BTR-60

You see, comrade, armor can be on wheels too (not really, that thing can be penetrated with 0.50 cal)

The "Bronetransportyor-60 or "BTR-60" for short is an 8-wheeled Armored Personnel Carrier used by the Soviet Union. First pressed into service on 1959, the APC piloted by two crewmen and can transport upto 12 soldiers. Additionally, despite it looking particularly bulky, it still had amphibious capabilities and was pretty fast for a transport, so it was capable of mounting a lightning water-borne assault, or run around the area doing scout runs, with ease.

As it was only designed to transport troops, it's armaments only consist of a turret-mounted 14.5mm heavy machine gun and a co-axial 7.62mm medium machine gun, with the soldiers inside providing the rest of the firepower needed to take out anything with more armor than a scout car KPVT loaded with armor-piercing rounds had a chance of penetrating the 30mm front aluminium armor of early M2s at the distance of 500m, one of the reasons those were upgraded to M2A2; meeting anything heavier on the battlefield face to face is a death sentence for BTR-60 (and any BTR, really) unless infantry can take it out. It's armor can also deflect small-arms, but is incapable of reliably protecting it against anything larger than a .50 caliber round from a front (9mm, but it's angled) and can be penetrated with an armor-piercing rounds from 7.62mm machine guns at close distances from the side, having only 7mm of steel between the transported soldiers and horrors of the battlefield.

Some reports from the 1990s even suggested that the then-new US M995 depleted uranium AP round in 5.56mm was quite capable of penetrating a BTR-70's or BRDM-2's armor from the sides or rear at close range. HEAT rounds from 40mm grenade launchers are also more than capable of penetrating and causing significant damage. Any kind of purpose-designed antiarmor weapon--like, say, a Panzerfaust, or a M72 LAAW, or an RPG--is pretty much guaranteed to turn it into a rolling crematorium on the first hit. Not that BMP-1s or BMDs are much better protected, mind you.

In Team Yankee

Da Stats Comrade

Rather realistically, the BTR-60 is portrayed as a rather useless vehicle outside of its designed role. With only a single point of armour on the front and a single KPVT machine gun with AT5, it has a specific job: battle taxi-ing. While the BMP and M113 have decent stats, it detracts from the idea that the FIRST job of these vehicles it to ferry troops to the battlefield, safely. The BTR fulfils this role handsomely.

While its stats might be mediocre, the BTR comes in droves. Much like their untermensch passengers, your BTRs can comfortably outnumber the enemy 2-1 at the very least. Employed as suicide units, BTRs have a role as meatshields. Rushing forward and threatening your opponent’s vulnerable artillery pieces or support units, it forces the enemy to spend a whole turn wasting their anti-armour firepower on these things. If ignored, massed AT5 fire is capable of causing surprising damage to M109s or anything lighter. Even FV432s and M113s need to take note, as they are vulnerable to mass bails from side shots. They may have the armour of a scarf but the gun works almost like an autocannon.

Situationally, players may use the BTRs as roadblocks. After death, they provide bulletproof cover and concealment.

But cost-wise, the BTR is effectively free! BTR companies are taken for the infantry, with the APCs essentially coming free. This means that if the BTRs can actually kill units of value such as infantry, anti-air or artillery you are getting additional value on top.

As always, Soviet stat lines and unit sizes make them rather reliable troops (if incapable of understanding your orders).

Model Making Note: Unless you want to loose your mind trying to keep the turrets on your btrs, spring for the magnets (5mmx1mm circular magnets). The turrets are just to small for the peg that the kit comes with to hold them on to any reasonable standard.

Variants

East German, Polish and Czech infantry may bring the BTR-60 as a transport that play almost identically to the Soviet equivalent, apart from their 4+ skill.

The Iraqis use these for their motorized infantry companies and may bring BTR-60s as spotters for the artillery. The Iranians also can equip formations with the BTR-60 as a transport vehicle, as they captured some Iraqi and purchased a good deal of the vehicles during the war.

IRL

It looks like little mysh no? ("uh whats a mysh?" "Mouse you silly American Ay' Blyn")

The BTR-60 is long since retired from active service with the Russian military and almost all Soviet successors but the rugged design has kept it in service with many poorer nations around the world. It is currently used for border patrols in Russia. By the 1980s USSR forces stationed nearest to the Iron curtain were using the BTR-70 so it should actually be with East Germany while the BTR-70 units serve Russian forces as West German group got the very best toys and BTR-80 only entered production in 1986.

And while the BTR-70 and BTR-80 have some improvements in mechanical reliability, better engines and transmissions, and so on, over the BTR60, in terms of either stats or outward appearance there are only small details here and there to distinguish them from the BTR-60. The BTR-80A has the same 30mm autocannon as a BMP-2 shoehorned into its turret to replace the 14.5mm HMG, and the BTR90 has a BMP-2's turret stuck on top, with autocannon and laser-guided ATGM launcher, though it is not certain whether either of these exists in significant numbers in the present day, IRL.

Currently the Russian-Ukrainian war is showing us how APCs fare on a modern day battlefield filled with ATGMs. Unlike conflicts in the middle east where the opposition had little to no air support and only access to unguided RPGs. The conflict in Ukraine is a conflict between two nations with access to state of the art munitions, which Team Yankee simulates. In short the BTRs are frighteningly vulnerable and die very quick. More than a few Russian commanders got to discover this while themselves being turned into borscht. This questions the wisdom of using these vehicles as command and control vehicles. On the opposite side, the Ukrainians had a hilarious moment when they allegedly disabled two T-72s with a 30mm autocannon up both vehicle's asses.

Thanks to the Russians not bothering to learn from history when the Germans discovered the limitations of using wheeled vehicles through the Ukrainian countryside, the sheer number of these vehicles being abandoned due to being stuck in mud and ditches is staggering. Though this also speaks to Russian training, morale, and logistics. Even more amusing is the trolling being done by the Ukrainians themselves in stealing them and liberating the countryside.

East German Forces in Team Yankee
Tanks:	T-55 - T55AM2 - T-72M - T-72B
Transports:	BTR-60 - BMP-1 - BMP-2
Troops:	Mot-Schützen Kompanie - Hind Assault Landing Company
Artillery:	2S1 Carnation - BM-21 Hail - RM-70 - 2S3 Acacia
Anti-Aircraft:	ZSU 23-4 Shilka - SA-13 Gopher - SA9 Gaskin - SA-8 Gecko
Tank Hunters:	Spandrel
Recon:	BMP-1 OP - BRDM-2
Aircraft:	MI-24 Hind - SU-22 Fitter
Soviet Support:	SU-25 Frogfoot

Iraqi Forces in Team Yankee
Tanks:	T-55 - T-62 - T-72M
Transports:	BTR-60 - OT-64 - AMX-10P - BMP-1
Troops:	Motor Rifle Company
Artillery:	2S1 Carnation - 2S3 Acacia - AMX Auf1 - BM-21 Hail
Anti-Aircraft:	ZSU 23-4 Shilka - SA-13 Gopher - SA9 Gaskin - SA-8 Gecko - Roland AA
Tank Hunters:	Spandrel - VCR/TH
Recon:	BRDM-2 - BTR-60 OP
Aircraft:	MI-24 Hind - Gazelle HOT
US Support:	A-10 Warthog - AV-8 Harrier