M113 armored personnel carrier

The M113 is a fully tracked <a href="/facts/Armored_personnel_carrier/I5yvRywl">armored personnel carrier</a> (APC) that was developed and produced by the <a href="/facts/FMC_Corporation/QkuUlcLt">FMC Corporation</a>. The M113 was sent to <a href="/facts/United_States_Army_Europe/FBuyJKP9">United States Army Europe</a> in 1961 to replace the mechanized infantry's <a href="/facts/M59_armored_personnel_carrier/yND4gCGk">M59</a> APCs. The M113 was first used in combat in April 1962 after the United States provided the <a href="/facts/Army_of_the_Republic_of_Vietnam/93VwySnx">South Vietnamese army</a> (ARVN) with heavy weaponry such as the M113, under the <a href="/facts/Military_Assistance_Command%2c_Vietnam/hdtHzHo5">Military Assistance Command, Vietnam</a> (MACV) program. Eventually, the M113 was the most widely used armored vehicle of the U.S. Army in the <a href="/facts/Vietnam_War/W0gfbGTE">Vietnam War</a> and was used to break through heavy thickets in the midst of the jungle to attack and overrun enemy positions. It was largely known as an "APC" or an "ACAV" (<a href="/facts/Armored_cavalry/NY2MX6eD">armored cavalry</a> assault vehicle) by the allied forces.
The M113 was the first <a href="/facts/Aluminum/7wmR8jYE">aluminum</a> hull combat vehicle to be put into mass production. Much lighter than earlier similar vehicles, its aluminum armor was designed to be thick enough to protect the crew and passengers against small arms fire, but light enough that the vehicle was air transportable and moderately amphibious.
In the U.S. Army, the M113 series have long been replaced as front-line combat vehicles by the M2 and M3 <a href="/facts/Bradley_Fighting_Vehicle/uJXeV4sA">Bradleys</a>, but large numbers are still used in support roles such as armored ambulance, mortar carrier, engineer vehicle, and command vehicle. The U.S. Army's heavy brigade combat teams are equipped with approximately 6,000 M113s and 6,724 Bradleys.
The M113's versatility spawned a <a href="/facts/Variants_of_the_M113_armored_personnel_carrier/fYUdhgUc">wide variety of adaptations</a> that live on worldwide and in U.S. service. These variants together currently represent about half of U.S. Army armored vehicles. It is estimated that over 80,000 vehicles in the M113 family have been produced and used by over 50 countries worldwide, making it one of the most widely used <a href="/facts/Armored_fighting_vehicle/RGHj9Y1r">armored fighting vehicles</a> of all time.
M113 production was terminated in 2007. The Army initiated the <a href="/facts/Armored_Multi-Purpose_Vehicle/xj5WuEAa">Armored Multi-Purpose Vehicle</a> (AMPV) program to search for a replacement. In 2014, the U.S. Army selected <a href="/facts/BAE_Systems/W1wLXh5x">BAE Systems</a>' proposal of a turretless variant of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle to replace over 2,800 M113s in service.
Thousands of M113s continue to see combat service in the <a href="/facts/Israel_Defense_Forces/9hPaqcAM">Israel Defense Forces</a>, although by 2014 the IDF was seeking to gradually replace many of its 6,000 M113s with the <a href="/facts/Namer/KwLNpFdC">Namers</a>, and with the <a href="/facts/Eitan_AFV/2WmEVtMw">Eitan AFV</a> in 2020.

M113 armored personnel carrier open-in-new

M113 armored personnel carrier