The LCM-8 ("Mike Boat") is a river boat and mechanized landing craft used by the United States Navy and Army during the Vietnam War and subsequent operations. They are currently used by governments and private organizations throughout the world. The acronym stands for "Landing Craft Mechanized, Mark 8". (The "Mike Boat" term refers to the military phonetic alphabet, LCM being "Lima Charlie Mike".)
The vessel weighs 135,000pounds (61,200kg) and has a crew of four: a Boatswain's Mate petty officer, an Engineman petty officer, a non-rated fireman, and a seaman. US Army specifications call for a crew of six during 24-hour operations: two coxswains, two seamen and two enginemen. The LCM-8s are constructed from welded steel and powered by four 6-71 or two 12V71 diesel engines, twin propellers, and rudders. The ship can carry 60 short tons of cargo. It was designed by Marinette Marine Corp. It has a range of 190 miles at 9 knots with a full load.
Modifications
A modified version, the Zippo boat, carries flamethrowers.[1][2] Another modified version, the LCM-8 Mod 2, was used to fulfill command, personnel, salvage, and firefighting functions. There is also another version with an aluminum hull. This version was carried aboard all of the Charleston class LKA ships, as the steel version was too heavy to be lifted by the ship's 40 ton fore and aft booms, preventing more than two from being lowered (via the two 70 ton fore and aft cargo booms) at one time. They are now mostly carried by pre-positioned ships.[clarification needed]
A third modification was as a transport for PBRs (patrol boat, river) from repair stations at Da Nang (YR-71) and Tan My (PBR Mobile Base 1) to outlying points at Cua Viet, and the Cua Dai rivers. PBR main propulsion jet pumps were easily damaged by ocean salt water which necessitated the boats being carried by another craft to their duty stations. These transport LCMs were classed as mini-docks and each had a boat ramp in the well deck. The voids (built-in float chambers under the well deck) would be systematically flooded, allowing the front end of the craft to sink, so a PBR could be floated in or out of the well deck. The pumping mechanism would then be reversed to clear the water out of the voids, restoring the craft to the normal floating position.
A fourth modification was the Army Version for Vietnam Rivers Logistic with a liveaboard cabin and crewed by 6 men consisting of Coxswain, Assist. Coxswain, Engineer and assistant and two deckhands. All crew could handle the two 50 Caliber Machine gun turrets and other small arms and were frequently engaged by the Vietcong on the rivers and canals of the Mekong Delta. One unit, an Army Reserve Unit out of St. Petersburg, Florida, was called to active duty in 1968-69 received a Unit Commendation of merit for delivering record tonnage in their 12-month tour. 182 Men came back alive.
U.S. usage
They were used by the United States Navy and Army during the Vietnam War. During the Vietnam War, there were two new aluminum LCM-8s on Johnston Island, which carried trucks and cargo between islands, and one being used as a rescue boat. They had the newer fluid shift transmissions, and 2-671's paired up to two props.
In I Corps (the northernmost military district in Vietnam) boats based at Da Nang, Tan My and Cửa Việt had three man crews of various rates and ranks. On U.S. Navy boats, the senior rate was usually a third-class petty officer or above, and the two crewmen could be E-2, E-3 or E-4 ranks (i.e. seaman apprentice, seaman, or petty officer third class). One of the two crewmen was almost always an Engineman and could be an ENFA, ENFN, or an EN3 in rank. The LCM-8s there all had two sets of the twin 6-71 Detroits paired up to a hydro transmission. Two air compressors, port and starboard of the engine sets, provided air pressure to operate the air cylinders that raised and lowered the bow ramp. The air cylinders were below deck in the eighth void from the bow and stretched cables attached to the ramp to raise it. Lowering the ramp was accomplished by releasing the air and allowing gravity to bring the ramp down.
Some are currently deployed aboard Maritime Prepositioning ships to facilitate their mission of being able to unload all their cargo while still offshore with no outside assistance.
The U.S. Army plans to replace the LCM-8 with the Maneuver Support Vessel (Light) (MSV(L)). Two dozen boats are planned that will be larger and faster, with a longer range and twice the capacity over Mike Boats. The MSV(L) will be roughly 100 feet (30m) long, with a draft of less than four feet, a speed of 18 knots and the capacity to carry either an M1 Abrams tank, two Strykers with add-on armor, or four Joint Light Tactical Vehicles. It also may be used in defended waters, being fitted with a subsurface surveillance device, protection from small arms fire, two Common Remotely Operated Weapon Stations, and mitigated detection through reduction of thermal and acoustic signature. Testing of the new vessel is to take place until 2019.[3] In September 2017, Vigor Shipyards was awarded a nearly $1 billion contract for the MSV(L), which is planned for completion in 2027.[4]
Australian service
An Australian Army LCM-8 showing the extended wheelhouse of the Australian vessels
The LCM-8 was constructed in Australia for the Australian Army from 1965 to 1967 and again in 1972 using a heavily modified design, crewed (four) and administered by the Royal Australian Corps of Transport and one engineer from the Royal Australian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (RAEME). The modification of the vessels included an extended enclosed wheelhouse with full galley facilities, chart table and storage space to aid in extended operations beyond the original design parameters. A water purification system allows the vessels to be somewhat independent for longer periods of time. A fully functioning toilet (head) and shower are also installed as part of the wheelhouse extensions; external provision for bedding is also included for the full crew complement.
The extension of the wheelhouse increased rigidity of the craft leading to excessive vibration and cavitation with the original three-blade propeller. Further development included a more balanced and expensive five-blade propeller, negating the vibration and cavitation of the original. The prop change found a few negative effects in the beaching performance of the vessel but over time tactics have been changed to suit the new system.
The vessels are also installed with a full suite of electronics allowing the craft to navigate in all weather, day or night in military operations anywhere in the world with little to no special training requirements for an indefinite period.
During the mid-1990s, the Army LCM-8 received a life of type extension with a re-engine program. The original twin-pac 6-71 two-stroke Detroit Diesel engines and Allison mechanical transmissions were replaced with 8v-92 Silver Series Detroit Diesel engines and Allison Hydraulic Transmissions thus extending the life of the craft for another 20 years.
Two craft were utilized during the invasion of Iraq in 2003, patrolling the shallow waters of the Khawr Abd Allah estuary using HMASKanimbla as their base of operations. They were extensively used in East Timor for logistic operations in direct support of multinational peace keepers. Other deployments include peacekeeping and peace monitoring operations in Bougainville and the Solomon Islands.
The LCM-8 fleet of fifteen was to be replaced by six Australian designed type LCM2000waterjet propelled craft, however these craft were scrapped, after not meeting the required in-service specifications and being deemed not fit for use for the intended Kanimbla-class.[5][6][7] The Army will now continue to operate the LCM-8 until 2027.[8][7] A new project which aims to replace the Army's LCM-8 landing craft was initiated in early 2021.[9]
↑ "Tango - Zippo Conversion". Warboats.org. Archived from the original on 10 April 2015. Retrieved 26 August 2015. The first Zippo boats were ATCs carrying an M132A1 flame-throwing armored personnel carrier
↑ "Letters". Smithsonian Magazine. February 1999. Archived from the original on 29 November 2006. Another type of boat carried a flamethrower that could shoot a stream of burning liquid several hundred yards. These boats... were called "Zippo" boats
↑ Morley, Sgt Dave (12 February 2015). "Specialists rest easy"(PDF). Army: The Soldiers' Newspaper (1344ed.). Canberra, Australia: Department of Defence. ISSN0729-5685. Retrieved 26 November 2016.
Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are larger. Production of landing craft peaked during World War II, with a significant number of different designs produced in large quantities by the United Kingdom and United States.
A dock landing ship is an amphibious warfare ship with a well dock to transport and launch landing craft and amphibious vehicles. Some ships with well decks, such as the Soviet Ivan Rogov class, also have bow doors to enable them to deliver vehicles directly onto a beach. Modern dock landing ships also operate helicopters.
Patrol Boat, Riverine, or PBR, is the United States Navy designation for a small rigid-hulled patrol boat used in the Vietnam War from March 1966 until 1975. They were deployed in a force that grew to 250 boats, the most common craft in the River Patrol Force, Task Force 116, and were used to stop and search river traffic in areas such as the Mekong Delta, the Rung Sat Special Zone, the Saigon River and in I Corps, in the area assigned to Task Force Clearwater, in an attempt to disrupt weapons shipments. In this role, they frequently became involved in firefights with enemy soldiers on boats and on the shore, were used to insert and extract Navy SEAL teams, and were employed by the United States Army's 458th Transportation Company, known as the 458th Sea Tigers.
The coxswain is the person in charge of a boat, particularly its navigation and steering. The etymology of the word gives a literal meaning of "boat servant" since it comes from cock, referring to the cockboat, a type of ship's boat, and swain, an Old English term derived from the Old Norse sveinn meaning boy or servant. In 1724, a "cockswain" was defined as "An officer of a ship who takes care of the cockboat, barge or shallop, with all its furniture, and is in readiness with his crew to man the boat on all occasions." When the term "cockboat" became obsolete, the title of coxswain as the person in charge of a ship's boat remained.
A brown-water navy or riverine navy, in the broadest sense, is a naval force capable of military operations in littoral zone waters. The term originated in the United States Navy during the American Civil War, when it referred to Union forces patrolling the muddy Mississippi River, and has since been used to describe the small gunboats and patrol boats commonly used in rivers, along with the larger "mother ships" that supported them. These mother ships include converted World War II-era mechanized landing craft and tank landing ships, among other vessels.
A Landing Craft Utility (LCU) is a type of boat used by amphibious forces to transport equipment and troops to the shore. They are capable of transporting tracked or wheeled vehicles and troops from amphibious assault ships to beachheads or piers.
Landing Craft Assault (LCA) was a landing craft used extensively in World War II. Its primary purpose was to ferry troops from transport ships to attack enemy-held shores. The craft derived from a prototype designed by John I. Thornycroft Ltd. of Woolston, Hampshire, UK. During the war it was manufactured throughout the United Kingdom in places as various as small boatyards and furniture manufacturers.
The landing craft mechanized (LCM) is a landing craft designed for carrying vehicles. They came to prominence during the Second World War when they were used to land troops or tanks during Allied amphibious assaults.
Armored Troop Carriers (ATC), often called Tangos from the phonetic alphabet for T, were LCM-6 landing craft modified for riverine patrol missions. They were used by the Mobile Riverine Force (MRF) of the United States Army and Navy in the Vietnam War. They were also used by Republic of Vietnam Navy (RVNN) and Khmer National Navy.
The Landing Craft Personnel (Large) or LCP (L) was a landing craft used extensively in the Second World War. Its primary purpose was to ferry troops from transport ships to attack enemy-held shores. The craft derived from a prototype designed by the Eureka Tug-Boat Company of New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. Manufactured initially in boatyards in and around New Orleans, as requirements grew it was produced in a number of yards around the United States. Typically constructed of pine planks and plywood, and fitted with some armor plate, this shallow-draft boat with a crew of 3 could ferry an infantry platoon of 36 to shore at 8 knots (13 km/h). Men generally entered the boat by walking over a gangplank from the boat deck of their troop transport as the LCP(L) hung from its davits. When loaded, the LCP(L) was lowered into the water. Soldiers exited the boat by jumping or climbing down from the craft's bow or sides.
An amphibious warfare ship is an amphibious vehicle warship employed to land and support ground forces, such as marines, on enemy territory during an amphibious assault.
The LCM2000 was a class of Landing Craft Mechanised (LCM) built for the Australian Army by Australian Defence Industries (ADI). The LCMs were ordered in 2001 and the first craft was originally scheduled to enter service with the Army in 2003. The craft proved too large for their intended purpose,(whoever put this post in does not know the craft or reason why the 6 boats were not employed for service. They were not too large there were a several very good reasons why they were not used. More than 70 rodums were raised before the second vessel was laid down and all 6 vessels were built with defects from the 1st craft in all. With more problems identified as we started trials. )(rl).
however, and were only used for training and minor exercises before the project was cancelled in February 2011.
The motor landing craft (MLC) was a vessel used in the 1920s and 30s. It was specifically designed to deliver a tank to shore and may be considered the predecessor of all Allied landing craft mechanised (LCM). The MLC also saw action in the first year of the Second World War. Its primary purpose was to ferry tanks, troops and stores from ships to shore. The craft derived from discussions of the Landing Craft Committee; the prototype was designed by J. Samuel White of Cowes.
The LCM-1E is a class of amphibious mechanized landing craft manufactured by Navantia at their factory in San Fernando. These craft are intended to deliver troops and equipment onshore from amphibious assault ships during amphibious assaults. The craft are operated by the Spanish Navy and the Royal Australian Navy, and have been ordered by the Turkish Navy.
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The Landing Craft, Mechanized Mark 2 or LCM (2) was a landing craft used for amphibious landings early in the United States' involvement in the Second World War. Though its primary purpose was to transport light tanks from ships to enemy-held shores, it was also used to carry guns and stores. The craft was designed by the Navy's Bureau of Construction and Repair and the initial production contract was let to the American Car & Foundry Company. A total of 147 were built by this company and Higgins Industries. Because of its light load capacity and the rapid production of the superseding LCM (3), the LCM (2) quickly fell out of use following the Allied invasion of North Africa in 1942.
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