M113 armored personnel carrier

The M113 armored personnel carrier was developed in the late 1950s as a battlefield taxi: a lightly armoured, tracked carrier to take infantry and supplies to the front and follow armoured spearheads. The prime contractor was the Food Machinery and Chemical Corporation (FMC), whose defence division later became United Defense. Counting all upgrades and more than 40 variants, over 80,000 of the M113 family have been built, serving in over 50 countries.

Design

The box-shaped hull is welded from 5083 aluminium armour, and the welding of the first hulls was a major achievement for FMC. The light armour kept weight down for air transport and swimming. In the water the M113 is propelled by its moving tracks, with a trim vane raised at the bow, and the driver's pivot-steer levers are the main steering controls afloat. Air intakes and engine ventilation are on the upper surfaces for this reason.

The driver sits at the front left with the powerpack to his right. The commander sits behind them under a cupola with five periscopes, and the rear compartment holds benches for ten soldiers plus a jump seat, all of which can fold away for cargo. Access is by roof hatches, a large rear ramp and a door set in the ramp.

Development

The original M113 used a 361 cu in Chrysler 75M petrol V8 with an Allison six-speed Torqmatic transmission, fed from a 95-gallon tank. The M113A1 of 1964 introduced a 210 hp General Motors/Detroit Diesel 6V53 diesel. The A2 brought further improvements, and the M113A3 RISE programme of 1987 added a new engine and transmission, power brakes, better electrics and external fuel tanks, giving a cruising speed of over 40 mph and a range of about 300 miles.

Variants

The archive pages also cover the ACAV, an M113 with extra roof-mounted guns and gun shields used in Vietnam, illustrated with a veteran's 1972 photographs; FMC's Fitter repair vehicle, of which over 500 were built, with an opening roof and a 6,800 lb HIAB crane, weighing 25,800 lb; the Israeli Zelda infantry carrier; and an M113A2 fire-fighting conversion with a water bladder and roof nozzles, used by the Willits Fire Department in California. Photographs of the related M548 cargo carrier are also in the folder.