Editing Infantry fighting vehicle (section)

=== Late Cold War ===
[[File:Ratel 90 armyrecognition South-Africa 008 (cropped).jpg|thumb|250px|The [[Ratel IFV|Ratel]], the first wheeled IFV, introduced a number of novel features, such as a mine-protected hull.<ref name=SurviveRide>{{cite book|last1=Camp|first1=Steve|last2=Helmoed-Römer|first2=Heitman|title=Surviving the Ride: A pictorial history of South African Manufactured Mine-Protected vehicles|date=November 2014|pages=166–179|publisher=30 Degrees South|location=Pinetown|isbn=978-1-928211-17-4}}</ref>]]

Wheeled IFVs did not begin appearing until 1976,<ref name="USMC" /> when the [[Ratel IFV|Ratel]] was introduced in response to a [[South African Army]] specification for a wheeled combat vehicle suited to the demands of rapid offensives combining maximum firepower and strategic mobility.<ref name=Harmse>{{cite book|last1=Harmse|first1=Kyle|last2=Dunstan|first2=Simon |title=South African Armour of the Border War 1975–89|date=23 February 2017|pages=21–31|publisher=Osprey Publishing|location=Oxford|isbn=978-1-4728-1743-3}}</ref> Unlike European IFVs, the Ratel was not designed to allow mounted infantrymen to fight in concert with tanks but rather to operate independently across vast distances.<ref name=Harmse /> South African officials chose a very simple, economical design because it helped reduce the significant logistical commitment necessary to keep heavier combat vehicles operational in undeveloped areas.<ref name=Harmse /> Excessive track wear was also an issue in the region's abrasive, sandy terrain, making the Ratel's wheeled configuration more attractive.<ref name=Harmse /> The Ratel was typically armed with a 20&nbsp;mm autocannon featuring what was then a unique twin-linked ammunition feed, allowing its gunner to rapidly switch between armor-piercing and high-explosive ammunition.<ref name=Harmse /> Other variants were also fitted with mortars, a bank of anti-tank guided missiles, or a 90&nbsp;mm cannon.<ref name=SurviveRide /> Most notably, the Ratel was the first mine-protected IFV; it had a blastproof hull and was built to withstand the explosive force of anti-tank mines favored by local insurgents.<ref name=SurviveRide />

Like the BMP-1, the Ratel proved to be a major watershed in IFV development, albeit for different reasons: until its debut wheeled IFV designs were evaluated unfavorably, since they lacked the weight-carrying capacity and off-road mobility of tracked vehicles, and their wheels were more vulnerable to hostile fire.<ref name="USMC" /> However, improvements during the 1970s in power trains, suspension technology, and tires had increased their potential strategic mobility.<ref name="USMC" /> Reduced production, operation, and maintenance costs also helped make wheeled IFVs attractive to several nations.<ref name="USMC" />

During the late 1960s and early 1970s, the [[United States Army]] had gradually abandoned its attempts to utilize the M113 as an IFV and refocused on creating a dedicated IFV design able to match the BMP.<ref name=Guardia /> Although considered reliable, the M113 chassis did not meet the necessary requirements for protection or stealth.<ref name=Guardia /> The US also considered the M113 too heavy and slow to serve as an IFV capable of keeping pace with tanks.<ref name=Guardia /> Its [[MICV-65]] program produced a number of unique prototypes, none of which were accepted for service owing to concerns about speed, armor protection, and weight.<ref name=Guardia /> US Army evaluation staff were sent to Europe to review the AMX-10P and the Marder, both of which were rejected due to high cost, insufficient armor, or lackluster amphibious capabilities.<ref name=Guardia />

In 1973, the [[FMC Corporation]] developed and tested the XM723, which was a 21-ton tracked chassis which could accommodate three crew members and eight passengers.<ref name="Guardia" /> It initially carried a single 20&nbsp;mm autocannon in a one-man turret<ref name="Guardia" /> but in 1976 a two-man turret was introduced; this carried a 25&nbsp;mm autocannon like [[M242 Bushmaster|M242]] or [[Oerlikon KBA]], a co-axial machine gun, and a [[BGM-71 TOW|TOW]] anti-tank missile launcher.<ref name="USMC" /> The XM723 possessed amphibious capability, nine firing ports, and spaced laminate armor on its hull.<ref name="USMC" /> It was accepted for service with the US Army in 1980 as the [[Bradley Fighting Vehicle]].<ref name="USMC" /> Successive variants have been retrofitted with improved missile systems, gas particulate filter systems, Kevlar spall liners, and increased stowage.<ref name="Guardia" /> The amount of space taken up by the hull and stowage modifications has reduced the number of passengers to six.<ref name="Guardia" />

By 1982 30,000 IFVs had entered service worldwide, and the IFV concept appeared in the doctrines of 30 national armies.<ref name="USMC" /> The popularity of the IFV was increased by the growing trend on the part of many nations to mechanize armies previously dominated by light infantry.<ref name="USMC" /> However, contrary to expectation the IFV did not render APCs obsolete.<ref name="MICV" /> The US, Russian, French, and German armies have all retained large fleets of IFVs and APCs, finding the APC more suitable for multi-purpose or auxiliary roles.<ref name="MICV" />

The [[British Army]] was one of the few Western armies which had neither recognized a niche for IFVs nor adopted a dedicated IFV design by the late 1970s.<ref name="USMC" /> In 1980, it made the decision to adopt a new tracked armored vehicle, the [[Warrior tracked armoured vehicle|FV510 Warrior]].<ref name="USMC" /> British doctrine is that a vehicle should carry troops under protection to the objective and then give firepower support when they have disembarked. While normally classified as an IFV, the Warrior fills the role of an APC in British service and infantrymen do not remain embarked during combat.<ref name="USMC" />