Patrol Air Cushion Vehicle
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The Patrol Air Cushion Vehicle, also known as the Air Cushion Vehicle in Army and Coast Guard service, was a United States Navy and Army hovercraft used as a patrol boat in marshy and riverine areas d
A Navy PACV in Vietnam
Army ACV 903 undergoing pre-deployment testing shortly after being built
Dock Landing Ship USS Gunston Hall launches a PACV in 1967
PACV cruising full speed through a swamp
People sniffer
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People sniffer was the field name for a series of U.S. Army issued "personnel detectors" used during the Vietnam War. The purpose was to detect enemy soldiers in hidden positions, which were often emp
Patrol Air Cushion Vehicle
…with a dish antenna, which could detect targets within 24 miles (39 km). Some Army ACVs were fitted with XM3 Personnel Detectors (better known as XM-3 "people sniffers"), which could detect human emissions including carbon and ammonia. This equipment was used to find hidden enemies. Dog teams were also sometimes carried…
Mock-up of a XM-2 people sniffer on a UH-1 Iroquois helicopter.