The 9K31 Strieła-1 (NATO designation: SA-9 Gaskin) is a Soviet self-propelled wheeled anti-aircraft set from the post-war period. The production of this type of vehicles started in the mid-1960s. The length of the vehicle was 5.8 meters with a width of 2.4 meters. The drive was provided by a single engine GAZ-41 with a maximum power of up to 140 hp. The maximum speed on the road was up to 100 km / h.
The SA-9 Gaskin vehicle was an evolutionary development of the BRDM-2 reconnaissance vehicle. Unlike the standard version, the turret with the machine gun was replaced with a 9M31 quadruple surface-to-air missile launcher or - later - 9M31M. The SA-9 Gaskin car was characterized by good driving dynamics in the field and on the road. He was also able to overcome small water obstacles without any special preparation. The set was intended for short and short-range anti-aircraft defense, and with the use of 9M31 missiles, it could fight airplanes and helicopters operating at altitudes from 50 to 3,000 meters. The SA-9 Gaskin vehicles complemented the ZSU-23 Shilka artillery sets and were used at the level of an armored or mechanized regiment.
At the end of World War II, the Red Army, which would soon (in 1946) be renamed the Soviet Army, had approx. 9.8 million people formed in approx. 500 divisions of various types. This number was reduced relatively quickly, but during the Cold War (1945-1991) the total number of Soviet armed forces ranged from about 2.8 to about 5.3 million people. In the mid-1980s, i.e. during the war in Afghanistan, the Soviet land forces numbered about 210 divisions, of which as many as 160 divisions were motorized infantry divisions made up of conscripts. The motorized rifle division consisted of three infantry regiments, one armored regiment, a self-propelled artillery regiment and numerous support units, primarily characterized by a relatively strong anti-aircraft defense consisting of artillery and missile sets. The basic weapon of the Soviet infantryman at that time was the very successful AK-47 machine gun, later modernized to the AK-74 standard. The support weapons were light and heavy machine guns. Wheeled armored personnel carriers (APCs) were an important means of transport, initially they were BTR-152, but later BTR-60, BTR-70 and BTR-80. It is assumed that around 1990 there were approximately 70,000 different types of armored personnel carriers in various technical conditions in the Soviet Army. It is worth adding that the Soviet units during the Cold War were trained primarily for full-scale conflict with NATO, and Western Europe was considered the most likely area of operations. In such a conflict, it was assumed that the progress of the motorized infantry division would be from 80 to 100 kilometers in the first 3-4 days of the operation.