Building an Indigenous Family of Armoured Vehicles: A Strategic Blueprint for Bangladesh Army

Reading Time: 7 minutes This report outlines a comprehensive strategy for the Bangladesh Army to develop a family of indigenous armoured vehicles (AVs), with the dual aim of reducing dependency on foreign imports and strengthening the domestic defence-industrial base. Drawing on case studies from Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Australia, it recommends a modular, collaborative, and phased approach aligned with the capabilities of existing Bangladeshi industries and the requirements of future battlefields. Table 1: Bangladesh Army and Border Guard Bangladesh’s armoured vehicle inventory CategoryModelsTracked APCsType 85 (YW531H), Type 63Wheeled APCs / MRAPsBTR-80 APC/ARV, BOV M86 (R&S), Otokar APV (APC), Otokar Cobra I/II LAV, Navistar MaxxPro MRAP, Spartan (APC)Armoured AmbulanceRN-94 Adopting a Common Modular Platform Approach One of the most cost-effective and operationally efficient strategies is to develop a common modular chassis that can be tailored to various battlefield roles. A modular platform enables the creation of multiple variants (e.g., IFV,