Iveco LMV — a multi-purpose armored vehicle with a 4×4 wheel arrangement, created by the Italian company Iveco Defense Vehicles in 2001 to solve tactical problems. Has several versions and generations. Belgium said it would transfer 300 such armored vehicles to Ukraine.
Facts ICTV, together with military expert Alexey Getman, looked into the technical characteristics of the Iveco LMV, its features, and how it can help the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the battlefield.
Technical characteristics of Iveco LMV:
- weighs from 6.5 to 7.5 tons, depending on the version;
- can tow a load of up to 4.2 tons;
- speeds up to 130 km/h;
- power reserve — 600 km;
- engine power — from 180 to 220 cc cm;
- is equipped with a 12.7mm remote controlled M2 Browning heavy machine gun located on the roof.
- crew depending on modification — from four to six people, except the driver.
— It can accelerate to 130 km/h, overcome small water obstacles and walls up to 0.5 m high. That is, the car passes through sand and swamps, and moves well in winter, — explains Hetman.
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In addition, Iveco LMV has protection according to the STANAG 4569 Level 3.
This means that the armored vehicle's armor protects against a bullet fired from a distance of 30 m, the vehicle's crew is protected from improvised explosive devices and min.
Each door has three hinges, so that during an explosion the blast wave does not penetrate inside.
— Another very important thing— If the Iveco LMV hits an anti-tank mine with up to 6 kg of TNT equivalent, it is built in such a way that the crew remains almost unharmed due to the design of the chassis. It deflects the explosion to the side in such a way that even the legs of the driver and crew are not damaged, — says the expert.
According to him, the Iveco LMV light armor can withstand bullets up to 7.62 mm, but if necessary, it can be modified with additional mounted armor and withstand 12.7 mm from a heavy machine gun.
— What else is interesting about it — The machine gun is installed differently, , depending on which country orders it. This is usually a 12.7 mm machine gun, but it can be others. In addition, it is controlled remotely, that is, from inside the car, — he says.
Iveco LMV: what will be useful for the APU
A military expert claims that the Iveco LMV can be used not only as an amphibious maneuverable vehicle, but also as a fire weapon to support offensive operations.
— That is, 300 pieces — this is a serious amount. This is not an armored car in the sense as we understand it, but a light landing vehicle that travels at a speed of 130 km/h — this is very fast for an armored vehicle that weighs 6 tons, — Hetman summed up.
Iveco LMV: price and where it is in service
According to 2021, the cost of Iveco LMV for purchases of reached €500 thousand
This armored vehicle is in service with the armies of several countries around the world — in Italy, Norway, Great Britain, Belgium and the Czech Republic.
Getman says that Russia also has 67 similar Iveco LMVs, which it purchased in 2016, the aggressor country planned to receive more than 1.5 thousand, but due to the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, further deliveries were canceled .
