Units of the 156th Mechanized Brigade have received modernized Bulgarian BTR-60 armored personnel carriers.

Photos of the vehicles were released by the brigade’s press service.

The first Bulgarian armored personnel carriers from a batch of 100 units that have been overhauled and modernized at Ukrainian enterprises appeared at the training of the newly created 156th Mechanized Brigade.

The vehicles, whose average age reaches 50 years, have undergone major repairs with a number of major design changes designed to improve comfort and reliability of operation.

The upgrade of the old BTR-60PBs to the BTR-60D level included a complete re-engineering with the replacement of a pair of 90-horsepower GAZ-40P gasoline engines and gearboxes with two new German Deutz BF4M2012 engines with a capacity of 102 hp each. As a result, in addition to reliability, power has also increased.

The decision to install a more difficult-to-operate twin-engine setup instead of a single engine was made to simplify and reduce the cost of the modernization process and to reduce the number of interventions in the machine design.

Major changes were also made to the layout of the armored vehicle: instead of extremely uncomfortable hatches, full-size doors were cut into both sides of the vehicle’s landing compartment for a more comfortable exit.

The original layout of the troops on benches turned “back to back” in the direction of the sides was changed to a more comfortable one, which increased the useful interior space.

However, the modernized vehicles in the video have a number of differences compared to the prototype, which was presented in an article by Militarnyi in April 2024.

First of all, the vehicles do not have spaced armor elements that were supposed to increase the level of protection for the crew. Instead, the armored personnel carriers have folding structures with anti-drone nets.

It is also unknown whether the vehicles received the electronic upgrade kit planned by the project, which included a new digital radio station “Lybid K-2RB”, a navigation system SN-4215, and night vision optical devices for the gunner and driver.

For more information on the nuances of the modernization of these vehicles, please read the exclusive article “Modernization of BTR-60D APCs presented in Ukraine”.