Lighter, Amphibious Resupply, Cargo, 'LARC V' 5X

Lighter, Amphibious Resupply, Cargo, 'LARC V' 5X. . , After the Korean War, the famous DUKW design was beginning to show its age. Improved amphibious vehicles were sought to replace its role of ship to inland supply and troop deployment. Under the oversight of General Frank Besson and Major General Paul Yount, the 'Lighter, Amphibious Resupply, Cargo' family of vehicles was developed. Eventually consisting of three amphibious models of increasing size and wight class, the smallest and most agile form was that of the five ton Lighter, abbreviated as the 'LARC V.'

The LARC V had double the hauling capacity of the DUKW. Its use of light canvas side walls solved issues that had slowed down loading and unloading operations with the high-walled DUKW. With four-wheel drive and an aluminum hull, the LARC V was gradually accepted into the Army by 1963. Total production eventually reached approximately 968 vessels before the outbreak of the Vietnam War.

This LARC V is the fifth of seven prototypes built by the Borg-Warner Corporation. The LARC V 5X, like all prototypes was given a busy schedule. The 5X was loaned to the US Navy for testing in 1960. In 1961, along with another LARC V and LARC XV, it was sent to Cape Canaveral to support NASA's Project Mercury Program. Following its stint in Florida, the 5X took part in the US Combat Readiness Demonstration for President Kennedy and other dignitaries at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. With production approved, the 5X was transferred to the Amphibian Training Branch. Under their care, the 5X became the last of the prototypes to be actively used by the US Army before being transferred to the museum in 1968.