The Army's Little-Known Boat Fleet Is Getting a Big Upgrade

[Boats]

The Army's Little-Known Boat Fleet Is Getting a Big Upgrade
By: Hope Hodge Seck - Sandboxx & Military.com News - 11-14-22
Re: https://www.military.com/daily-news/...g-upgrade.html

Photo link: https://images03.military.com/sites/...?itok=nCkF_NCP
Landing Craft Mechanized (LCM) 8, assigned to 36 Water Transport Troop, 10 Force Support Battalion, Australian Army, conducts amphibious operations with the forward-deployed amphibious dock landing ship USS Ashland (LSD 48) in support of Operation Croc Response. (Ensign Juliana LaFrance/U.S. Navy photo)

While the Navy’s struggle to build out new ship classes for future conflicts makes headlines, the Army is quietly revamping its own little-known fleet – one that has at times had more vessels than the Navy’s, albeit smaller ones.

In October, the Army launched the first prototype of the new Maneuver Support Vessel (Light), or MSV(L), a cargo watercraft that’s set to become the service’s newest boat class. The 117-foot MSV(L), made by Vigor Industrial, has been in development since 2017 when the Army inked a $980 million, 10-year contract with the company. It’s set to replace the Army’s less-capable Vietnam-era Landing Craft Mechanized-8 (LCM-8), which is nearing the end of its service life. And it’s getting ready to enter service as the Army anticipates needing its boats more than ever before.

Tags: Military Headlines Army US Navy Topics
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Personal note: Looks like a good design and can haul multitask men and equipment.
But its still not bullet proof but better than the old style which needed upgrading.
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