IAV's and technicals during Vietnam were often known as 'Gun Trucks' due to them using cargo truck chassis rather than cars, and while initially they were only armoured with sandbags and lighter weapons they would soon have armoured plates and much more varied weapons due to Viet Cong and NVA attacks on unprotected convoys became increasingly common as the way progressed. (1)

 

This is a named Vietnam guntruck 'Proud American', after it was hit by enemy fire during a March 12, 1971 ambush.

At the time the vehicle was on the way to FSB Shepard in the Quang Tri area to reinforce and supply US soldiers of the 502nd Infantry Division and 17th Cavalry or their replacements, who were engaged with North Vietnamese Army regular forces in increasing numbers in the months prior in mid to late 1970.

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The convoy as a whole was hit by at least 3 RPG-2 rocket propelled grenade rounds, which was a smaller predecessor to the RPG-7, which killed one soldier and badly wounded another, causing a screening force of men from the 4-3 Infantry to move and attempt to cut off the ambushing NVA/VC soldiers, but they were not successful. The man killed during the ambush was E4 Specialist Robert Thorne, who was killed by an RPG (rocket-propelled grenade). The radioman behind Thorne, 1st Lt James Baird, was badly wounded by the blast, loosing an arm, while other member's of Proud American's crew McDonald had a wound to his face and Calvin had a wound to his wrist resulting in a helicopter being called for a medical evacuation after the ambush was defeated, and the badly damaged vehicle being driven by others back to an allied FSB (Fire Support Base) where it was rebuilt and repaired. (2)

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The convoy limped it's way into the allied FSB's in the area, with an image of it after the ambush below, and the 'Proud American' was later rebuilt, but only a single Vietnam-era guntruck survives today, the 'Eve Of Destruction', on display at the US Army Transportation Museum in Fort Eustis, Virginia.