View source for Engineering:Military light utility vehicle

{{Short description|Small, light, all-terrain military vehicle}}
[[File:USMC-04325 (cropped).jpg|thumb|The Humvee has been the U.S. military's main light vehicle platform since the 1980s]]
'''Military light utility vehicle''', or simply '''light utility vehicle''' ('''LUV'''), is a term used for the lightest weight class military vehicle category.<ref>{{cite conference |url=http://www.allconferences.com/conferences/20080325070447/ |title=Light Utility Vehicles 2008 (announcement) |last=Hope |first=Claire |date= July 2008 |website=allconferences.com |publisher=Defense IQ Press |access-date=20 July 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080908042548/http://www.allconferences.com/conferences/20080325070447/ |archive-date=2008-09-08 |quote=to be discussed at this international event will include (...) the U.S. Joint Light Tactical Vehicle replacement programme}}</ref> A
<!-- Deliberate link to relevant section of disambiguation page -->Jeep-like four-wheel drive vehicle for military use<ref name=MilTodayTop10>{{Cite web |url=http://www.military-today.com/trucks/top_10_light_utility_vehicles.htm |title=Top 10 Military Light Utility Vehicles – Military Today.com |access-date=2018-06-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180603044902/http://www.military-today.com/trucks/top_10_light_utility_vehicles.htm |archive-date=2018-06-03 |url-status=live }}</ref> by definition lighter than other military trucks and vehicles, inherently compact and usually with light or no armour, with short body overhangs for nimble all-terrain mobility, and frequently around 4-passenger capacity.

[[Image:Covered Willy's jeep Wings Over Wine Country 2007.JPG|thumb|Since World War II, jeeps like this U.S. Army Willys MB became a staple of 20th century armies around the world, and an archetype of light military vehicles]]

Worldwide, and since the earliest large scale mechanisation of the military, hundreds of different light vehicles have been used for military utility service, ranging from readily available commercial products, just repainted in military colors, to purpose-designed tactical vehicles, that were specially developed for military applications and operation in forward areas. Light utility vehicles are typically general or multi-purpose, used to carry troops, staff, (mounted) weapons, supplies, evacuate wounded soldiers, and many other diverse roles.<ref name=MilTodayTop10/>

Military light utility vehicles originated in the first half of the twentieth century, when modernisation of armies meant replacing horses and other [[Biology:Working animal|draft animals]] through mechanisation, as well as increasing mobility of the infantry, to gain an essential tactical advantage. In 21st century missions, small arms fire and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) continuously pose highly dangerous threats to mobile infantry, and the military's lightest utility vehicles have frequently become heavier and larger, as a result of addition of armour, for the purpose of crew protection.{{citation needed|reason=original cite used blacklisted url|date=March 2021}} Designs for modern light military vehicle platforms have to balance manoeuvrability, speed, weapons capability, survivability and transportability{{snd}} all of high importance to ground troops in operations.{{citation needed|reason=original cite used blacklisted url|date=March 2021}}

Civilian adaptations of the [[Engineering:Willys MB|Willys MB]] and [[Company:Land Rover|Land Rover]] were the first [[Engineering:SUV|sport utility vehicles]], and some SUVs such as the [[Engineering:Chevrolet S-10 Blazer|Chevrolet Blazer]] have been used as military light utility vehicles.

The importance of this kind of military vehicle was summed up by General Eisenhower, who wrote that most senior officers regarded the [[Engineering:Willys MB|jeep]] as one of the six most vital U.S. vehicles in [[Social:World War II|World War II]].{{refn |The others being the [[Engineering:Bulldozer|bulldozer]], the Landing Ship, Tank, the amphibious ''"Duck"'' truck, the 2½-ton 6×6 truck, and the C-47 airplane.<ref>{{cite book |author=Dwight D. Eisenhower |year=1948 |title=Crusade in Europe |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WGQLGxE8LyAC&pg=PA164 |publisher=Doubleday (US) / Heinemann (UK) |page=163/164 |isbn=080185668X |oclc=394251 |access-date=2018-06-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180621143749/https://books.google.nl/books?id=WGQLGxE8LyAC&pg=PA164 |archive-date=2018-06-21 |url-status=live }}</ref>}} Moreover, general [[Biography:George Marshall|George Marshall]] called the jeep “America’s greatest contribution to modern warfare.”<ref>{{cite book |last=Foster |first=Patrick R. |year=2014 |title=Jeep: The History of America's Greatest Vehicle |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EwWpAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA11 |publisher=Motorbooks |page=11 |isbn=9780760345856 |access-date=30 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180131081007/https://books.google.nl/books?id=EwWpAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA11 |archive-date=31 January 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://armyhistory.org/the-jeep-an-american-icon/ |title=The Jeep: An American Icon |website=National Museum of the United States Army |date=16 July 2012 |access-date=27 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180126125611/https://armyhistory.org/the-jeep-an-american-icon/ |archive-date=26 January 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aei.org/publication/the-elegant-jeep/ |title=The Elegant Jeep |website=American Enterprise Institute |first=Ralph Kinney |last=Bennett |date=9 April 2010 |access-date=27 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180623001418/http://www.aei.org/publication/the-elegant-jeep/ |archive-date=23 June 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref> Similar vehicles are among the most common military vehicles in armies of most nations.

==World War II==
[[File:ARMY0057 VIGY.JPG|thumb|The Dodge WC series was built in some 50 variants. Shown here is a command / radio car with an ambulance behind it.]]
[[Image:VW_Schwimmwagen_1.jpg|thumb|The ''[[Engineering:Volkswagen Schwimmwagen|Schwimmwagen]]'', an amphibious vehicle used by the ''Wehrmacht'']]
In 1939, the U.S. Army began standardizing its general-purpose trucks by limiting procurement to five chassis payload classes, from {{frac|1|2}}-ton to {{frac|7|1|2}}-ton, but the army was "to use commercial trucks with only a few modifications such as brush guards and towing pintles .."<ref name=ThomsonMayo>{{cite book |last1=Thomson |first1=Harry C. |first2=Lida |last2=Mayo |year=2003 |title=The Ordnance Department: procurement and supply |url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uiug.30112055126327;view=1up;seq=294;size=125 |location=Washington, D.C. |publisher=Center of Military History, U.S. Army |orig-year=1960 |pages=269–270 |ref=ThomMayoSfn }}</ref> However, in 1940 the categories were revised. A new, lightest chassis, "quarter-ton" class was introduced, at the bottom of the range, and the {{frac|1|2}}-ton category was supplanted by a {{frac|3|4}}-ton chassis{{snd}} both were classified as "light" trucks; {{frac|1|1|2}}-tonners were considered "medium".<ref name=HydeArsenal>{{cite book |last=Hyde |first=Charles K. |year=2013 |title=Arsenal of Democracy: The American Automobile Industry in World War II |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P-PCAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA147 |publisher=Wayne State University Press |pages=147–148, 152 |isbn=9780814339527 |access-date=2018-06-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180620231958/https://books.google.nl/books?id=P-PCAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA147 |archive-date=2018-06-20 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The [[Engineering:Willys MB|Willys MB]] Jeep of [[Social:World War II|World War II]] used by the U.S. Army is probably the most widely known vehicle of this class. Over 640,000 Jeeps were built for [[Social:World War II|World War II]], and they inspired many vehicles similar in layout, or function. Besides the jeep, the U.S. also produced some 330,000 half- and three quarter-ton [[Engineering:Dodge WC series|Dodge WC series]] trucks, in a wide range of variants. Together, the Willys and Ford jeeps, and Dodge's WC-series trucks made up nearly all of the WW II U.S. light vehicle output of almost a million (~988,000) units.{{sfnp |ref=ThomMayoSfn |Thomson |Mayo |2003 |page=296}}<ref name=HydeArsenal/>

In World War II, Germany used the [[Engineering:Volkswagen Kübelwagen|Volkswagen Kübelwagen]] for a similar role. It only had rear-wheel drive, but could take advantage of light weight, a very flat, smooth underbody,<ref>thanks to its VW Beetle-like platform chassis instead of a ladder-frame</ref> rear axle portal geared hubs, and a rear-mounted engine for mobility. Early American dune buggies were also based on the Volkswagen, and the Desert Storm-era [[Engineering:Desert Patrol Vehicle|Desert Patrol Vehicle]] evolved from the dune buggy configuration for combat use.

The [[Engineering:Volkswagen Schwimmwagen|Volkswagen Schwimmwagen]] featured a bathtub-like unitary boat-body and propulsion screw. The Jeep was similarly adapted as the Ford GPA "Seep", but was never as successful as the Schwimmwagen, which became the most mass-produced amphibious car in history. Unlike the ''Kübelwagen'', the ''Schwimmwagen'' was equipped with four-wheel drive, and with its super-smooth underbody and portal geared hubs front and rear, arguably the most capable light German off-roader in World War II.{{citation needed|date=November 2020}}

The [[Place:Soviet Union|Soviet Union]] produced the [[Engineering:GAZ-64|GAZ-64]] based largely on the US jeep design, succeeded by the [[Engineering:GAZ-67|GAZ-67]] and GAZ-67B, until ca. 1953.

==Post-war==
[[Image:ParkPatriot2015part4-12.jpg|right|thumb|UAZ-469, a Soviet LUV]]
[[Image:M1009cucv.jpg|right|thumb|M1009 CUCV, a militarized Chevrolet K5 Blazer]]
The U.S. revised its jeep into the Willys M38 and M38A1, which was used in the Korean War. It was followed in 1960 by the M151 jeep, which was designed with Ford. By the mid-1980s, this role would be taken over by the larger and heavier [[Engineering:Humvee|Humvee]], which would be used as a combat vehicle in Iraq. The United States also purchased [[Engineering:Commercial Utility Cargo Vehicle|Commercial Utility Cargo Vehicle]]s based on commercially available light trucks. U.S. forces are currently defining the [[Engineering:Joint Light Tactical Vehicle|Joint Light Tactical Vehicle]] which would be designed to be armored from the outset, with the smallest 4-person payload capacity class corresponding to the traditional jeep role.

In 1948, the British Land Rover was developed. Originally intended to be a civilian and agricultural successor to the Willys Jeep (the prototype Land Rover was built on the chassis of a Willys and used Willys transmission parts but production vehicles used no Jeep components) the Land Rover was brought into military service in 1949, eventually becoming the standard Light Utility Vehicle for the British Army and many armed forces of the [[Organization:Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]] and displacing the purpose built and more expensive Austin Champ. The original Land Rover design evolved into the modern-day [[Engineering:Land Rover Defender|Land Rover Defender]] which is still in military service throughout the world.

About 1953 Russia replaced its GAZ-67B by the [[Engineering:GAZ-69|GAZ-69]], until that series was replaced by the [[Engineering:UAZ-469|UAZ-469]] commander jeep which was introduced in 1971.

In the 1960s, China's Beijing Automobile Works produced its own "jeep", the [[Engineering:Beijing BJ212|Beijing BJ212]] which was largely a Chinese copy of the Soviet UAZ-469B. Often called the “Beijing Jeep”, the BJ121 was widely used in both military and civilian service in China, with over 200,000 produced by end of production in 1983. In May 1983, American Motors Corporation (AMC) agreed to allow the updated  BJ2020S to use the 85&nbsp;hp engine of the [[Engineering:Jeep Cherokee (XJ)|XJ Jeep Cherokee]].<ref>[http://www.sinodefence.com/army/transport/bj2020s.asp BJ2020S 0.5t Light Utility Vehicle] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080720032237/http://www.sinodefence.com/army/transport/bj2020s.asp |date=2008-07-20 }}</ref> The latest Chinese light utility will be the BJ2022JC 'Brave Warrior', built by Beijing Benz-Daimler Chrysler Automobile Co. Adapted from existing Mercedes Benz designs, the BJ2022JC will carry 0.7 ton{{vague|which tons?|date=December 2009}}, with a wheelbase of 110 inches, and has an independent suspension system with a 101.5&nbsp;kW 3.2 L turbo-charged inter-cooling diesel engine.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://china-military.blogspot.com/2007/10/pla-will-buy-2100-bj2022jc-light.html |title=China's PLA plans Brave Warrior light utility vehicle buy Jane's Defence Weekly Aug 08, 2007 |access-date=July 20, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110708031032/http://china-military.blogspot.com/2007/10/pla-will-buy-2100-bj2022jc-light.html |archive-date=July 8, 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2014, [[Company:Boeing|Boeing]] and MSI Design designed the [[Engineering:Boeing Phantom Badger|Phantom Badger]], in response to the aging Humvee fleet, which was too large for newer aircraft to feasibly carry.<ref>{{Cite magazine |url=https://www.wired.com/2014/04/navy-phantom-badger/ |title=Navy's New 80-MPH Mini Combat Vehicle Can Drop from the Sky |magazine=Wired |access-date=2018-01-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161127160019/https://www.wired.com/2014/04/navy-phantom-badger/ |archive-date=2016-11-27 |url-status=live |date=2014-04-10 |last1=McDuffee |first1=Allen }}</ref>

==Humvee-like vehicles==
[[Image:GAZ 2975 Tigr.JPG|thumb|right|GAZ-2975 "Tigr" during a rehearsal of the 2008 Moscow Victory Day Parade]]
[[File:Mahindra Armado Side view.jpg|thumb|Mahindra Armored Light Specialist Vehicle of the Indian Army]]
The [[Engineering:Humvee|Humvee]] platform represented a paradigm change in the U.S. military{{snd}} abolishing the dichotomy between the small quarter-ton rigs, and the various other, larger ''"light"'' trucks, after more than four decades. Intended to replace all of the Army's {{frac|1|4}}-ton to {{frac|1|1|4}}-ton vehicles with one single chassis, the resulting {{frac|1|4}}-ton Humvee became much larger and heavier than the jeeps, and inspired a new generation of vehicles, used in similar military roles.
*[[Engineering:Otokar Cobra|Otokar Cobra]] (shared subystems with Humvee)<ref>https://www.militarytoday.com/apc/cobra.htm</ref>
*[[Company:Thales Australia|Thales Australia]] [[Engineering:Hawkei|Hawkei]]
*[[Engineering:Tigr (Russian military vehicle)|GAZ-2975 "Tigr"]]
*[[Company:Toyota|Toyota]] [[Engineering:Toyota Mega Cruiser|Mega Cruiser]]
*[[Engineering:Iveco LMV|Iveco LMV]]
*[[Engineering:Humvee clone manufacturing in China|Humvee clones in China]]
*Uro [[Engineering:URO VAMTAC|VAMTAC]]
*[[Engineering:Mahindra Armored Light Specialist Vehicle|Mahindra Armored Light Specialist Vehicle]]
*Kalyani M4
*[[Engineering:Agrale Marruá|Agrale Marruá]]
*[[Engineering:VLEGA Gaucho|VLEGA Gaucho]]
*[[Engineering:Dozor-B|Dozor-B]]
*MOWAG Eagle
*[[Engineering:Marine Multi-purpose Vehicle|Marine Multi-Purpose Vehicle]]
*[[Engineering:Pindad Maung|Pindad Maung]]
*[[Engineering:Indonesian Light Strike Vehicle|Indonesian Light Strike Vehicle]]
*[[Engineering:Weststar GK-M1|Weststar GK-M1]]
*[[Engineering:Cendana Auto Rover|Cendana Auto Rover]]
*[[Company:Renault|Renault]] [[Engineering:Sherpa Light|Sherpa Light]]

== See also ==

* [[Engineering:Combat vehicle|Combat vehicle]]
* [[Engineering:Infantry mobility vehicle|Infantry mobility vehicle]]

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==See also==
* [[Engineering:List of U.S. military jeeps|List of U.S. military jeeps]]

[[Category:All-wheel-drive vehicles]]
[[Category:Military light utility vehicles| ]]
[[Category:Military vehicles by type]]

{{Sourceattribution|Military light utility vehicle}}