MCV-80 Warrior

The MCV-80 Warrior infantry fighting vehicle was developed to replace the FV 430 series of armored fighting vehicles. It's production ended in 1995. Currently it is in service with the British Army (over 700 vehicles) and Kuwait (over 200). The MCV-80 has been successfully employed in military conflicts, including the Gulf war, Balkan region and Iraq, where it proved to be a highly effective IFV. Very few armored vehicles can match it's reliability and performance. Warrior should remain in active service until 2025.

It's main armament is a turret mounted 30-mm Rarden cannon. It has an effective range of fire in 1 500 meters and can destroy lightly-armored vehicles and other targets. It also carries two 7.62-mm machine guns and eight 94-mm light anti-armor weapons (LAW).

This infantry fighting vehicle is well protected against small arms, heavy machine guns and artillery shells. Furthermore it proved to be highly effective against mines. It can also be fitted with an add-on armor plates for improved protection. During it's service history there used to be an accidents, when Warriors ran over an anti-tank mines without being seriously damaged.

The MCV-80 Warrior carries a crew of three and seven infantry troops.

This infantry fighting vehicle comes with a Perkins / Rolls-Royce V8 diesel engine, delivering 550 horsepower. It's performance and speed allows it to keep up with the Challenger 2 main battle tanks on the cross-country.

There are numerous special purpose vehicles, based on the MCV-80. These vehicles include artillery observation post vehicle (OPV), command post vehicle (CPV), Royal Mechanical and Electrical Engineers vehicle (REME), recovery and repair vehicle. Moreover, all these models are equipped with a 7.62mm machine gun for anti-helicopter capability.

All vehicles come with an NBC protection system and night vision equipment as standard.

Despite it's success Warrior requires upgrades. For this reason it is scheduled to undergo a Mid-Life Improvement Program from 2007 up to 2012. During this program, the vehicle should be provided with a new power pack, modern medium-caliber cannon, and a digital fire control system. These improvements will ensure a lead-time for the introduction of futuristically designed and developed vehicles that will replace the Warrior as well as the Challenger 2.