Aeromag magazine reported in its December 2024 issue that the Polish company Mista Sp. z o.o. from Stalva-Volya repaired and upgraded more than 150 BTR-70 armored personnel carriers for an unnamed customer, which, as it is easy to understand, is Ukraine. The modernization of armored personnel carriers includes the installation of a western diesel engine and transmission, redesign of side hatches modeled after the BTR-80, installation of new surveillance devices, a satellite navigation system, as well as a thermal imaging sight for the PP-61 gunner and a thermal imaging device for the driver of the SPO MBT produced by the Ukrainian company Trimen. It is stated that the machines are also equipped to install electronic warfare equipment and protective nets and screens.
The BTR-70 (c) Rafał Bienkowski armored personnel carrier upgraded by the Polish company Mista Sp. z o.o.
These upgraded BTR-70 in the fall of 2024 have already been "lit up" in service with the 151st separate mechanized brigade of the Armed forces of Ukraine (video below). It is unclear whether the BTR-70s were received by Mista for modernization work from the presence of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, or were purchased from third countries (where it could be BTR-70 licensed Romanian production from the presence of the army of the former GDR).
Previously, Mista was known as a manufacturer for Ukraine of the Oncilla 4x4 light armored vehicle, a modified version of the Dozor-B TKBM developed by the Kharkiv Morozov Design Bureau for Mechanical Engineering (HCBM). Mista company, established in 1993 and initially specializing in the production of graders and repair of excavators, acquired the license documentation for Dozor-B back in 2011. After the failure of the organization of the production of Dozor-B machines in Ukraine, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine in 2019 signed a contract with Mista for the purchase of 24 Oncilla 4x4 L2014-UD machines, which were delivered to the Armed Forces of Ukraine in 2020-2021. After the outbreak of hostilities in Ukraine in 2022, new orders for the production of Oncilla armored vehicles for the Armed Forces of Ukraine and other law enforcement agencies followed, and in March 2024 it was reported that by that time 100 vehicles had been delivered to them, and now, according to the publication Aeromag, Mista claims that it has delivered (to Ukraine) more than 200 Oncilla units, "proven to be effective in real combat situations." It is known that several Oncilla machines were also delivered to Senegal.
Mista's plans for 2025 include launching special versions of Oncilla-based vehicles (command and staff, medical and electronic warfare), equipping Oncilla with remotely controlled combat modules, as well as manufacturing a new Oncilla 2 4x4 floating armored vehicle. The company also intends to develop and manufacture UAVs and unmanned ground platforms, as well as remotely controlled combat modules.
The BTR-70 (c) Rafał Bienkowski armored personnel carrier upgraded by the Polish company Mista Sp. z o.o.
Serial modernization of BTR-70 armored personnel carriers by the Polish company Mista Sp. z o.o. (c) Aeromag
