Editing BMP-2 (section)

== Development history ==
{{Main|BMP development}}
{{more citations needed|section|date=January 2016}}
[[File:Soviet BMP-1 IFV.JPEG|thumb|left|The [[BMP-1]], the predecessor to the BMP-2]]

Although the [[BMP-1]] was a revolutionary design, its main armament, the [[2A28 Grom]] and the 9S428 ATGM launcher capable of firing [[9M14 Malyutka]] (NATO: AT-3A Sagger A) and 9M14M Malyutka-M (NATO: AT-3B Sagger B) ATGMs, quickly became obsolete. Therefore, the Soviet Union decided to produce an updated and improved version of the BMP-1. The main emphasis was put on improving the main armament. In 1972, work got under-way to develop an improved version of the BMP-1.

During its combat debut in the [[Yom Kippur War|1973 Arab-Israeli War]], Egyptian and Syrian BMPs proved vulnerable to .50 calibre machine-gun fire in the sides and rear, and to 105&nbsp;mm [[M40 recoilless rifle]]s. The 2A28 Grom proved inaccurate beyond 500 metres, and the 9M14 Malyutka missile could not be guided effectively from the confines of the turret.

Several Soviet technical teams were sent to Syria in the wake of the war to gather information. These lessons, combined with observations of western AFV developments, resulted in a replacement project for the original BMP in 1974. The result was the BMP-1P upgrade, which was intended as a stopgap to address the most serious problems with the existing design.

Smoke grenade launchers were added to the rear of the turret and the [[MCLOS|manually guided]] 9M14 Malyutka missile system was replaced with the [[SACLOS|semi-automatically]] guided [[9K111 Fagot]] / [[9M113 Konkurs]] system. The BMP-1P was in production by the late 1970s. Existing BMP-1s were gradually upgraded to the BMP-1P standard during the 1980s.