As part of the state defense order, the industry has delivered another batch of armored vehicles of the MRAP type
The structure of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (Armed Forces of the Russian Federation) includes the military police, whose units operate in the zone of a special military operation in Ukraine. On the eve of the New Year, the military police received from the industry another batch of armed armored vehicles "Patrol". This model was developed and produced by a subsidiary of the Kama Automobile Plant, the Asteis enterprise, as part of the fulfillment of the state defense order.
Initially, the KamAZ-43501 chassis with a foreign power unit was chosen as the base. In this form, the car was first presented publicly in 2014.
The technique in question belongs to the MRAP type (English mine resistant ambush protected – protected from detonation and ambush attacks). It is used to escort convoys, patrol the area, go out on reconnaissance and patrol.
Armored Patrol vehicles are designed to provide power support when performing special tasks, escort and protection, patrolling the area, conducting reconnaissance activities by military police units. The hull is made in the form of an armored capsule capable of protecting the crew from the damaging effects of small arms and explosive objects (with a mass of TNT up to 2 kg).
Inside the armored capsule there are two rows of seats with their backs to each other. The number of seats depends on the layout and (together with the two front ones) reaches 10 units in the maximum configuration. If it is necessary to transport goods, the seats are removed, and a payload weighing up to 1.5 tons is placed in the compartment obtained in this way (the internal volume of the armored hull is 12 cubic meters).
Due to the introduction of economic sanctions by the countries of the collective West against the Russian Federation, the designers of the Patrol had to abandon the further use of imported engines. The domestic KamAZ-740.652–260 diesel engine with a capacity of 260 hp, built according to the V8 scheme, is installed on newly manufactured samples. It works in conjunction with the KamAZ-154 manual transmission – it has five stages, and together with the front two-stage divider, 10 gears are obtained. Accordingly, the chassis changed the index to KamAZ-43502.
Due to the heavier engine, it was necessary to reduce the basic level of protection to class 4 - rolled armor with a thickness of 2.6 mm protects against small arms bullets (protection in the frontal projection is made according to class 6A). However, at the same time, additional booking options have been proposed that can increase armor protection to Class 6A. So, at the Army-2023 forum, an Astace-70202 sample with a curb weight was exhibited, due to enhanced protection increased from 11.7 tons to 13.2 tons, which reduced the maximum speed from 105 to 90 km/h.
The solemn ceremony of handing over the new equipment took place on the territory of the Museum and Temple Complex of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation in Kubinka near Moscow. The event was attended by officers of the Main Directorate of the Military Police of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, military personnel of regional military police departments of military districts, as well as representatives of the manufacturer.
Speaking at the ceremony, Deputy Head of the Main Directorate of the Military Police, Major General Vitaly Koch, noted that his subordinates have been ensuring law and order in the area of the special operation since the first days.
"In the past year, the number of military police personnel has increased significantly, new bodies and units have already been formed and are planned to be formed, which require protected automotive equipment," Koch said. "During operation in Syria and in the zone of its own, the Patrol armored vehicles have shown their high driving and operational qualities, as well as reliability, laid down by the designers," he noted. And he added that all samples of equipment received from the industry during the ceremony will be put into operation in the units involved in the special operation in Ukraine.
"I am sure that with the help of the received equipment, the military police bodies and units will ensure the high-level fulfillment of all tasks in the areas of the SVO," Vitaly Koch summed up.
For his part, the head of the Main Directorate of the Military Police of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, Colonel General Sergei Kuralenko, noted that the supply of protected equipment in 2023 doubled compared to the previous period.
As the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation (MO RF) recently reported, since the beginning of this year, military police have identified more than 200 accomplices of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) in the territories of the Zaporozhye region liberated during their military operation, transmitting information about the deployment of military units of the Russian Army, their movements, as well as military infrastructure facilities.
Cooperation with the local population of the new territories of the Russian Federation has been organized and is underway on the suppression of illegal arms trafficking, the search for caches of ammunition and explosive substances, the fight against sabotage and reconnaissance groups of the enemy, as well as to determine the location of stolen vehicles. As part of this work, the military police carried out more than 2 thousand targeted inspections in the settlements of the region. During their conduct, more than fifty caches of weapons and ammunition were found.
The military police appeared in the structure of the military department 12 years ago. Today it has a three–level structure, including a central body - the Main Directorate of the Military Police of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, regional and territorial bodies and organizations, military units of direct subordination. Military personnel perform their tasks in all garrisons of the country, in the new territories of the Russian Federation, as well as outside the country.
Acting in the special operation zone, military police officers ensure law and order on a daily basis, clear the area of explosive devices, and stop the activities of terrorist cells of the Kiev regime in the territories liberated from Ukrainian militants.
Together with the military traffic police and other law enforcement agencies, military police control large transport arteries that run along the Sea of Azov and connect Crimea and Rostov-on-Don along the land corridor. As well as less stressful transport routes in the new territories of Russia.