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For frank, professional opinions on matters of importance to the Marine Corps, and on material published in previous issues. Controversial or dissenting opinions are welcome, provided they are constructive. Rates: 575.00 to 530.00. Length: 500-1,500 words.
"The LVTP7 represents no significant advance in amphibious vehicle development over the present LVTP5 since it carries fewer troops and has only a slightly increased water speed."
"A future generation air cushion vehicle is being considered as a midrange complementary vehicle to the LVT and as a potential replacement for the LVT as an amphibious assault vehicle in the Long Range period. What is required is a vehicle capable of rapidly transiting the distance from an over-the-horizon launch of the landing force up to ___miles to inland objectives over littoral terrain that is presently incapable of being negotiated by our LVT's or wheeled vehicles."
The foregoing remarks, and other variations of them, have appeared in the GAZETTE on several occasions. They deserve strong contradiction. I will do this-for these reasons:
*Unfounded statements implying research and development failures, especially when made by Marines, are damaging to the Marine Corps RScD effort and may be more harmful than acknowledgement of true failures. This is all the more true at a time when the nation is tightening its appropriations belt and there is high public concern over "wasted R&D funds" and other, so-called, "military extravagance."
*The conduct of the LVTP7 development program is a good example of how the RScD process should be accomplished.
*The second quote indicates that concepts introduced and approved several years ago, concerning doctrine and equipment for surface ship-to-shore movement in the 19801990 period, are either unknown or misunderstood.
The LVTP7 was designed to support Marine Corps tactical operations well into the (then envisioned) long range period, the present midrange time frame. The Amphibious Vehicle Requirements (AVR) Study, conducted at the Marine Corps Development Center and approved by the Commandant in 1961, investigated future surface ship-to-shore operations, suggested concepts and techniques for their execution and presented the rationale behind the stated developmental characteristics of the LVTP7 (then LVTPXII). The AVR study presented the new LVT, in combination with the High Speed Underway Launch Technique (FMFM 9-2) as an interim solution to long-distance amphibious assaults in a...