Russia's VPK unveils Ural protected utility vehicle

Russia’s Military-Industrial Company (VPK) has developed the VPK-Ural, its first 4×4 protected utility vehicle based on a commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) chassis.

“This is the VPK’s first effort to develop a COTS chassis-based protected vehicle,” Alexander Krasovitskiy, director general of VPK, told Jane’s .

The new VPK-Ural is based on a commercially available 4×4 truck chassis. (Dmitry Fediushko)

“The new platform integrates components developed by VPK, and the chassis of a Ural-family truck,” Krasovitskiy said, adding that the VPK-Ural is a multipurpose platform that can be configured as an infantry vehicle or a weapon systems carrier.

The VPK-Ural weighs 14.5 tonnes and measures 6,500 mm long, 2,550 mm wide, and 2,800 mm high.

The vehicle can transport up to 12 fully equipped personnel when configured as a troop carrier. It is powered by a 360hp YaMZ-536 turbocharged diesel engine, which produces a road speed of 100 km/h and a cruising range of up to 1,000 km. It is provided with an automatic six-speed gearbox as standard, although this can be optionally changed to a manual five-speed gearbox.

The VPK-Ural has the same leaf spring suspension system as that used on the Ural-53099, and a 0.4 m ground clearance. In terms of mobility, the vehicle is capable of handling inclines up to 30° and side slopes up to 20°, fording 1.2 m water obstacles, crossing 0.4 m vertical obstacles, and trenches of 0.5 m.

The vehicle engine compartment and several other mission systems are provided with ballistic protection to GOST R 50963 level 5, which provides protection against 7.62 mm ×54R LPS (steel core) Or 7.62 mm × 39 PS rounds at 5 m.