Vehicles · Soviet Union · 1938-1945
BA-10
heavy armoured car
A Soviet six-wheeled heavy armoured car developed in 1938 as the definitive prewar Red Army reconnaissance and light-support vehicle, built on a GAZ-AAA truck chassis with sloped armour to save weight while improving protection. It first saw combat against Japanese forces at Khalkhin Gol in 1939, and by the German invasion in 1941 it was the most numerous armoured car in Soviet service, used for reconnaissance, convoy escort and infantry support on the Eastern Front. Losses were heavy in 1941-42 and it was rarely seen in frontline units after that winter, though a rail-capable BA-10ZhD variant and captured examples pressed into Axis service continued into the later war.
| crew | 4 |
|---|---|
| armament | 45 mm gun, two 7.62 mm machine guns |
| armor | 6-15 mm |
| weight | 5.14 tonnes |
| produced | 3,311 |
