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Synonimous with the Vietnam War is the M113 APC, known as a "Track" to her crews. The story of the M113 actually begins much earlier, towards the end … more »

Synonimous with the Vietnam War is the M113 APC, known as a "Track" to her crews. The story of the M113 actually begins much earlier, towards the end of WW2 and after when the U.S. Army began reasearch and developement into the use of dedicated armoured troop carriers. In 1952 the Army purchased the M75 APC (similar in over-all appearance to the M113), but it was too heavy and slow... so it was replaced during the Korean conflict by the M54 which served valiantly during that war. In the late 50's a new requirement was laid out for an APC that could be air-transported and amphibious. Many designs were tested and the M113 (from the same manufacturer as the earlier two tracks) was finnally selected. It's new aluminum armour made it extremely light weight, allowing it to meet the requirements that the U.S. Army had laid out, and in 1960 it was officially adopted into the Army's inventory. During its lengthy service in Vietnam, its light wieght was discovered to be a great weakness as its armour was too thin to offer much protection from anything other than small arms fire, however, through trial and error this defficinecy was over come in the feild. Many crews layered the interior and roof with sandbags to offer some extra protection... and eventually special kits were designed to help improve its capabilities. The M113 underwent many modifications and saw many versions produced. Serving actively in over 40 countries around the world (including the U.S.), it remains in service to this day! With this model i've depicted the basic M113a1, and have included a modification kit to convert it to the ACav (Armoured Cavalry Vehicle) variant common to the later parts of the war in Vietnam. Enjoy! « Less