The vehicle was commissioned by the Swedish Army in 1961 as a modern IFV-design which could replace the recently developed pbv 301 IFV, a placeholder design based on an obsolete tank chassis which did not meet the Swedish Army's future operational requirements. Design and production was handled by Hägglund & Söner in Örnsköldsvik (whose military vehicle business is now BAE Systems Hägglunds). Production ran from 1966 to 1971 and the vehicles were upgraded and renovated multiple times throughout their service life. The design was eventually replaced by the strf 9040 IFV in the 1990s but saw limited service alongside it until ultimately being removed from service in 2014.
The Pbv 302 has wide tracks and a high power-to-weight ratio, and has exceptionally good off-road mobility, and the low ground pressure enables it to operate over summer bog and winter snow. It is powered by a Volvo 10-liter, 270hp diesel engine. The vehicle is fully amphibious with little preparation by the crew. It is fitted with a 20mm Hispano-Suiza type 804 cannon taken from the scrapped Saab 29 in a one-man turret. High-explosive cartridges were originally fed from 135-round belts, and armor-piercing cartridges were fed from a 10-round magazine. Three belts and 10 magazines were carried inside the vehicle. The arrangement was deemed overly complicated and was replaced by 30-round magazines, 10 of which were carried. The vehicle, which weighs 14 tonnes, has a crew of three (commander, driver and a gunner) and carries a squad of eight troops. The infantry squad is able to fight through two large roof hatches, though standard procedure would be to dismount through the two side-hinged doors in the rear to fight. Maximum road speed is 65km/h (restricted for peace time use). The range on roads is about 300km.
The Pbv 302 shares common components with the Ikv 91 tank destroyer and total production was approximately 650 units.
Versions and variants
Pansarbandvagn 302A: The original standard troop transport/IFV version. Its designation translates literally into armoured tracked vehicle.
Pansarbandvagn 302B: Upgraded with spalling liner and external armour.
Pansarbandvagn 302C: As Pbv 302B, with reinforced suspension, new lights, flare-launcher, new turbo and air condition. It has mainly been used for UN and KFOR missions.
Variants available in several versions, noted with the appropriate letter (i.e. Epbv 3022C)
Stridsledningspansarbandvagn (Stripbv) 3021: The C3I command post for battalion and brigade commanders and other staff members. Designation means battle command vehicle.
Eldledningspansarbandvagn (Epbv) 3022: Forward observer vehicle for artillery observers fire control personnel. Designation means fire directing vehicle.
Batteriplatspansarbandvagn (Bplpbv) 3023: The battery command control vehicle attached to Bandkanon 1 batteries. Designation means (artillery) battery command vehicle.
Radiolänkpansarbandvagn (Rlpbv) 3024: Communications vehicle for directed radio communications. Designation means radio relay vehicle.
↑ Pansarbandvagn directly translates to "armor track wagon". The term bandvagn, even though it translates to track wagon, is a Swedish military term used to describe tracked multipurpose carrier type vehicles. Tracked vehicles designed for more specialized combat roles, like tanks etc (Swedish: stridsvagn), are instead only called wagons (chassis description) to denote that they are tracked but more specialized and less universal.
An armoured fighting vehicle or armored fighting vehicle (AFV) is an armed combat vehicle protected by armour, generally combining operational mobility with offensive and defensive capabilities. AFVs can be wheeled or tracked. Examples of AFVs are tanks, armoured cars, assault guns, self-propelled artilleries, infantry fighting vehicles (IFV), and armoured personnel carriers (APC).
An infantry fighting vehicle (IFV), also known as a mechanized infantry combat vehicle (MICV), is a type of armoured fighting vehicle used to carry infantry into battle and provide direct-fire support. The 1990 Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe defines an infantry fighting vehicle as "an armoured combat vehicle which is designed and equipped primarily to transport a combat infantry squad, and which is armed with an integral or organic cannon of at least 20 millimeters calibre and sometimes an antitank missile launcher". IFVs often serve both as the principal weapons system and as the mode of transport for a mechanized infantry unit.
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The Combat Vehicle 90 (CV90) is a family of Swedish tracked armoured combat vehicles designed by the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV), Hägglund & Söner and Bofors during the mid-1980s to early 1990s, before entering service in Sweden in the mid-1990s. The CV90 platform design has continuously evolved from the Mk 0 to the current Mk IV with technological advances and changing battlefield requirements.
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Panzergrenadier, abbreviated as PzG (WWII) or PzGren (modern), meaning "Armour"-ed fighting vehicle "Grenadier", is the German term for the military doctrine of mechanized infantry units in armoured forces who specialize in fighting from and in conjunction with infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) – that is, armoured troop carriers designed to carry a mechanized squad of six to eight soldiers into, during and out of combat while providing direct fire support for those troops.
The Dardo is an infantry fighting vehicle designed for the Italian Army as a replacement for the M113 APC. It is designed and built by the Iveco Fiat Oto Melara Syndicated Company based in Rome. Iveco is responsible for the hull and propulsion systems, while Oto Melara is responsible for the weapons and fire control systems.
The infanterikanonvagn 91, lit.'infantry cannon wagon 91', was a high mobility assault gun that was developed to meet the operational requirements of the Swedish Army. It was designed and manufactured by Hägglund & Söner and employed common components with the Pbv 302 armoured personnel carrier series. The first prototypes of the ikv 91 were completed in 1969 with production running from 1975 until 1978. In total, 212 were manufactured.
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Pansarbandvagn 301, meaning roughly armoured tracked carrier vehicle 301, was a Swedish infantry fighting vehicle used by the Swedish Army. It was designed to carry a squad of 8 fully armed panzergrenadiers into battle and provide direct-fire support for them in combat. The panzergrenadiers could opt to either fight from inside the vehicle through hatches on the roof or dismount the vehicle and fight in its vicinity. The pbv 301 was armed with a Bofors 20 mm (0.8 in) L/70 aircraft gun taken from scrapped Saab 21 fighter aircraft, mounted in an oscillating housing above a rotating cupola. It was fed from 75 round belts stored inside the vehicle. Inside the vehicle were mountings for a variety of infantry weapons and munitions, such as an FN MAG and a Carl Gustaf 8.4 cm recoilless rifle with 9 rounds.
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The Soviet BMP-1 is a tracked, amphibious infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) with a long service history.
Tulpar is a Turkish heavy infantry fighting vehicle designed by the Sakarya-based automotive manufacturer Otokar. It is named after the Tulpar, a winged horse in Turkic mythology.
The Kurganets-25 is a tracked amphibious, 25-ton modular infantry fighting vehicle and armored personnel carrier being developed for the Russian Army. The Kurganets-25 is planned to evolve into various models, gradually replacing BMP, BMD, MT-LB and other types of tracked Soviet armored platforms. The Kurganets-25 is supposed to have modular armor that can be upgraded for specific threats. The Kurganets-25 IFV and APC variants were first seen in public during rehearsals for the 2015 Moscow Victory Day Parade. Serial production was supposed to begin in 2016, but as of 2020, certification by the military is still pending. In 2023, it was confirmed that Kurganets was undergoing trials, and that the vehicle was modified at the customer’s request. The changes affected the Kurganets-25 chassis, which as a result became more reliable and also easier to operate and repair.
The Type 86, also known as WZ501, is a Chinese copy of the Soviet BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicle (IFV).
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