Afghanistan and Iraq in the early years of the
21st Century were steadily up-armoured.
Cargo/personnel Humvees were up-
armoured in a similar fashion. Initially, units
improvised armour from what could be found
in country. When up-armour kits began to
arrive from the US, they came in various
types and in order to acquire a large number
of kits quickly, they were widely produced.
Thus, the variety of Humvees in service
increased enormously. Taking the basic
cargo/ personnel carrier with a single row of
seats as an example, versions could be seen
with: armour plate protecting the sides of the
cargo bay, but no side doors at all; armour
plate protecting the sides of the cargo bay
and armoured side doors with an open cut-out
for side wards vision; armour plate protecting
the sides of the cargo bay and armoured side
doors fitted with armoured windows.
In a short article such as this, we can only take
a glimpse at the variety of Humvees that served
the US military.
Humvees are now being cast and offered
for sale to the public. See the website http://www.
govplanet.eu for information.
At present, there are none listed on the
website as being for sale in Europe – all are
in continental USA. Prices are very
reasonable though. A vehicle that caught my
eye was a 1993 M998 cargo/personnelcarrier with a starting bid of $5,000 and
34,000 miles on the clock. The vehicle was
more or less ready for the road. Many
Humvees that have been up-armoured are
offered for sale without their doors and
windscreens. Humvees are wide but will still
fit within an ISO container. If you buy one,
please let us know.These cargo/personnel Humvees are assigned
to 1/6 Marines, members of which are seen
here preparing to engage Taliban snipers in the
mountains of Afghanistan in June 2004. GUNNERY
SERGEANT KA MILKS / NATIONAL ARCHIVESA US Navy M1097A2 cargo/personnel carrier
assigned to Beach Master Unit 1 drives on to
LCU 1666 at Naval Amphibious Base Coronado in
December 2005. Note the rear bumper introduced
with the A2 Humvee. This vehicle is fitted with an
overall Amertech Helmet Hard Top and a substantial
roof rack. JO2 Z BADDORF / NATIONAL ARCHIVESLt Curtis Anderson, a US Navy doctor serving
with the US Marine Corps’ Combat Service
Support Detachment 15, is seen here in Somalia
in January 1993. In the background is an M997
ambulance. Note how the ambulance body is
slotted into the standard Humvee rolling chassis.
PHCM TC MITCHELL/ NATIONAL ARCHIVES‘The M997A3
up-armoured
ambulance was
built on the
Expanded Capacity
Vehicle rolling
chassis’
On the left we see an M1114 armament carrier, and to the right an M1123
cargo/personnel carrier fitted with an overall Amertech Helmet Hard Top and
an STD-810 Stiletto telescoping communications mast. The vehicles are part
of a US Army convoy driving from Kandahar Airfield to Kabul, Afghanistan, in
May 2003. SARGEANT V HALL / NATIONAL ARCHIVESThis US Marine Corps M1097A2
is fitted with an Avenger
(Pedestal-Mounted Stinger) anti-
aircraft system. L-CPL M VALDEZ /
NATIONAL ARCHIVESA US Marine at the wheel of an M1123 cargo/
personnel carrier at Al Kut, Iraq, in August 2003.
Note the small steering wheel – the power assisted
steering does not need a large-diameter wheel. L-CPL
A WILLIAMS / NATIONAL ARCHIVES