TIL: German army inherited and modernized a bunch of E-German BMP-1s. The BMP-1A1 Ost. upgrade made them a little more comfortable (heater for the troop compartment, plastic covers on periscopes to prevent head injuries) and safe to use while also complying with German traffic laws (replacing headlamps, adding read lamps, etc.).
However, it also made them inferior in combat capabilities to the base model as they removed the auto-loader and ATGM launcher.
BMP-1A1 Ost. only served in the Heimatschutz (reserve) divisions that were created by converting former Volksarmee divisions.


