China Vs. India: Wheeled Armored Vehicles

China and India are both continent-sized countries with populations of over one billion people, making the prospect of a China vs. India conflict a potentially international disaster. At the present time, both countries are focused on domestic problems and furthering their economic development. However, China and India have conflicting ambitions and an unresolved border dispute that may draw them into conflict. In such an event, wheeled armor could figure prominently, as such vehicles are lighter and therefore better suited to the high roads of the Himalaya than tracked armor.

China

The main wheeled armored vehicle of the People's Liberation Army is the six-wheeled WZ-551 APC. This Norinco-produced vehicle was developed from a heavy duty 6x6 Chinese truck, which in turn was copied from the Mercedes 2060. The 12.5 ton vehicle can reach speeds of 52 mph, has an operational range of just under 500 miles, and has a welded steel hull. It is amphibious, has a three-man crew, and can carry nine passengers. The standard armament is either a 12.7 mm machine gun or a 25 mm autocannon, depending on the specific type of WZ-551. In the 25mm version, the cannon is mounted in a remotely-operated turret. There is also some use of the Soviet-era BTR-50, but only in small numbers. The vehicle has been exported to countries such as Pakistan, Sudan, Iran and Sri Lanka.

India

The Indian Army uses the Soviet-era BRDM-2 as a scout car and the Czech-Polish OT-64 as a wheeled APC. The BRDM is a 1960s 4x4 design with an average of 10 mm of welded steel armor on the turret and 7 mm on the hull. It is armed with a 14.5 mm and 7.62 mm machine gun, is fully amphibious, can reach speeds of just over 60 mph and has a range of 465 miles. It uses a gasoline engine instead of a diesel.

The OT-64 also dates from the 1960s. The 14.7 ton 8x8 can reach almost 60 mph, has a range of 440 miles and amphibious. Armor ranges between 6 mm and 13 mm, and the vehicle is armed with both a 14.5 mm and a 7.62 mm machine gun. The OT-64 needs two crew and can carry 10 passengers. The vehicle was exported widely, and is still in service with armies in the Middle East, Africa and South America.

The Indian Army also has a range of small armored cars, such as the British-made Ferret and the locally-made Hunky and Tuffy.

Result: India Wins!

The WZ-551 is a more modern vehicle and carries a big automatic cannon, so it is difficult to see why it would lose out to its Indian counterpart, the OT-64. However, the OT-64 is probably better armored, while retaining a higher road speed. Newer is not necessarily always better, and only the cannon-mounting IFV version of the WZ-551 out-guns the OT-64. The 12.7 mm-mounted APC version does not.

Beyond the straight comparison between these two wheeled APCs is the fact that the People's Liberation Army relies on the WZ-551 chassis to provide the variants for most of its other wheeled armored vehicles. In mountain or urban situations, India's smaller Huffy, Tuffy and Ferret armored cars will prove much more flexible. China's equivalent vehicles were phased out of service and have yet to be truly replaced.

Sources: Federation of American Scientists; globalsecurity.org