"Marine AFVs in Oct-Nov 1962" Topic

If the 1st Marine division had landed in Cuban in late October or early November 1962, what AFVs would it have been using? Would any M103s have been involved?

LVTP-5s, I suspect.

Not sure on the M103s, since those babies were huge.

I'd say M48s would be more likely.

Wiki, if correct, says each US Marine Tank Battalion got one company of M103s (17 x tanks per company back then – 3 platoons of 5 tanks, plus two in the HQ), so have at it – sounds like as good an excuse as any (the others will be M48 tanks):

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See the following. Apparently M103's were used as late as 1974 by the Marines.

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The following should be of interest. Surprised there are still so many around.

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Not sure if the 1st Division tanks were available. The 1st Division was stationed on the west coast at Camp Pendleton with the I MEF. The division supplied the 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade (unable to find the exact make up of the brigade) for operations. Because of the size of the M103 I'm not sure if they would have been deployed. It would have been a major effort to move them from the west to east coast.

However, the entire II MEF, consisting of the 2nd Marine Division (including its tank battalion, 2nd) and 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing was deployed. II MEF took control of the 5th MEB. So the Marines would have had four regimental teams/brigades available for operations.

I believe that Marine tank battalions had only one company of M103's and the rest were M48's at this time.

Don't forget that some of the Amphib tractor battalions had the LVT-How6 in their engineering sections as well as their LVT5Es. As found in Vietnam, them things can make a good boom.

M103's very unlikely to have been deployed according to the book 'Fires of October' (by Blaine Pardoe); even M48's were a bit of struggle due to limited sealift capacity and wading gear. Capturing the Port of Mariel was deemed essential to deliver the armour the Marines would need to counter the Cuban and Soviet armour

LVTP-5s and variants e.g. LVT-How6 plus the Thing! 'Ontos'

I'm assuming the Cubans/ Russians would have JS IIIs, T 55s, T34s,BTR50's and 60's? Also the small armes would be AK's SKS. RPD's Dishkas etc?

I appreciate the responses. It's frustrating to read orbats with no idea what equipment is involved.

From a recon photo in one of the several Cuban Missile Crisis books I own, at least one Soviet Guard unit had T-34s (presumably T34-85s) and Su-100s as well as wheeled vehicles and amphibious vehicles (PT-76s?).

You are more likely to find T34/85s and SU-100s.

Last time I was in Havana, the SU-100s were still there, dug in around the airport near the Special Forces base.