Armored Troop Carrier (ATC)

History of Armored Personnel Carriers (ATC)

The U.S. Navy, like the French Navy during the First Indochina War, recognized the importance of controlling and utilizing South Vietnam's numerous streams and rivers for warfare and supplies. Thus, the purpose of the armored personnel carrier (or "ATC") is twofold - first, to move the U.S. Army and ARVN units, and second, to serve fireboats and other gasoline-powered vessels on Vietnam's rivers. In a standard operation, troops are brought into battle in the Navy's ATCs, which are traditional landing craft armour to protect the onslaught of fire they often face from abandoned enemy positions on land.

These armored ships can transport fully equipped infantry platoons of 40 men on any waterway 5 feet deep or deeper.

The ATC boat converted from the LCM-6 landing craft was developed in the 1950s for ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore operations. The rebuilt LCM design adds 0.25" armor plates in many areas to protect the superstructure from severe damage from missiles. Improved armored ATCs accounted for about half of the riverboats the United States used during the Vietnam War, making the ATCs effectively the "workhorse" of river warfare.

Some ATCs have added helipads and become ATC(H). These devices enable helicopters to land themselves on ships to quickly evacuate wounded soldiers.

Mobile Riverine Force (MRF) starts with three basic ship types: (1) ATC ships ("Tango Ships") - this is the most useful ship; (2) MRF's floating artillery platform "Monitor" and (3) Command and Communications Ship (CCB), the so-called "Charlie Ship". Each squadron has a tango, which is converted into a refueling vessel for all of the above.

The ATC has a fuel capacity (using heating oil or gasoline) of 1,200 gallons and holds 300 gallons of lube oil and a 500 gallon mix tank. The boat is equipped with a portable fuel tank and transfer pump, requiring hoses to change fuel.

The ATC has a displacement of 155,000 pounds fully loaded and a cargo weight of 130,000 pounds. A sling was installed to lift the tank from the boat.

She retained a semi-flat with 2 x 6-cylinder diesel engines, each producing 225 hp at 2,100 rpm for emergency and 165 hp at 1,800 rpm for continuous use. ATC uses 2 x 24"D x 17"P with 2" bore and right hand propeller. Cargo bay is 9'6" x 22'6", headless, 9'6" x 31'6", no dock. [ /p]

All Tango boats have a unique lowered bow ramp for deploying troops and loading cargo to and from the shoreline. Thanks to the hardened steel armored shield, the ATC is able to provide close support to enemy fire. The ship can carry an arsenal of weapons, making it useful for most defensive and offensive missions.

The ATC is normally armed with 4 x 7.62mm M60 general purpose machine guns and 2 x 12.7mm Browning M2 machine guns, 1 x 40mm Mk 19 rapid-fire grenade launcher and 2 x 20mm artillery pieces, which are protected by armoured bunkers. The seven crew members also carried their personal weapons, and a large amount of ammunition was stored on board.

If the Monitor riverboat is considered the "battleship" of Vietnam's rivers, then the Tango ATC boat is the "heavy cruiser".

Tango ships took part in an unforgettable chapter in the U.S. Naval River Wars, a grueling attempt to control the "green" and "brown" waterways of the Republic of Vietnam. The U.S. Army's River Mobile Force uses ATC to transport river infantry units to the Mekong Delta. In the early days of the war, Tango boats mainly transported troops from the 9th Infantry Division.

When the decision was made to integrate, the Vietnamese Army and Navy replaced the Americans on these Tango ships.

Viet Cong guerrillas were active on the river every day, leading to intense close-range fire. The guerrillas used a variety of boats (called "sailboats" and "sampans") capable of navigating in water only a few inches deep and nearly invisible and unheard of near river banks.

However, the Combined Army and Navy Mobile River Forces also operate in these inland river areas. This force, consisting of air traffic controllers and heavily armored monitors and support ships, brought combat units from the U.S. Army's 9th Infantry Division into the fray.

The ACT was able to deploy troops on the flanks and rear of communists to defeat enemy forces. After years of war, the enemy began to find ways to counter Allied river patrols - the Viet Cong began to use smaller rivers and canals to transport their supplies.

As a result, the main force of the North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong learned to avoid direct contact with the more powerful mobile river forces.

To protect Vietnam's Mekong Delta, U.S. and Vietnamese river troops fought hard and fast against powerful Vietnamese communist enemies. In 1975, the Vietnam War ended with the defeat of the Republic of Vietnam and the United States.

However, the experience and brave work of the ATC crew and their sister ships has provided the military with valuable river warfare knowledge for possible future applications.

Specification

Basic

Roles

Dimensions

Weight

Performance

Performance

Armor

Wing