In 1937, the commanding general of the Fleet Marine Force in the Pacific read an article in Life magazine about a tracked rescue vehicle being built in Florida to aid in hurricane relief efforts. Called the "Alligator," the vehicle had been developed by Donald Roebling, grandson of John Augustus Roebling, the famous civil engineer who oversaw construction of the Brooklyn Bridge. What caught the attention of the commanding general was the fact that Roebling's invention seemed to be a safe and reliable amphibious vehicle. The U.S. Marine Corps had been trying for years to develop a vehicle that could provide mobility both between ship and shore and on the land, but the effort had not been going well. Roebling's Alligator seemed like a possible solution to the problem.

It was. After some modifications (partly paid for by Roebling), the seven-ton, aluminum-hulled Alligator became the first successful amphibious assault vehicle in U.S. military history. In 1941, the Food Machinery Company (now FMC) plant in Florida turned out the initial 100 Alligators manufactured to Marine Corps specifications. Officially designated the Landing Vehicle, Tracked (LVT-1), production surged after the U.S. entered World War Two in late 1941. The vehicle was first employed in a Marine amphibious assault on Guadalcanal on August 7, 1942. A total of 15,000 tracked amphibious vehicles were used during the war by Marines in the Pacific and Army forces in Europe.

Today, sixty years after the general first read about Roebling's Alligator, Marine Corps amphibious forces -- still known as the "Gator Navy" -- continue to structure their warfighting doctrine and tactics around the tracked amphibious vehicle. But despite major refinements in the 1950s and 1970s, in some ways the amphibious assault vehicle has not progressed far beyond Roebling's design. The water speed of the Corps' present amphibian, the AAV7A1, is still less than ten miles per hour. Its range on water is only a few miles. And there are still significant dangers and difficulties in making the mechanical transition from water movement to land mobility. However, within a few years that is all going to change, because the Marine Corps has begun development of an "Advanced Amphibious Assault Vehicle" (AAAV) that will make the current generation of tracked amphibs look like antiques.
 

Changing Requirements

The AAAV is envisioned by USMC leaders as the third and newest element in an "amphibious triad" that will greatly enhance the speed, range, maneuverability, firepower and survivability of forces moving from ship to shore, and then into the enemy interior. The other two elements are the Landing Craft, Air Cushioned (LCAC) and the V-22 Osprey aircraft. All three programs are quantum leaps in technology and capability beyond the systems they are replacing.

They have to be, because the environment in which amphibious warfare is conducted is expected to become far more lethal and fast-paced in the future. Weapons and tactics that worked well in the past will become less dependable as the capabilities of potential littoral adversaries grow increasingly sophisticated. Most of the warships comprising the Navy's twelve Amphibious Ready Groups are already being replaced with more modern vessels, but even with enhanced firepower and self-protection features it is assumed they will need to be deployed "over the horizon" for their own safety during amphibious warfare.

That means Marines going ashore will have to traverse much greater distances under much more dangerous circumstances. The objective of the AAAV program is to make this mission possible by transforming the ocean from an obstacle into a medium of maneuver, not unlike the way U.S. armored forces turned vast expanses of empty desert to their advantage during Operation Desert Storm. The unique technological and performance characteristics of the Advanced Amphibious Assault Vehicle were conceived to satisfy the very demanding requirements of future expeditionary warfare and force projection in a decidedly hostile littoral threat environment.
 

Design Features

The AAAV is being developed by General Dynamics Land Systems Division, which won a competition to build the vehicle in June of 1996. This was no mean feat, since it required GDLS to beat United Defense, the corporate successor to FMC that has been supplying Marine Corps amphibious assault vehicles ever since the first Alligators were built in 1941. GD's team prevailed by proposing a 37-ton, aluminum "planing" hull that offered significant operational and support advantages over air-cushion and hydrofoil alternatives.

The baseline design would enable the AAAV to carry an entire reinforced Marine rifle squad of 18 personnel plus a crew of three over water at sustained speeds of 25 knots (29 statute miles) per hour for distances up to 75 miles. This represents a 400% increase in water speed over the present AAV7A1 and a manifold increase in range. Land speed would reach 45 miles per hour -- enough to keep up with Marines' M1A1 tanks -- with a maximum unrefueled range of 300 miles.

The AAAV's impressive seaborne mobility is provided by a 2600 horsepower diesel engine driving dual waterjets so powerful that the system prototype set a world waterborne-speed record for amphibious vehicles during testing. The resulting combination of speed, range and agility on water will enable the AAAV to provide its occupants with far more maneuverability than earlier generations of amphibians. This increases both survivability and tactical options during the difficult trip from ship to shore.

Survivability is further enhanced by a drive system that automatically shifts to land-mobile configuration as the AAAV approaches the shore. This transitional phase historically has been one of the most dangerous aspects of amphibious warfare, not only because the shift is mechanically complex but also because it necessarily occurs in close proximity to adversaries on shore. Sources say the contractor's innovative use of nondevelopmental technologies to simplify the process results in a nearly "seamless" transition.

The AAAV has numerous other design features that contribute to the protection of its occupants. In terms of rough seas, the vehicle has been configured to safely cope with nine-foot surf, 120 degrees of roll, and 180 degrees of pitch. In terms of enemy fire, the vehicle is equipped with lightweight ceramic armor and Kevlar spall liner that together afford a 100% increase in passive protection over the baseline AAV7A1. The AAAV will also be one of the only two combat vehicles in the entire U.S. military arsenal providing comprehensive protection against nuclear, chemical and biological weapons effects. In addition, signature management (stealth) technologies such as special coatings and shape considerations have been used in the design to complicate enemy targeting efforts.

A central feature of the AAAV's self-protection and force projection capabilities is its two-man weapons station, which is equipped with a 25 mm chain gun and a coaxial 7.62 mm machine gun. The weapons station is outfitted with state-of-the-art sensors and targeting devices to provide excellent situational awareness and warfighting capability, regardless of whether it is night or day and what weather conditions are. The AAAV's second-generation, forward-looking infrared (FLIR) sensor is stabilized and linked to a fire-control computer developed to assure high probability of first-round accuracy even in unstable operating conditions. The Bushmaster II chain gun can defeat future light-armor threats in frontal attacks at ranges of at least 1500 yards and is configured to facilitate replacement by a more powerful weapon if circumstances dictate.

A series of periscopes and displays provides the crew with 360-degree situational awareness, and command and control equipment permits ready communication with a wide range of other friendly assets. Like the chain gun and other AAAV features, the weapon-station electronics are primarily nondevelopmental items that can be upgraded with minimal difficulty in the future and are easily maintained. In fact, simple field repairs of the vehicle can be accomplished using a kit of only seven tools. Yet despite the inclusion of a wide spectrum of advanced technologies, the AAAV still manages to achieve a 200-300% increase in carrying capacity over current-generation troop carriers such as the Bradley infantry fighting vehicle.
 

Production Plans

The Marine Corps plans to begin full-scale production of 1013 AAAV's in 2005, at which point all of the 1,320 AAV7A1's presently in its inventory will be over thirty years old. The AAAV is expected to fully replace its predecessor in the force by 2011, and remain the principal USMC amphibious assault vehicle until 2030. The current demonstration-validation phase of development is progressing well and is expected to transition to engineering and manufacturing development in 1999, with low-rate production commencing in 2003. The total value of the development and production contracts to General Dynamics is expected to eventually exceed $5 billion.

Although combat vehicles usually do not attract the kind of funding and media attention devoted to more visible systems such as aircraft carriers, the Advanced Amphibious Assault Vehicle demonstrates that digital technologies and new design processes are gradually transforming every facet of military technology. By applying tools such as concurrent engineering and virtual prototyping, General Dynamics has conceived an amphibious vehicle that is far more maneuverable, survivable, lethal and maintainable than any that have come before. The Marine Corps knows it has a winner, a vehicle that will win wars and save lives by defining the state of the art in amphibious warfare well into the next century.