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Scout car

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The most prolific example of a modern scout car, the Soviet BRDM-2.

A scout car is a wheeled light armored vehicle utilized for passive reconnaissance.[1] Scout cars are either unarmed or lightly armed for self-defense and do not carry large caliber weapons systems.[1] This differentiates them from armored cars carrying heavier armament or wheeled infantry fighting vehicles, both of which may also be used in the reconnaissance role.[note 1]

History

The term "scout car" first entered widespread use in 1937 as an official United States Army designation for any wheeled armored vehicle developed specifically for the reconnaissance role.[1] Following the US entry into World War II, US officials clarified that the term would not extend to heavier wheeled reconnaissance vehicles fitted with turreted weapons systems, such as the M8 Greyhound.[1] In this context, "scout car" meant a four-wheeled, often open-topped armored car which was unarmed or only fitted with a single light or general-purpose machine gun for self-defense.[1] The US abandoned the concept of scout cars after the war on the basis that the vehicles' armored status tempted crews to emulate tank tactics. In violation of doctrinal principles, American scout car crews often engaged hostile positions rather than merely reconnoitering them, a recurring issue that resulted in heavy losses and interfered with a reconnaissance unit's ability to observe the battlefield.[3]

Due to scout cars' heavier protection and armament compared to lighter reconnaissance vehicles, American crews often attempted to emulate tanks during World War II. In violation of doctrinal principles, the vehicles attacked hostile positions rather than merely reconnoitering them - a practice that resulted in heavy losses and interfered with the parent unit's ability to observe the battlefield.[3] One solution proposed by US officials was to further reduce the armor levels on the already lightly protected scout cars, which would compel crews to resist the temptation of using them as combat vehicles.[3] This was not considered practical in the long run, however, and the US eventually replaced all its scout cars with unarmored utility vehicles such as the jeep.[3]

In 1940, the British Army defined a "scout car" as an armored car utilized for observation, intelligence-gathering, and other elements of passive reconnaissance.[4] The scout car's original role in British doctrine was to probe forward and report on the enemy's disposition before conducting a hasty withdrawal.[4] The first British vehicle to receive this designation was the Daimler Dingo.[4] After the war, this role was filled by the Daimler Ferret. The use of scout cars in British service was gradually superseded by more heavily armed vehicles serving in the light reconnaissance role, such as the FV721 Fox armored car and the FV107 Scimitar.

During the early 1940s, Red Army doctrine did not recognize a unique niche for the scout car, and the Soviets were likelier to favor heavier, six-wheeled vehicles. Light wheeled armored vehicles utilized for reconnaissance included the BA-20, but its weight and poor mobility limited its usefulness. This led to the replacement of the BA-20 by the Soviet Union's first dedicated scout car design, the BA-64. In the postwar era, Soviet scout cars such as the BRDM-1 and BRDM-2 were attached on the divisional level and deployed for screening and long-range probing actions. The scout cars were complemented in Soviet reconnaissance battalions by specialized variants of the BMP-1 or BMP-2 infantry fighting vehicles, which were able to reconnoiter much more aggressively and engage hostile armor as needed.

Examples

See also

Notes and references

Annotations

  1. ^ Advances in recoil technology have permitted many modern wheeled reconnaissance vehicles to carry large caliber weapons systems, such as the AMX-10RC and the EE-9 Cascavel.[2] In the traditional definition of the word, these vehicles would not be considered scout cars.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f Green, Michael (2017). Allied Armoured Fighting Vehicles of the Second World War. Barnsley: Pen & Sword Military Press. p. 17. ISBN 978-1473872370.
  2. ^ Dougherty, Martin J. Modern Weapons: Compared and Contrasted: Armored Fighting Vehicles (2012 ed.). Rosen Central. pp. 34–36. ISBN 978-1448892440.
  3. ^ a b c d To fight or not to fight? Organizational and Doctrinal Trends in Mounted Maneuver Reconnaissance from the Interwar Years to Operation IRAQI FREEDOM
  4. ^ a b c Bishop, Denis; Ellis, Chris (1980). Vehicles at War. Crows Nest, New South Wales: Allen & Unwin, Publishers. pp. 102–105. ISBN 978-0046230128.
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