Light Strike Vehicle
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The Light Strike Vehicle (LSV) is an improved version of the
Desert Patrol Vehicle The Desert Patrol Vehicle (DPV), formerly called the Fast Attack Vehicle (FAV), is a Chenowth high-speed, lightly armored sandrail-like vehicle first used in combat during the Gulf War in 1991. Due to their dash speed and off-road mobility, the ...
(DPV), which it was designed to replace. Special operation groups adopted the LSV for its small size and high mobility. It is part of the family of Internally Transportable Light Strike Vehicles (ITV-LSV). As the name suggests, it is used for fast hit-and-run style raids, scouting missions,
special forces Special forces or special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...
support, and low intensity
guerrilla warfare Guerrilla warfare is a form of unconventional warfare in which small groups of irregular military, such as rebels, partisans, paramilitary personnel or armed civilians, which may include recruited children, use ambushes, sabotage, terrori ...
.


Design


Countermeasures

The LSV is entirely unarmored, and thus offers no protection from small arms fire. The driver and passengers sit side by side in front, with the gunner sitting in an elevated rear-central seat in front of the engine. The gunner's seat can spin around to operate the 7.62 mm
GPMG A general-purpose machine gun (GPMG) is an air-cooled, usually belt-fed machine gun that can be adapted flexibly to various tactical roles for light and medium machine guns. A GPMG typically features a quick-change barrel design calibered for ...
.


Mobility

It can be air transported internally by
CH-47 The Boeing CH-47 Chinook is a tandem-rotor helicopter originally developed by American rotorcraft company Piasecki Helicopter, Vertol and now manufactured by Boeing Defense, Space & Security. The Chinook is a Military transport helicopter, heav ...
or
CH-53 The CH-53 Sea Stallion (Sikorsky S-65) is a family of American heavy-lift transport helicopters designed and built by the American manufacturer Sikorsky Aircraft. The Sea Stallion was originally developed in response to a request from the Unite ...
transport helicopters. The new
ALSV The Chenowth Advanced Light Strike Vehicle (ALSV) is an all-terrain light military vehicle developed by the United States. It is the successor to the Chenowth Light Strike Vehicle and the Desert Patrol Vehicle, and features improved performance an ...
has a more conventional appearance and differs from the original versions.


Armament

A 7.62 mm MG (often an
M60E3 The M60, officially the Machine Gun, Caliber 7.62 mm, M60, is a family of American general-purpose machine guns firing 7.62×51mm NATO cartridges from a disintegrating belt of M13 links. There are several types of ammunition approved fo ...
) is mounted rear-facing on the back of the engines. If TOW is mounted, it replaces the third passenger and rollover cage. Two AT4 are sometimes fitted forward-facing on roll over cage bars (one on each side) above driver.


Users

Unlike the DPV, the LSV has had export success and is marketed as a light attack vehicle. The current generation model is the
ALSV The Chenowth Advanced Light Strike Vehicle (ALSV) is an all-terrain light military vehicle developed by the United States. It is the successor to the Chenowth Light Strike Vehicle and the Desert Patrol Vehicle, and features improved performance an ...
, with the "A" standing for "advanced".Advanced Light Strike Vehicle overview
It is currently used by the
United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...
,
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
,
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
, and the
armed forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a ...
of
Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...
,
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
,
Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...
,
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
, and
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
. The UK retired its LSVs in the mid-1990s.


Current operators

* * * * * * * *


Former operators

*


See also

* * * * * * List of land vehicles of the U.S. armed forces *
List of U.S. military vehicles by model number The following is a (partial) listing of vehicle model numbers or M-numbers assigned by the United States Army. Some of these designations are also used by other agencies, services, and nationalities, although these various end users usually assig ...
, (M1040 and M1041) * * *


References

* Jane's Special Forces Recognition Guide.{{specify, date=June 2016
Light Strike Vehicle
at GlobalSecurity.org Soft-skinned vehicles Military vehicles of the United States