[ArmySGT.]

The M113 family of vehicles began as an Armored Personnel Carrier (APC) for transporting troops into battle and deploying them near an objective with supporting fire from a pintle mounted .50 cal Browning machineguns. The design called for the M113 to be both amphibious, and transportable, even air droppable. These design requirements forced the designers to use lightweight aluminum alloys and to lightly armor the vehicle. Originally meant to protect the crew and dismounts from cartridges of 7.62 NATO and below, as well as fragments from artillery shells up to 155mm detonating more than 30 meters distant, this armor level has been modified and upgraded by various users. At the time of the War (19 November 1989) the U.S. Army had thousands of these and variants in service, with the U.S. Air Force also using some for base defense. Thousands more can be found in the units of the National Guard and Army Reserves. Under programs to support state and local police forces some M113s or variants were transferred to civil control. It is therefore entirely possible for Project personnel to encounter this vehicle in the control of bandits, militias, splinter groups, or other hostile entities during the reconstruction… Data for the M113A2 and M113A3 base line APCs has been included.

The Morrow Project itself has acquired limited quantities of the M113A3 and variants for use by MARS personnel for situations that the common V-150 is unsuited. Additionally the project has acquired baseline M113 APCs and reconditioned them with the goal of supplying these to Law Enforcement at or below State level; as part of the reconstruction and support for Order mission. These APC models will be supplied from stocks prepositioned (without personnel) or from regional bases per the Commander on the ground. Typically this LEO variant will have rubber band tracks supplied by Soucy, civil band radios, CBR detection equipment, red and blue emergency lights, a Xenon spotlight, and be painted in a shade of blue with “Police” painted prominently on all four sides. Those in service with MARS personnel will either be in a baseline chemical resistant olive drab or location appropriate alternate camouflage scheme. The variants in use by MARS may include models in use by U.S. Allies and not necessarily U.S. Armed forces models. Those models for service with the Project have been modified to meet mission requirements such as the fusion power plant and electric drive systems, for those intended for use by other groups the diesel power plant remains.

The Council of Tomorrow team of industrial programs has maintained a “supply three, receive two” program. For each three hulls received, two are returned completely refurbished to the users specifications. Officially, the third hull is utilized for parts, and then scrapped. The hulls are actually reconditioned and refurbished to bring them up to Morrow Projects standards for use. The occasional hull that is to worn to be refurbished is destroyed in a show demonstration for defense auditors to maintain the deception. This “three for two” program is how models not in common use by U.S. Forces came to be Morrow Project standard. The profitability of the enterprise and the industrial cooperation has added much needed legitimacy to Morrow Project protocols and deceptions to hide the true nature of the Project.