War Of The World

LARC-V (Lighter, Amphibious Resupply, Cargo, 5 ton), is an aluminium hulled amphibious cargo vehicle capable of transporting 5 tons. It was developed in the United States during the 1950s, and is used in a variety of auxiliary roles to this day.

U.S. Navy service life extension program
The United States Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) has directed the Sealift Support Program Office (SSPO) to supervise a Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) on the LARC V's used by the Navy. This SLEP involved upgrading the towing capabilities, changing from a mechanical to a hydraulic transmission and updating the electrical system. These SLEP'd LARCs began delivery in June 2007 for use by US Navy Beach Master Units, Underwater Construction Teams and the Maritime Prepositioned Force ships. A total of 38 LARC's are currently funded to transition through the SLEP process. The first four of them have were delivered to Beachmaster Unit One with no fanfare from LARC Commanders, Engineers, and mechanics. The advertised "upgraded towing capabilities" were non-existent, and even considered a down-grade to the already troublesome LARCs. The SLEP program also did away with four-wheel drive, making scaling of medium berms difficult. Also included in the so-called "upgraded electrical system" was a throttle-by-wire system that was computer controlled. This made engine speed and acceleration very erratic. Most importantly, the single pump hydraulic system provided a single point of failure, and even a minor hydraulic leak could cause a complete loss of steering and braking.