In this article, we look at five militaries with the most armored fighting vehicles in the world. You can read about trends in the defense industry by heading over to the 15 Militaries with the Most Armored Fighting Vehicles in the World.
5. France
Armored Fighting Vehicles: 85,023
The French army is the most powerful in Europe when it comes to the strength of its ground forces. The country’s commitment to maintaining a modern and competent military is testament to its role as a key contributor to the continent’s security. It currently boasts a fleet of over 85,000 armored fighting vehicles, with the VBCI Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV) being the primary armored vehicle operated by the country, which offers high mobility and maximum anti-mine and ballistic protection.
4. India
Armored Fighting Vehicles: 151,248
Next up is India, with over 150,000 armored fighting vehicles, which reflects its status as a major global power and a key player in the South Asia region. In November last year, India joined hands with the United States to co-produce the Stryker armored vehicles in India. The move is being seen by analysts as the latest example of military technology cooperation between the two friendly countries amid ongoing border disputes between New Delhi and Beijing.
3. Russia
Armored Fighting Vehicles: 161,382
Russia is among militaries with the most armored fighting vehicles in the world, with a fleet size of 161,382 AFVs. The country has the largest fleet of battle tanks in the world (14,777), and a considerable number of infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers. That being said, Russian AFVs have suffered heavy losses in the ongoing war in Ukraine, and according to a report in Forbes, the Kremlin could run out of its infantry fighting vehicles in the next two to three years if it continues to lose them at this rate. Over 2,000 of the 4,000 BMP-1s that went into the war in February 2022 have been taken out by the Ukrainians.
2. China
Armored Fighting Vehicles: 174,300
China has the second most number of armored fighting vehicles in the world. The country has the fourth largest battle tank fleet in the world, with about 5,000 tanks in its arsenal. The Type 99 and Type 96 are the most advanced and mainstay tanks China possesses, while the Type 15 tank or the Black Panther, is among the newest tanks operated by the PLA. The ZBD-04A infantry combat vehicle is the primary AFV in use by the Chinese military. It also has a significant number of armored personnel carriers in its armory.
1. United States
Armored Fighting Vehicles: 360,069
The United States military has the most number of armored fighting vehicles in the world, with a fleet size of over 360,000 – which is more than double of what China possesses at second spot. The M1 Abrams and its variants are the primary battle tanks operated by the US Army. These are the most sophisticated and advanced tanks in the world currently. When it comes to infantry fighting vehicles, the M2 Bradley and Stryker are the two main armored fighting vehicles that are in use by the Army. Both of these come with impressive fire power capabilities and high mobility while also providing greater protection to the warfighters inside. The US also has several thousand armored personnel carriers, with the M113 still continuing to be the mainstay of the Army.
Insider Monkey focuses on uncovering the best investment ideas of hedge funds and insiders. Please subscribe to our free daily enewsletter to get the latest investment ideas from hedge funds’ investor letters by entering your email address below. You can also check out our articles on 12 Tech Stocks To Sell Right Now According To Cathie Wood and 14 Best Real Estate and Realty Stocks To Buy According to Analysts.
Follow Insider Monkey on X.
