ACADEMY 13507 1/35 US Army M163 Vulcan Air Defense System

Model Kit

In the late 1960s, the US Army introduced the M163 Vulcan Air Defense System (VADS) into service to replace the aging, optically-aimed M42 Duster. The M163 was armed with a variant of the M61 20mm Vulcan gatling gun that could fire up to 3000 rounds per minute (the M61 fired at 6000 rounds per minute) and provided defense fire against air attacks that were inside the minimum range of the M48 Chaparral missile system which the M163 supported. Unlike the M42, the M163 had a radar, but it was a range-only system which did not aim/track targets. The comparable systems on the 'other side' included the ZSU-23-4 which did have a tracking radar system and fired 23mm rounds, and the SA-9 Gaskin which was also a vehicle mounted heat-seeking missile launcher like the Chaparral. The M163 was supposed to be replaced by the M247 Sergeant York Divisional Air Defense System (DIVADS) but technical problems and cost overruns led to the cancellation of DIVADS. The M163 was eventually phased out of active duty service in 1994.

FEATURES:

• Positionable rear door on rear ramp
• Positionable rear ramp
• Choice of rear fenders or rear external (M113A3) fuel tanks
• Choice of rubberband track or individual track links
• Positionable engine access door
• Positionable driver and rear crew overhead hatches
• Vinyl ammo belt to feed Vulcan gun
• Vulcan gun is movable in azimuth and elevation
• Photo-etched engine deck grilles
• Separately molded pioneering tools
• Optional crew stowage and water jug
• Optional side skirts
• Optional side floatation panels
• Marking options:
  • M163, 5th ADA/1st Bde/24th ID, Fort Irwin, 1988
  • M163, 5th ADA/3rd Bn/3rd ID, Germany, 1987
  • M163, unknown unit, Fort Irwin, 1988