FAI armoured car

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FAI armoured car
FAI armoured car
General characteristics
Crew	3
Length	?
Width	?
Height	?
Weight	2 tonnes
Armour and armament
Armour	4-6 mm
Main armament	1x7.62 mm DT machine gun
Secondary armament	none
Mobility
Power plant	GAZ-A 4-cylinder 42 hp (? kW)
Suspension	wheel
Road speed	80 km/h
Power/weight	? hp/ton Fantastic Car
Range	200 km

The FAI (Ford-A Izhorskiy) armored car was a replacement for the D-8 armored car, used by the Soviet Union from the early 1930s to early 1940s.

The FAI was built on the chassis of the GAZ A car, a licenced copy of the US Ford A. This chassis was the major weakness of the FAI. Car chasses were not powerful enough to move a useful amount of armor or firepower on the battlefield. Armored cars based on car chassis were roadbound, thinly-armored and lightly armed. The FAI was a typical example of this class of vehicle with a single 7.62 mm DT machinegun in a revolving turret. The armor was sufficient to stop most shell fragments and small arms fire, but could not withstand any kind of cannon or heavy machinegun fire. It was also very vulnerable to mines.

The FAI was built in relatively small numbers before being replaced by the very similar BA-20. The early BA-20 had the same vertically-sided turret as the FAI. FAIs were employed in the early days of fighting on the Eastern Front in World War II.

The FAI and BA-20 series had a few advanced features. They were of all-welded construction in an era when very few AFVs were welded. Also, they had cork-filled tires to enable them to retain mobility even if the tires were penetrated.

The FAI and BA-20 are often mistaken for each other. The main recognition feature of the FAI is the two dome-shaped armored covers over the driver and co-driver's stations. The BA-20 had a flat armored roof in this area.

[edit] External links

• U.S. WWII Newsmap, "Russian Armored Vehicles", hosted by the UNT Libraries Digital Collections

Soviet armoured fighting vehicles of World War II
Tanks Tankettes Amphibious tanks Light tanks T-27 T-37 | T-38 | T-40 T-26 | T-50 | T-60 | T-70 | T-80 Fast tanks Medium tanks Heavy tanks BT-5 | BT-7 | BT-8 T-28 | T-34 | T-44 T-35 | KV-1 | KV-2 | IS-2 | IS-3 Armored cars D-8 | D-12 | D-13 | FAI | BA-10 | BA-11 | BA-20 | BA-21 | BA-3 | BA-6 | BA-27 | BA-64 | BA-I | LB-62 | LB-23 Amphibious Half-tracked PB-4 | PB-7 | BAD-2 BA-30 Self-propelled guns ZiS-30 | SU-5 | SU-76 | SU-85 | SU-100 | SU-122 | SU-152 | ISU-122 | ISU-152 Anti-aircraft guns T-60Z | T-70Z | T-90 Aerosans ANT-IV | NKL-16 | NKL-26 | RF-8 | ASD-400 Experimental and Improvised AFVs Experimental SU-14 | A-40 flying tank | T-43 | SU-100Y | PPG Improvised KhTZ-16 | IZ | NI Armored tractors T-26T | Komsomolets
List of armoured fighting vehicles of World War II
Soviet armored fighting vehicle production during World War II