Marines watch the tracks fade away
Men of the 7th Infantry Division head for the beaches of Okinawa in LVTs. 1 April, 1945. SC 205191
Marine LVTP-5 in Vietnam. From the Kenneth W. Koldys Collection (COLL/5791) at the Marine Corps History Division
The legacy AAVP7. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Jacqueline C. Arre)
The AAV, or assault amphibious vehicle, Model 7, has served with the U.S. Marine Corps since 1972, replacing the mammoth LVTP-5, adopted just after Korea and used in Vietnam. And, naturally, it continued the legacy of the 18,000 WWII-era Amtrac LVT “gators” that began entering service in July 1941.
Now the age of the amtracker has ended, as the AAV7 made its final operational employment during Exercise Sea Breeze 26 in the Black Sea.
Check out this somber requiem as the age of the tracked vehicle comes to an end in the Marines, with their tanks disbanded along with the assorted M1150 Assault Breacher Vehicle (ABV), M9 Armored Combat Earthmovers, and Armored Vehicle Launched Bridges of the Marines’ engineer battalions. The AAV7 has been replaced by just over 600 of the 8×8 Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV), which will have several roles in addition to toting Marines over the beach.