Russian forces fielded BTR-82A/BTR-82A(M) armored personnel carriers during the full-scale invasion; Oryx documents hundreds of visually confirmed Russian BTR-82A(M) losses, including destroyed, abandoned, and captured vehicles. Ukrainian National Guard imagery separately supports Ukrainian possession of at least one captured Russian BTR-82.
Role detailsArmored Vehicles
BTR-82/BTR-82A
Also known as
- BTR-82
- BTR-82A
- BTR-82A(M)
- BTR-82AM
- БТР-82А
The BTR-82/BTR-82A is a Russian 8x8 amphibious armored personnel carrier developed from the BTR-80 family. The BTR-82A adds a stabilized 30 mm 2A72 cannon, improved sights, a 300 hp KAMAZ diesel, spall liners, and other mobility and survivability upgrades, making it one of the more heavily armed wheeled APCs widely documented with Russian units in the 2014 Russia-Ukraine War.
Role in Conflicts
Pro-government forces fielded newly delivered BTR-82A infantry fighting vehicles in the 2015 Lattakia offensive; Oryx reported footage showing at least one BTR-82A taking part and later assessed Russian personnel were likely operating the vehicle.
Role details- Side
- Azerbaijan
Azerbaijani forces used BTR-82/BTR-82A vehicles during the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh fighting; Oryx lists visually confirmed Azerbaijani BTR-82A losses, and an IRSEM battlefield study describes BMP-2 and BTR-82 vehicles abandoned in a minefield during the southern offensive.
Russian Africa Corps personnel operating alongside Malian government forces fielded BTR-82A armored personnel carriers in Mali; reporting placed BTR-82A vehicles in a January 2025 Russian column and separately reported a BTR-82A loss during April 2026 fighting in Kidal.
Profile / Specs
Profile
- Origin
- Russia
- Type
- 8x8 amphibious armored personnel carrier
- Service note
- 2010s-present
- Designed
- Late 2000s
- Produced
- 2010s-present
- Number built
- Forecast International estimated 1,739 BTR-82/82A vehicles produced through 2023.
- Developed from
- BTR-80/BTR-80A family
Specifications
- Crew and passengers
- 3 crew plus 7 troops
- Weight
- 16 t
- Dimensions
- 7.58 m long x 2.985 m wide x 2.725 m high
- Armament
- BTR-82A: 2A72 30 mm automatic cannon and PKTM 7.62 mm coaxial machine gun
- Ammunition
- 300 rounds for the 30 mm cannon; 2,000 rounds for the 7.62 mm machine gun
- Engine
- KAMAZ-740.14-300 diesel, 300 hp
- Mobility
- 8x8 wheeled amphibious chassis; 80 km/h maximum road speed
- Sight and stabilization
- TKN-4GA-01 day/night sight and two-axis stabilized armament system
- Navigation and communications
- Upgraded communications gear and a topographic navigation system
- Range
- 700 km cruising range
- Ground clearance
- 475 mm
- Cannon range
- Up to 4,000 m against ground targets with HE-incendiary and fragmentation-tracer rounds
- Protection
- Small-arms and shell-fragment protection with internal spall liners
Configuration Notes
The BTR-82 family is best read as a BTR-80 modernization branch rather than a clean-sheet vehicle. The main public split is armament and rebuild path: BTR-82 for the KPVT-armed modernization, BTR-82A for the 2A72 cannon configuration, and BTR-82AM for older BTR-80-series hulls rebuilt toward the BTR-82/82A performance standard.
Variants
The BTR-82 family is a BTR-80 modernization branch. Public export material centers the BTR-82A on the stabilized 2A72 30 mm cannon, while reference material separates the BTR-82, BTR-82A, and BTR-82AM designations by armament fit and upgrade path.
| Variant | Configuration | Designation notes |
|---|---|---|
| BTR-82 | Machine-gun armed modernization | Forecast International separates the BTR-82 from the BTR-82A by main armament: the BTR-82 uses a stabilized 14.5 mm KPVT, while the BTR-82A uses a 30 mm 2A72 cannon. Sources: Forecast International BTR-82A |
| BTR-82A | 30 mm cannon configuration | Rosoboronexport's BTR-82A export page identifies the 2A72 30 mm automatic cannon, PKTM coaxial machine gun, 8x8 amphibious chassis, and 300 hp engine that define the public BTR-82A specification set. Sources: BTR-82A Armoured Personnel Carrier |
| BTR-82AM | BTR-80-series rebuild | Forecast International describes the BTR-82AM as BTR-80-standard vehicles modernized to the BTR-82/82A performance standard and used by Russian Ground Forces and Naval Infantry contingents. Sources: Forecast International BTR-82A |
| BTR-82A1 | Remote-turret development | Forecast International lists the BTR-82A1 as a BTR-82A variant with a remotely operated turret system, advanced fire-control systems, a 30 mm cannon, and a coaxial 7.62 mm machine gun. Sources: Forecast International BTR-82A |
Mounted Weapons
Rosoboronexport identifies the BTR-82A family as carrying the 2A72 main gun and PKTM coaxial machine gun.
| Carried item | Item type | Carriage evidence |
|---|---|---|
 | 30 mm automatic cannon | Rosoboronexport lists the BTR-82A variant's main weapon as the 2A72 30 mm automatic cannon. Sources: BTR-82A Armoured Personnel Carrier |
 | 7.62 mm coaxial machine gun | Rosoboronexport lists the BTR-82A variant's secondary weapon as the PKTM 7.62 mm coaxial machine gun. Sources: BTR-82A Armoured Personnel Carrier, PKTM - Machine guns |
Timeline
BTR-82/BTR-82A Key Events
Prototype period
Reference reporting places the BTR-82 prototype period in the late 2000s before Russian service adoption.
Sources: Forecast International BTR-82A
Low-rate production and trials
Forecast International says Arzamas began low-level BTR-82 production for testing in 2010 and moved into serial production after a brief trial period.
Sources: Forecast International BTR-82A
Azerbaijani export deliveries begin
Army Recognition, citing TASS and SIPRI context, reported that Russian BTR-82A deliveries to Azerbaijan began in 2013 and that Kazakhstan had received 44 vehicles in 2011-2012.
Sources: Russia completed supplies of BTR-82A APC to Azerbaijan Kazakhstan
BTR-82A seen in Syria
Oryx documented a BTR-82A taking part in the Lattakia offensive and later tied the vehicle to likely Russian personnel.
Sources: Sighting of Russian BTR-82A IFV leaves no doubt that Russia is throwing equipment into Syria, New evidence proves Russian military directly engaging in 2011 Syrian Civil War
Documented in Nagorno-Karabakh
Open-source loss documentation and an IRSEM battlefield study place Azerbaijani BTR-82/BTR-82A vehicles in the 2020 fighting.
Sources: The Fight For Nagorno-Karabakh: Documenting Losses On The Sides Of Armenia And Azerbaijan, RETEX - 44 days over Nagorno-Karabakh
Large-scale Russian losses in Ukraine
Oryx's invasion loss tracker lists visually confirmed Russian BTR-82A(M) losses across destroyed, abandoned, captured, and damaged categories.
Sources: Attack On Europe: Documenting Russian Equipment Losses During The Russian Invasion Of Ukraine
BTR-82A vehicles reported in Mali
UNITED24 Media identified a Russian BTR-82A in a January 2025 Russian Africa Corps column in Mali, citing Defense Express and Russian bmpd analysis of local imagery.
Sources: Recently Spotted Russian Military Column in Mali Outguns Entire Malian Army
Media
BTR-82/BTR-82A Videos
Related Weapon Systems
Sources
BTR-82A Armoured Personnel CarrierPublisher: Rosoboronexport | Note: Official export page supporting system role, BTR-80A upgrade background, armament, protection, mobility, crew capacity, and specifications. | Accessed: 2026-07-02PKTM - Machine gunsPublisher: Rosoboronexport | Note: Official export page supporting the PKTM coaxial machine gun designation and its use as BTR-82A secondary armament. | Accessed: 2026-06-30Army Technology BTR-82A Armoured Personnel CarrierPublisher: Army Technology | Note: Supports manufacturer attribution to Military Industrial Company of Russia and additional design, armament, mobility, and production background. | Accessed: 2026-07-02Forecast International BTR-82APublisher: Forecast International | Note: Reference report supporting BTR-82-family variant distinctions, prototype-period context, BTR-80 modernization lineage, armament differences, estimated production through 2023, Arzamas manufacturing context, and service background. | Accessed: 2026-07-02Russia completed supplies of BTR-82A APC to Azerbaijan KazakhstanPublisher: Army Recognition | Note: Background source, citing TASS and SIPRI context, for export deliveries to Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan and for BTR-82A prototype and turret context. | Accessed: 2026-07-02Attack On Europe: Documenting Russian Equipment Losses During The Russian Invasion Of UkrainePublisher: Oryx | Note: Directly supports 2014 Russia-Ukraine War use by listing visually confirmed Russian BTR-82A(M) losses during the invasion. | Accessed: 2026-06-30Recently Spotted Russian Military Column in Mali Outguns Entire Malian ArmyPublisher: UNITED24 Media | Note: Directly supports 2012 Mali War use by reporting BTR-82A armored personnel carriers in a January 2025 Russian Africa Corps column in Mali. | Accessed: 2026-07-02Russia's mercenaries left Malian city under escort by rebels they came to fightPublisher: Euromaidan Press | Note: Directly supports 2012 Mali War use by reporting a BTR-82A loss among Russian Africa Corps equipment during April 2026 fighting in Kidal. | Accessed: 2026-07-02Sighting of Russian BTR-82A IFV leaves no doubt that Russia is throwing equipment into SyriaPublisher: Oryx | Note: Directly supports 2011 Syrian Civil War use by documenting a BTR-82A infantry fighting vehicle in the 2015 Lattakia offensive. | Accessed: 2026-06-30New evidence proves Russian military directly engaging in 2011 Syrian Civil WarPublisher: Oryx | Note: Directly supports 2011 Syrian Civil War operator context by linking the BTR-82A in Lattakia to likely Russian personnel and fire-support activity. | Accessed: 2026-06-30The Fight For Nagorno-Karabakh: Documenting Losses On The Sides Of Armenia And AzerbaijanPublisher: Oryx | Note: Directly supports 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict use by listing visually confirmed Azerbaijani BTR-82A losses in the 2020 fighting. | Accessed: 2026-06-30RETEX - 44 days over Nagorno-KarabakhPublisher: IRSEM | Note: Directly supports 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict operational context by describing Azerbaijani BMP-2 and BTR-82 vehicles abandoned in a minefield during the 2020 southern offensive. | Accessed: 2026-06-30UA NGU captured BTR-82 01 edited.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance and licensing page for the selected BTR-82 image; Commons lists CC BY 4.0 licensing and directly supports 2014 Russia-Ukraine War captured-equipment context through National Guard of Ukraine provenance for Ukrainian possession of a captured BTR-82. | Accessed: 2026-07-02BTR-82A of the Western Military District - June 2023.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance and licensing page for a Commons image of a BTR-82A from the Russian Ministry of Defence; Commons lists CC BY 4.0 licensing. | Accessed: 2026-06-30BTR-82A turret - June 2023.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance and licensing page for a Commons image of the BTR-82A turret; Commons lists CC BY 4.0 licensing. | Accessed: 2026-06-30BTR-82A 30mm 2A72 autocannon 01.jpgPublisher: Wikimedia Commons | Note: Image provenance and licensing page for a Commons image showing the BTR-82A's 2A72 30 mm automatic cannon; Commons lists CC BY 4.0 licensing. | Accessed: 2026-06-30