OT-64 SKOT

The OT-64 SKOT (Czech acronym for: Střední Kolový Obrněný Transportér, and/or Polish Średni Kołowy Opancerzony Transporter – medium wheeled armoured transporter) is an amphibious, armored personnel carrier (8x8), developed jointly by Poland and Czechoslovakia (ČSSR) well into the 1960s.

Until the early 1970s were produced around 4500 of OT-64 SKOT units of all variants, with more than two-thirds owned Czechoslovak army. SKOT belonged in the 1960s and 1970s, to the best of what was in the category of wheeled armored vehicles produced. SKOT came up with the timeless concept of wheeled transporter, which is revered by all manufacturers worldwide today.^[2]

History

OT-64 was intended to replace the halftrack OT-810, which was nearly identical to the German SdKfz 251 from World War II. The first prototype was built in 1959. In 1961 the first sample series were built and starting from October 1963 the vehicles were produced in Lublin, Poland by Fabryka Samochodów Ciężarowych. Czechoslovakia supplied the driveline components, i.e. the engine, transmission and axles. The first production vehicles were delivered in 1964 to both the Polish Army and Czechoslovak Army. They were also acquired by the Hungarian army. Today are gradually replaced by newer vehicles.

Technology

OT-64 SKOT in an amphibious assault exercise

SKOT-2AP

The OT-64's engine, transmission, suspension and axles were produced in Czechoslovakia. The engine was produced by Tatra. The gearbox was manufactured by Praga Hostivař. It has a pre-select Praga-Wilson gearbox, (5 forward +1 reverse gears.) A gear is selected using the gear stick then when the gear is required the left pedal (gear change action/clutch combined) is pressed to the floor, giving a hiss of air sound,on release of the pedal the dry plate clutch engages after about half the return spring controlled movement. The drive then passes to an auxiliary gearbox with low, neutral and high ratios which needs to be selected before moving off, for road/neutral/off road use, this gives option to the driver of 10 forward and 2 reverse ratios. The gear change pedal is hydraulic and on action opens an air valve which causes the selected gear to engage. The armored hull and weapons were produced in Poland.

The OT-64 was the answer to the Soviet BTR-60. Contrary to this the OT-64 used a diesel set in place of a petrol engine. That diminished the danger of fire and at the same time increased the range. The main advantage in relation to the Russian counterpart was the full-armored interior. The entrance is at the rear of the vehicle via twin doors. The OT-64 had an NBC protection facility and night-vision equipment. It also has central inflation for all wheels which can be controlled by driver during a drive. The OT-64 was air-transportable and amphibious, for the transport on water used two propellers installed at the back.

Several variants were built. Some OT-64 were re-equipped for air defense or built as tank hunters. The latter used the AT-3 Sagger missile as a weapon.

Service history

OT-64 SKOT entered service with Polish and Czechoslovak armies in 1963. It was produced until the early 1970s. It is still in service in Poland and Slovakia. Czech units were replaced in 2006 by new armoured vehicles Pandur II CZ.^[2] During the 1990s, Slovakia purchased hundreds of these units from the Czech Republic (150 in 1994, 100 in 1998). Slovaks then sold them to other, mainly African, countries. OT-64 SKOT was also exported to eleven different countries. A total number of vehicles produced is 4,500.^[1]

Variants

Czechoslovakia

SKOT-1A during reconstruction of Martial law in Poland. Warsaw, 13.12.2007 (in memory of 13.12.1981)

Polish SKOT S-260 Inż towing a trailer crossing a tank launched bridge

• OT-64 - Original version, used in the APC role. Early models were unarmed but later the vehicle was fitted with a pintle-mounted 7.62 mm light machine gun or 12.7 mm DShK 1938/46 heavy machine gun. They used to be known in the West as respectively OT-64A and OT-64B. Some 12.7 mm DShK 1938/46 heavy machine gun armed OT-64 APCs had shields around the heavy machine gun mount.^[1][3]
  • OT-64 fitted with a small turret from OT-65A. However this one is armed with twin machine guns and doesn't have the 82mm T-21 "Tarasnice" recoilless gun.^[3]
  • DTP-64 (dilna technicke pomoci) - Czech repair version with tow bars, welding equipment and a hand operated crane with a capacity of 1 tonne. There were two sub-versions, namely the DTP-64/M for mechanized infantry units and the DTP-64/T for tank units. Photos
  • OT-64 ZDRAV or ZDR-64 (zdravotni): ambulance.Photos
  • OT-64A - Improved version fitted with BPU-1 turret from Soviet BRDM-2 armoured scout car which is armed with a 14.5 mm KPVT heavy machine gun and 7.62 mm PKT coaxial machine gun. In Western sources, this version is often called OT-64C. In the late 1990s, some vehicles had the turret replaced by a pintle-mounted machine gun for peace keeping operations.Photos The OT-64A is used as the basis for several command vehicles (velitelsko štábní obrněný transportér) fitted with multiple radio sets, a 1 kW generator and an antenna mast:
    • VSOT-64/R2 R102 - Unarmed signals and command variant.
    • VSOT-64/R2 R105 - Unarmed signals and command variant.
    • VSOT-64/R2 R108 - Unarmed signals and command variant.
    • VSOT-64/R2M - Signals and command variant with OT-64A's turret.Photos
    • VSOT-64/R3 - Unarmed signals and command variant.
    • VSOT-64/R3MT - Unarmed signals and command variant.Photos
    • VSOT-64/R4MT - Unarmed signals and command variant.
    • VSOT-64/R4RT - Unarmed signals and command variant.
    • OT-64A fitted with the ATGM mounts on the turret sides.^[3]
    • OT-64A fitted with the new turret with higher elevation for armament. Similar to Polish SKOT-2AP.^[3]
    • OT-93 - Export version of the OT-64A with the original turret replaced by the one from the OT-65M or OT-62B. The armament consists of a single 7.62mm machine-gun.Photos
  • Cobra - Infantry combat vehicle version with a new turret with 30mm gun 2A42. Did not enter production

Poland

SKOT-2A

SKOT-2A at the Polish Army Museum (Muzeum Wojska Polskiego)

• SKOT-1 - Early, unarmed model, similar to the OT-64.^[1]
  • SKOT-1A - SKOT-1 fitted with a superstructure in the front of the troop compartment. The superstructure a large, two piece hatch.^[1]
    • SKOT R-3 - Unarmed command vehicle used by regiment and higher command. It is equipped with 4 radios, 1 radio receiver, 1 microwave radio relay and 1 radiotelephone. The vehicle is operated by seven man crew.^[1]
      • SKOT R-3M - Unarmed signals and command variant for combat engineer units.
      • SKOT R-3Z - SKOT R-3 with modernized radio equipment which it includes the second microwave radio relay.^[1]
    • SKOT R-4 - Unarmed command vehicle used by division and army command. It is equipped with 4 radios, 3 radio receivers and 3 radiotelephones.^[1]
    • SKOT-WPT (wóz pogotowia technicznego) - Technical support vehicle with a light crane.
    • SKOT S-260 Art (artyleryjski) - Artillery tractor and transport vehicle for ammunition and mortar or anti-tank squads.
    • SKOT S-260 Inż (inżynieryjny) - Fitted with racks for anti-tank mines and used to tow mechanical mine layers or mine-clearing systems.
    • SKOT-2 - SKOT-1A with pintle MG mount around the hatch of the superstructure. Two types of machine guns were fitted there, 7.62 mm light machine gun (first SGMT and later PKT) or 12.7 mm DShK 1938/46 heavy machine gun. Sides of the machine gun mount are protected with armour plates.^[1]
      • SKOT-2A - Polish designator for the version with the BRDM-2 turret which was designed in the late 1960s. The vehicle is fitted with conical turret armed with 14.5 mm KPV heavy machine gun and 7.62 mm PKT coaxial light machine gun on the top of the vehicle. Number of soldiers transported in the troop compartment went down from 18 to 10. In Western sources, this version is often called OT-64C.^[1]
        • SKOT 2AM - A small number of Polish SKOT-2A APCs was fitted with 9M14 Malyutka (AT-3 Sagger) ATGM launchers on the turret sides. The launchers were protected with armour plate or wire mesh. In the West, they were known as OT-64C(1A).^[1]
        • SKOT R-2 - Command vehicle used by battalion and regiment command. It is equipped with 4 radios: R-112, R-113 and 2 R-105. The vehicle is operated by seven man crew.^[1]
          • SKOT R-2AM - Unarmed command and fire control variant for artillery units.
          • SKOT R-2M - Signals and command variant with SKOT-2A's turret.
        • SKOT R-6 - Unarmed signals and command variant.
        • SKOT-2AP - Polish modification with a new anti-aircraft WAT turret armed with 14.5 mm heavy machine gun. The turret had higher elevation for its armament and therefore could be used to fire at air targets. The turret has the new CGS-90 sight. This vehicle was known in the West as OT-64C(2).^[1]
  • KTO WR-02 "Ryś" (KTO stands for Kołowy Transporter Opancerzony - Wheeled Armoured personnel Carrier) (Ryś - Lynx) - Heavily upgraded version with IVECO Cursor 8 engine. Work is performed by the 5th Military Mechanical Institute in Poznań.
    • KTO WR-02 "Ryś-2" (KTO stands for Kołowy Transporter Opancerzony - Wheeled Armoured personnel Carrier) (Ryś-2 - Lynx-2) - The export version of KTO WR-02 "Ryś".

Uruguay

• Vehículos acorazados de ruedas M64 - Uruguayan designation for OT-64 armed with a pintle-mounted machine gun.^[3]
• Vehículos acorazados de ruedas M93 - Uruguayan designation for OT-93.^[3]

Operators

OT-64 SKOT operators

Two SKOT-2A APCs and one SKOT-2AP APC.

•  Algeria - 151 OT-64 APCs armed with a pintle-mounted machine gun and 75 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from the Czech Republic in 1993 and delivered between 1994 and 1995, they were initially unarmed however they were sold through Slovakia where they were rearmed.^[4] Currently 150 are in service.^[5]
•  Angola - 9 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from Slovakia in 1993 and delivered in 1994, the vehicles were previously in Slovak service.^[4]
•  Cambodia - 26 OT-64 APCs armed with a pintle-mounted machine gun ordered from the Czech Republic in 1994 and delivered in 1994, the vehicles were previously in Czech service.^[4] Currently there are 40, however probably less are fully operational as only 140 of Cambodia's 266 APCs are fully operational. All the OT-64 APCs have apparently gone to the Phnom Penh reserve force and some are used by military police.
•  Hungary - ^[6]
•  Egypt - 200 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from Czechoslovakia in 1968 and delivered between 1969 and 1970.^[4] Currently 300 are in service.^[7]
•  India - 300 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from Czechoslovakia in 1969 and delivered between 1971 and 1974.^[4]
•  Libya - 50 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from Czechoslovakia in 1973 and delivered in 1974.^[4]
•  Morocco - 95 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from Czechoslovakia in 1968 and delivered between 1968 and 1970.^[4]
•    Nepal - 8 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from the Czech Republic in 2007 and delivered in 2008, the vehicles were previously in Czech service, they were ordered for use by the Nepali UN forces in Sudan.^[4]
•  Pakistan - 6 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from Slovakia in 1993 and delivered in 1993, the vehicles were previously in Slovak service.^[4]
•  Poland - In beginning of the 1990s, SKOT APCs were gradually withdrawn from the Polish Army. Currently around 300-400 remain in stock, in particular the command variants (R-2AM/AMT (for artillery units) and R-3M) as well as engineering variants and training variants. SKOT APCs are being replaced by the KTO Rosomak. There were 110 SKOT APCs and SKOT based vehicles in service as of 2005.
•  Sierra Leone - 10 OT-64 APCs armed with a pintle-mounted machine gun ordered from Slovakia in 1993 and delivered in 1994, the vehicles were previously in Slovak service.^[4]
•  Slovakia
•  Sri Lanka - OT-64 SKOT-based Command vehicles.
•  Sudan - 40 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from Czechoslovakia in 1969 and delivered in 1970.^[4]
•  Syria - 300 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from Czechoslovakia in 1976 and delivered between 1977 and 1979.^[4]
•  Uganda - 36 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from Czechoslovakia in 1967 and delivered in 1968.^[4]
•  Uruguay - 100 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from the Czech Republic in 1994 and delivered in 1995, the vehicles were previously in Czech service and were modernized to OT-93 standard prior to the delivery. 18 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from the Czech Republic in 1996 and delivered in 1999, the vehicles were previously in Czech service and were modernized to OT-93 standard prior to the delivery. 12 OT-64 APCs armed with a pintle-mounted machine gun ordered from Slovakia in 1999 and delivered in 1999, the vehicles were previously in Slovak service and were delivered via the Czech Republic.^[4]

Former operators

•  Czech Republic - Czech units were put out of service in 2006 and were replaced by new armoured vehicles Pandur II CZ.^[2] (28 OT-64 APCs were in equipment as of 1 January 2008.)^[8]
•  Iraq - 200 OT-64A (version fitted with BRDM-2 turret) ordered from Czechoslovakia in 1980 and delivered in 1981.^[4] All destroyed or scrapped.

Civilian operators

SKOT-1A-based firefighting vehicle

• At least 2 SKOT APCs one in Czech Republic and one in Poland have been modified and are used as firefighting vehicles^[9]
• Many SKOT APCs in Poland and the Czech Republic were sold to private owners who make sure they are in working condition and regularly show them on military enthusiast's meetings.^[10] Some private Czech OT-64s have number plates and can travel on public roads.^[11]

References

• Jerzy Kajetanowicz - Polish Fighting Vehicles in Post-war period.
• Janusz Magnuski - Wozy Bojowe LWP 1943-1983 Wydawnictwo Miniterstwa Obrony Narodowej - ISBN 83-11-06990-5
• Technika Wojska Polskiego - Dom Wydawniczy Bellona - 1998

Literature

• Philip Terwhitt, “Tank”, New Emperor Publishing House, complaint ford, 2005, ISBN 3-7043-3197-X

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to OT-64 SKOT.

• Czech MoD official site
• English website for Russian Military Trucks
• www.globalsecurity.org: OT-64 (SKOT) (English)
• Panzermodelkit site
• SKOT (Polish)
• KTO Ryś (Polish)
• bharat-rakshak site
• OT-64 (Czech)