LCPL

United States Marine Corps reinforcements at Guadalcanal debark from an LCP(L).
Class overview
NameLanding Craft Personnel (Large)
BuildersHiggins Industries, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
Operators
Preceded byVarious ship's boats and cutters
Succeeded byLCP(R), LCVP
Subclasses
  • Royal Navy model
  • US model
Built1940-1943
Active0
Preserved0
General characteristics
TypeLanding craft
DisplacementUS Model: 13,500 pounds (light), 21,600 pounds (loaded)
Length36 ft 8 in
Beam10 ft 10 in
Draught
  • 2 ft 6 in aft. light
  • 3 ft 6 aft. loaded
Ramps0
Propulsion
Speed
  • RN model: 9-11 kts. (max)
  • US model: 8 kts. (fully loaded)
Range
  • RN model: 120 miles at full speed (loaded)
  • US model: 50 miles (gasoline), 130 miles (diesel)
Capacity6,700–8,100 pounds (3,039–3,674 kg)
Troops
  • RN model: 25 troops
  • US model: 36 troops
Crew
ArmamentUS model: 2 x Browning .30 cal. machine guns, or US manufactured Lewis .30 cal. machine guns RN model: 1 x .303 cal. Lewis Gun
Armor3 x 10 lb. plates on bulkheads (fore of the .30 cal. cockpits, of the troop well and the engine space.
Notesfrom US Navy ONI 226 Allied Landing Craft and Ships, US Government Printing Office, 1944.

The Landing Craft Personnel (Large) or LCP (L) was a landing craft used extensively in the Second World War. Its primary purpose was to ferry troops from transport ships to attack enemy-held shores. The craft derived from a prototype designed by the Eureka Tug-Boat Company of New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. Manufactured initially in boatyards in and around New Orleans, as requirements grew it was produced in a number of yards around the United States. Typically constructed of pine planks and plywood, and fitted with some armor plate, this shallow-draft boat with a crew of 3 could ferry an infantry platoon of 36 to shore at 8 knots (13 km/h). Men generally entered the boat by walking over a gangplank from the boat deck of their troop transport as the LCP(L) hung from its davits. When loaded, the LCP(L) was lowered into the water. Soldiers exited the boat by jumping or climbing down from the craft's bow or sides.