- Yes
- No
- Researchable
- Premium
- Event
- Squadron
- I Dont Know / I Dont Care
- I voted No
- 6.7 or Lower
- 7.0
- 7.3
- 7.7
- 8.0 or Higher
- I Don’t Know / I Don’t Care
- I voted No
Bardam Snai
Bardam at a firing test or exercises, israel.
Description:
Bardam Snai/Sagger - Is a Soviet made missile carrier 9P122, used by Egypt and Syria in 1973 Yom Kippur war, which were captured by israel throughout the war and remained in the active service with the IDF until late 80s. A considerable amount of 9P122 and a missile stock for them remained in the reserve with the IDF after the war, Bardam units armed with Snai missiles took part in the first Lebanese war, but never saw a real combat.
The chasis of the vehicle - BRDM-2 received a Nickname “Bardam” in Israel and ATGM 9M14M “Malyutka” recived in IDF a “Snai” Nikcname, but no one used it. These missiles almost exclusively were called “Sagger”, by the US and NATO designation (AT-3 Sagger).
History:
The self-propelled ATGM 9P122 was developed in Soviet Union in 1968. It is a BRDM-2 without a turret with a hydraulically raised roof of the fighting compartment. Under the roof, 2 launchers are installed, 3 guides on each. In addition, the vehicle carried 8 spare missiles.
9P122 in Arab Hands (Start of Yom Kippur War):
It entered the service with Syria and Egypt in the early 70s. The first case of launching this ATGM against Israeli forces was noted in early 1973 on the Golan Heights. The massive use of “Malyutka” ATGM’s was the main reason for the loss of Israeli equipment during the war and it’s proven to be the most effective anti-tank weapon in Arab hands and appears to be responsible for over 50% of IDF tank losses (disabled for 24 hours or more) on the Egyptian front.
Such a widespread use of ATGMs (and not the very fact of their use) was a tactical surprise for the IDF. Moreover, the IDF was aware of the existence of the “Malyutka”, military intelligence distributed materials describing this missile to the army, but they were not sufficiently studied by ordinary soldiers and junior command personnel. So, at the beginning of the war, seeing the launches of “Malyutka’s”, communications transmitted messages exclusively about the use of “Shmel” missiles.
Spoiler
Destroyed Syrian 9P122
Begining of it’s service in IDF (End of Yom Kippur War):
During the war, the 755th AT battalion was essentially left without ATGM’s. In the last days of the war, the battalion’s men were used as infantrymen in defensive positions. Soon the re-equipment of the 755th battalion with the Malyutka ATGM began, and perhaps a formal decision to accept these missiles for service with the IDF was made on November 14th, 1973. With rearmament, the battalion also changed its number to 9304.
After the war considerable amount of 9P122 and a missile stock for them remained in the reserve with the IDF warehauses. BRDM-2 chasis received the “Bardam” nickname in IDF, while most of the soldiers did not know about the meaning of the abbreviation “BRDM” and the rockets that it used 9M14M “Malytka” officially recived a “Snai” (eng. squirrel) nickname, but most of the soldiers called it “Sagger”, according to US and NATO designation (AT-3 Sagger).
The maintanence of the active Bardam’s (BRDM) of the 9304th battalion was carried out at the expense of spare parts removed from other captured vehicles. At one of the IDF bases there was a scrap yard, where all the BRDM’s found were collected. From time to time, mechanics visited there and removed the parts they needed. There were many Russian-speaking technicians in the battalion, and they used trophy literature in Russian to maintain the BRDM’s.
In addition to 9P122 (Bardam Snai), each company of the 9304th battalion had a commander’s “Bardam” (Bardam Pikud), converted from a linear BRDM-2. The turrets were removed from the vehicles, the hole formed in the roof was closed with a hatch. Thus, in the stowed position, it was almost impossible to distinguish between the commander and the linear “Bardam”. Command vehicles were equipped with additional means of communication (all Soviet means of communication were replaced by Israeli ones).
Spoiler
Bardam Pikud (Commander Version) somewhere in Israel. Behind it a colum of Bardam Snai (Armed Version).
Bardam Pikud in Yad-La-Shiryon Museum, repainted to similar camouflage as Syrian BRDM-2’s.
Lebanon war:
In 1978, the 409th Airborne AT Brigade was created, the brigade initially had two battalions armed with M151 jeeps with TOW ATGMs. In 1979, the 9304th battalion also joined the brigade.
Spoiler
M151 w/TOW of 409th Airborne AT Brigade, 1980. ( IDF Nikname: Djapaz Orev )
In 1982, the 409th brigade fought in Lebanon as part of the Koah Yosi division. The 9304th battalion was also deployed, and it included two companies of 9P122 (12 vehicles per company) and a platoon of M151 jeeps with 9K111 (jeeps were used for movement, launches were carried out from the ground). The battalion and its equipment were transferred on Hercules (cargo aircraft) from Lod to Mahanaim, from there it entered Lebanon through the Fatma Gate. The battalion did not participate in the battles, but it was planned to participate in the operation to capture Shtura, which was later canceled.
End of it’s service:
“Malytka” ATGM (self-propelled 9P122 and portable 9K111) stood in service until the late 80s. According to rumors, after being removed from service, they were sold to South Africa. But even after that, one 9K111 platoon remained in the IDF, which was used for demonstration firing.
9 Bardam Snai parked at 652nd batalion base, March-April 1974, Israel.
Protection:
The 9P122 was created on the basis of the armored reconnaissance and patrol vehicle BRDM-2. The vehicle armor, which is composed of welded steel, fully protects against small arms fire and small shell fragments, but doesn’t protect it against big artillery fragments or .50-calibre machine gun fire, which can penetrate the BRDM-2’s maximum armor of 14 mm. The BRDM-2-series tires are not protected by armour and are particularly vulnerable to puncture from fire of all kinds.
Mobility:
The 9P122 is equipped with an eight-cylinder V-shaped four-stroke gasoline engine GAZ-41 with a volume of 5.5 liters,
Engine power is 140hp. The total capacity of the fuel tanks is 280 liters. The transmission is mechanical. Has 4 forward and one reverse gear.
The vehicle weights at 7,21 t. and its max speed on roads is 95-100 km/h and in amphibious mode 9-10 km/h.
Firepower:
The main and only armament of the vehicle is 9M14M “Malyutka” missiles, which are the first generation missiles developed and produced in USSR. The missiles are fired from a hydraulically raised roof of the fighting compartment. Under of which, 2 launchers are installed, with 3 guides on each. 9P122 is capable of launching missiles at a speed of 2 shots per minute. The time to bring it into combat position is 20 seconds. Carried ammunition is 14 missiles. Each rocket has armor penetration of 400-410 mm. Observation, selection and targeting are carried out through an optical monocular sight 9Sh16 with a periscope of 250 mm. The reticle provides a field of view of 11°30’ and has an eightfold magnification. In addition, there is a monocular sighting device 9Sh115A with an eightfold increase. The elevation angles of the system are −4,8…+10,2 degrees, and horisontal is 85,2 degrees on the both sides.
Missile characteristics
Spoiler
Origin: USSR
US designation - AT-3 Sagger
IDF nickname - “Snai”
Length, mm - 860
Diameter, mm -125
Wingspan, mm - 393
Missile weight, kg - 10.9
Range, min, m - 500
Range, max, m - 3000
Speed, at maximum range, km/h - ?
Average speed, km/h - 414
Max speed, km/h - 600
Flight time to max range, s - 26
warhead, type - Cumulative
warhead, weight, kg -2.6
Armor penetration (no armor slope), mm - 400-410
guidance - Manual, by wire
Specificatios:
Dimensions
Length Hull - 5750 mm
Width - 2350 mm
Height - 2000 mm (2800 mm in combat mode)
Weight - 7,208 kg
Mobility
Engine - eight-cylinder V-shaped four-stroke gasoline engine GAZ-41
Engine power - 140 hp
Top Road Speed - 95-100 km/h
Top speed in amphibious mode - 9-10 km/h
Suspension Type - semi-elliptical springs
Wheel formula - 4 × 4 (8 × 8)
Firepower
Main Armament - 9M14M “Maluytka-M” ( Snai / AT-3 Sagger )
Ammunition Storage - x 14 missiles ( x6 ready to fire, x8 stored in the hull )
Protection
Armor Type - welded steel, bulletproof ( thickness 6-12 mm )
Crew
Commander/Gunner
Driver
Total - 2
Gallery:
Spoiler
Conclusions:
In conclusion, this vehicle will be a good addition to the Israeli tech tree, although it is not the best option, as it’s a copy of a soviet missile carrier, Israel currently lacks in light vehicles and support vehicles so it’ll be neat to have vehicle like this.
It can be considered as a light tank and a tank destroyer in one. It has a very small profile, very maneuverable, fast and on top of that, it can overcome water obstacles, and on the other hand, it is armed with decent missiles that can cause considerable damage to the enemy.
Thank you for reading my suggestion trough to the end, If you are interested you can check out my previous suggestions via my profile, as of right now I havent transfered all of my suggestions from the old forum so you can check out them through the links there.
And as always if you noticed any mistakes or have any helpful sources, please let me know and I will make necessary corrections.
