Analysis of the Employment of the LVT-5 in Riverine Operations in Vietnam and a Recommendation for the Employment of the AAAV in Future Riverine Operations

摘要

The U.S. Marine Corps will introduce the Advanced Assault Amphibian Vehicle (AAAV) in 2005, which will completely replace the current Assault Amphibian Vehicle (AAV) fleet of 1,013 vehicles by 2015. The AAAV will be the seventh version of the Landing Vehicle Tracked (LVT) referred to as 'Alligators, Amphibious Tractors or Amtracs,' and will continue a legacy of unique and innovative assault amphibians begun by Donald Roebling in 1942 with the original 'Alligator' (LVT-1) used in World War II. The AAAV is a quantum leap from the LVT-5 employed in Vietnam. With multispectrum signature reduction, increased land and water speed, digital communications, and increased firepower the AAAV will provide the MAGTF with an ideal platform to support riverine operations. The focus of this paper is to analyze the employment of the LVT-5 in riverine operations in Vietnam and make recommendations for the employment of the AAAV for future riverine operations. Following an introduction, the paper contains the following chapters: (2) Background on Riverine Warfare, (3) Riverine Warfare in Vietnam, (4) The LVT-5, (5) LVT-5 Employment in Riverine Operations in Vietnam, (6) Analysis of Lessons Learned from LVT-5 Riverine Operations in Vietnam, (7) The Transition from LVT-5 to AAV, (8) Stagnant Riverine Warfare Doctrine since Vietnam, (9) Emerging Doctrine and Over-the- Horizon Requirements, (10) The AAAV, (11) The AAAV and Future Riverine Operations, (12) Possible Scenarios for Future AAAV Riverine Operations, and (13) Recommendations for the Employment of AAAVs in Future Riverine Operations.