Page "Regiment" Paragraph 45

The Motorized Rifle Regiment was one of the basic tactical units within the Soviet Armed Forces, totaling around 2, 500 officers and enlisted personnel.

While normally operating as part of a Motorised Rifle Division or Tank Division, it was capable of short-term independent operations.

By the late 1980s it consisted of a regimental headquarters in command of three Motorised Rifle Battalions, equipped with either the BMP or BTR series of armoured personnel carriers, and one Tank Battalion, typically consisting of T-64, T-72 or T-80 tanks, although older models were present in units outside the European Theater of Operations.

These were supported by a battalion of eighteen 122mm artillery pieces, either the self-propelled 2S1 Gvozdika in BMP regiments or towed D-30 howitzers in BTR regiments, along with three batteries of 120mm 120-PM-43 mortars or automatic 82mm 2B9 Vasilek mortars, however some BTR regiments also used the 2S1.

Additional combat support came in the form of an air defense missile and artillery company with four SA-9 / SA-13s and four ZSU-23-4 / 2S6 Tunguskas, an antitank missile battery with nine BRDM-mounted AT-3 Sagger or AT-5 Spandrel launchers, a reconnaissance company mounted on BMPs, BRDMs and motorcycles and an engineer company.

Other non-combat formations included a signals company, chemical protection platoon, material support company, maintenance company, and regimental medical point.