Modern U.S. Tanks and AFVs

Modern U.S. Tanks and AFVs by Michael Green and Greg Stewart, MBI Publishing Company, St. Paul, MN, 2003, 95 pp., $14.95

Part of the "Enthusiast Color Series" Modern U.S. Tanks andAFVs is a copiously illustrated primer on various armored vehicles, both wheeled and tracked, in use by the Army and Marine Corps. At 95 pages with more than 80 color photographs, it is written for the high school library market and so, while it may not be an authoritative resource for the armor professional, it is an excellent basic primer on armored vehicles for the military modeling buff, military machinery enthusiasts, and family members.

The book is divided into four simple chapters: "Tanks," "Armored Infantry Vehicles," "Wheeled Armored Firepower," and "Indirect Armored Firepower Support." The tank chapter includes succinct descriptions, accompanied by color photos, of the M1, IPM1, MIA1, M1AIHA, M1A1D, M1A2, and M1A2SEP. The chapter on armored infantry vehicles covers the M113, the M113A3, the Bradley from prototype to A3 stage (including the Linebacker air defense artillery variant), the Stryker, and concludes with the U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) landing vehicles from LVTP7 to AAVP7AI. The chapter on wheeled armored firepower takes the reader through the high mobility, multipurpose wheeled vehicle (HMMWV) family (including some less well-known variants, such as the evolution of the armored M1114 and the USAF armored version M1116), and on to the M 1117 armored security vehicle, the family of USMC light armored vehicles (LAV), and the Stryker combat variants, including the mobile gun system and the antitank guided missile version. The final chapter, "Armored Indirect Fire Support" covers the M109A6 Paladin, the M270 multiplelaunch rocket system (including the Army tactical missile system variant) and concludes with mortar carriers from the M 1064A3 to the USMC LAV-M and the new Stryker mortar carrier.

The book is simple, enjoyable, and well laid out. The information is sufficiently detailed to satisfy both an educated amateur, and serve to fill in the gaps in the knowledge of military personnel as well. Buy it for your kids, your parents, or just to browse through the excellent photography.

MICHAEL EVANS CPT, U.S. Army

COPYRIGHT 2004 U.S. Army Armor Center
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group