US National Guard sending its old but trusted armored vehicles to Ukraine

Europe, News, US May 1, 2022 , by IRIA No Comments

The United States National Guards from at least five different U.S. states have pledged to send more than two hundred M113 Armored Personnel Carriers (APC) to Ukraine to support Pentagon in equipping the Ukrainian military.

Governors of five different U.S. states, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, North Carolina, and West Virginia, who are also the Commander in Chief for the National Guard of their respective states, announced that they are ready to turn M113 armored personnel carriers from their fleets to Ukraine on the request of U.S. Department of Defense.

The spokesperson of the National Guards Association John Goheen said on April 29, “The governors are the commanders in chief of their respective national guards, and they’re proud to do this.”

The National Guards is the only security force in the U.S. that still procures the M113 armored personnel transport vehicles. The U.S. Army which once extensively used the M113s as battle taxis since the Vietnam War finds the vehicles obsolete and stopped buying them in 2006.

As the fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces intensifies in the rainy and muddy springs of Eastern Ukraine, M113 can be used to transport personnel and equipment due to its adaptable track and lightweight body frame which gives it a certain advantage in such terrains.

M113 is an overall compact utilitarian vehicle that was also deployed in Iraq with the States Guard unit and it is still being used. While speaking about the condition of the vehicles that are being sent to Ukraine, the Director of Public Affairs Lt. Col. Matt Handley stated that “They’re not just parked somewhere, they’re all operational. The M113′s gone through upgrades over the years, and they’re still functional.”

^{A U.S. Army M113 Armored Personnel Carrier of 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment provides an overwatch while conducting recon operations during exercise Allied Spirit at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels, Germany, Jan. 26, 2015. (Image Credit: U.S. Army/Spc. Tyler Kingsbury)}

The M113 is a fully tracked Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC) that was first designed and produced during the 1960s. The vehicle was essentially designed to be used in the muddy swamps of South Vietnam, however, the versatility and adaptability of the M113 spawned far more than its usage in the terrains of Vietnam.

An estimated 80,000 M113s have been produced to date and they have been used in more than 50 countries all around the world, including Iraq, Israel, Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, Syria, Kosovo, and now Ukraine.

Almost 5 meters long and 2.6 meters wide M113 armored vehicle was produced by FMC Corporation to replace its old variants, M59 and M75. The vehicle requires a crew of at least members to be operated while it can carry 11 to 15 passengers at one time. M113 is armored with 28-44 millimeters thick aluminum allot armor that provides protection against short-range anti-tank missiles and munitions. The M113 APC can be mounted with a heavy machine gun and anti-tank missile system.

As of last week, apart from the M113 armored vehicles, the U.S. military aid to Ukraine also includes more than 1,400 Stinger anti-aircraft missile systems and 5,500 Javelin anti-tank weapons.