P. Noble et al., DEVELOPMENT OF A DIESEL-POWERED, HEAVY LIFT, AMPHIBIOUS AIR-CUSHION LIGHTER SYSTEM FOR THE UNITED-STATES-ARMY, MARINE TECHNOLOGY AND SNAME NEWS, 31(3), 1994, pp. 161-167
In order to provide additional over-the-shore logistics for U.S. troop
s, the U.S. Army recently solicited a proposal for the design and cons
truction of a new Lighter Amphibious-Heavy (LAMP-H) vehicle. The vehic
le had to be capable of carrying 100 short tons of deck cargo at 10 kn
ots and be fully amphibious. Kvaerner Masa Marine (KMM) was retained b
y Bollinger Machine Shop & Shipyard in Lockport, Louisiana, to develop
a new concept in military heavy-lift, amphibious vehicles, based on e
arlier work on diesel-powered air cushion vehicles. Existing air cushi
on military transport vehicles, such as the U.S. Army LACV-30 and the
U.S. Navy L-CAC, represent what may be best described as ''low technol
ogy aircraft'' with lightweight, aluminum structures and gas turbine p
rime movers. The Kvaerner/Bollinger approach has been to develop a ''h
igh technology marine craft'' with combination steel/aluminum structur
e and diesel engines. The project evolved through concept design and m
odel testing into a contract design package from which a shipyard bid
proposal was developed. The resultant design gives an innovative solut
ion to the over-the-shore logistics problem.