-action across mountainous, urban and desert terrains and has earned her stay in the ranks of the British Army.
Currently, in addition to the UK army, Warrior is also employed in the Kuwaiti army. Its role is to provide fire support for infantry, while providing armor protection. It was originally known as the MCV-80, developed in the 1980s, to replace the FV430 series armored vehicle. In total, more than 1,000 units were produced for the British and Kuwaiti militaries.
Warrior weighs about 25.4 tons, length is 6.3 m, width is 3.03 m, and height is 2.8 m. The crew of 3 includes: commander, gunner, and driver, plus 7-10 armed soldiers in the passenger compartment. Passengers enter and leave the vehicle via rear doors. Once they are inside there are sufficient combat supplies carried to maintain them in action for at least 48 hours. There are no firing ports in the hull in order to improve armor protection.
The Base model, FV510, armed with a non-stabilized 30 mm Rarden cannon and coaxial 7.62 mm machine gun in a two-man turret. The main gun fires armor-piercing and HE-FRAG rounds. It is capable of single fire or automatic firing. Maximum rate of fire is 80 rounds per minute. This cannon has a dual-fed system and the gunner can instantly swap types of ammunition. The Rarden cannon is regarded as a very accurate weapon. It can destroy enemy armored personnel carriers and other lightly armored vehicles at ranges of up to 1,500 m. It can also engage low-flying helicopters. However due to the lack of stabilization this gun can not fire accurately while the vehicle is on the move.
Warrior is powered by a Perkins V-8 Condor Diesel engine, with 550 hp, combined with a 4-speed Allison automatic transmission. The vehicle can reach a maximum speed on the road of 75 km/h, a range of 660 km.
The Kuwaiti Warriors differed slightly from the British version in that they were modified for operations in desert environments as well as for Kuwaiti Army requirements. As such, these were known as “Desert Warriors” and deliveries of the type began in 1994. Desert Warriors were fitted with an American-based turret mounting a stabilized 25mm M242 Bushmaster chain gun as well as dual Hughes TOW anti-tank missile launchers mounted to either turret side.
