Beyond its crew of three, the compact vehicle can also carry up to ten combat-ready troopers as needed. This added space is due to the fact that no powered turret is fitted to the hull, thus taking up valuable space.
On the whole, the vehicle manages a very low profile with a shallow hull roof line. The glacis plate is well-sloped for strong ballistics protection (the armor is aluminum-based). The operating crew view the action, while buttoned up, through thick vision blocks.
The track component displays six double-tired roadwheels to a hull side. The drive sprocket is at rear with the track idler at front. Three track return rollers are featured. The track-and-wheel arrangement is not covered by side skirt armor.
Primary armament are 7.62mm, 12.7mm or 14.5mm machine guns or 40mm automatic grenade launchers positioned on pintle mounts (no armored, powered turret is fitted). Secondary armament are 2 x 7.62mm machine guns in bow-mounted positions facing forward.
Variants of the BTR-D included a cargo-hauler form, an ATGM carrier, an air defense vehicle, a UAV carrier, Command and Control (C2) car, SATCOM vehicle and artillery fire direction platform. The 2S9 "Nona-S" is a modified offshoot of the BTR-D line and serves as a self-propelled mortar fitting a 120mm heavy field mortar as primary armament. These came online in 1981. The BREM-D is another model used as an Armored Recovery Vehicle (ARV). They entered service in 1989. The basic BTR-D form is known to the Russian Army as "Object 925".
Beyond its service with the Soviet/Russian Army, the BTR-D has been adopted by the forces of Belarus, Moldova, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. Belarus was once the second largest operator of the series with over 100 in circulation.
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