About the LCVP “Higgins Boat” – Landing Craft, Vehicle, Personnel:

June 6th, 1944, D-Day. As people look to the past, they do so in hindsight, with the knowledge of the outcome already at hand. It is difficult to speculate the “what would have happened if” when referencing that day. If D-Day failed, then the free world as it is known would be drastically different. The weight of mankind was on the shoulders of the “Greatest Generation” as men stormed the beaches through a hail of gunfire, but it was also on the men and women who designed, built, and manufactured the gear, equipment, and vehicles needed to make the D-Day landing a success. One such innocuous design was the Landing Craft Vehicle/Personnel (LCVP) or Higgins Boat. The LCVP was the brainchild of Andrew Higgins, whose larger-than-life personality and reluctance to give up, just perhaps, saved the world.

In an interview with historian Stephen Ambrose, President and former General, Dwight D. Eisenhower, stated “Andrew Higgins is the man who won the war for us.” Higgins was an entrepreneur, businessman, but more than anything, he was a problem solver. “His genius was problem-solving. Higgins applied it to everything in his life: politics, dealing with unions, acquiring workers, producing fantastical things or huge amounts of things. That was his essence,” stated Joshua Schlick, curator of the National World War II Museum in New Orleans. Higgins’ boat-building career began in the 1930s in New Orleans. There he specialized in flat-bottomed boats that could easily navigate the shallow waters in and around the Mississippi River delta and Louisiana bayous.

His first breakthrough was the spoonbill bow that curled up at the head. This forced water underneath allowing the craft to easily push onto shore and then quickly exfiltrate off land. Next was a ridge on the keel. This improved stability. Shallow draft watercraft have difficult times navigating through harsher conditions—say the English Channel—and the addition of the ridge helps alleviate that problem. Finally, a V-shaped keel was added so the boat could ride higher in the water. This is especially important when the water is filled with traps and explosives, though that wasn’t commonly found in the Mississippi. The innovations combined to form the Eureka boat—the civilian predecessor to his famous landing craft.

By the time the United States entered World War II, Higgins was making boats for the Navy—though it took a lot of persistence on his part. The Navy, while reluctant at first, viewed his designs, as well as his “get-it-done” personality, with vigor and opportunity. He first built a 30-foot craft deemed the Landing Craft Personnel. It was based on government specifications, but Higgins argued a bigger vessel would offer greater performance. He proved persistent in his ideas, so the Navy relented, and his 36-foot version was accepted, and the LCVP was born. His boat could transport 36 fully equipped troops from ship to shore or combinations of Jeeps and smaller trucks with a reduced squadron of men. Higgins’ design altered naval and military strategy. Ports were no longer the primary target for landings. Men and machine could land almost anywhere, giving the Allies the advantage of surprise. The Higgins’ boat saw action in the Pacific, the Mediterranean, and the English Channel. Locations included Sicily, Anzio, Tarawa, Iwo Jima, Saipan, Okinawa, Peleiu, and of course the Beaches of Utah, Omaha, and others. Over the course of the war, Higgins’ company grew from a small building with an equally small workforce to spanning 7 factories and over 20,000 employees. His design spawned the Landing Craft Assault (LCA), Landing Craft Mechanized (LCM), Landing Craft Utility (LCU), Landing Craft Tank (LCT) and others, all of which were built by Higgins or under license with his company, Higgins Industries. Over 20,000 of these vessels were built throughout the war with President Eisenhower’s remarks ringing true; it wasn’t for Andrew Higgins, the war may have been lost.

Additional information about this Brickmania® custom building kit:

This incredible creation features a functional ramp, 2x rotating turrets with mounted BrickArms, 3x custom minifigs, a fabric flag, all printed details, and plenty of space to add an allotment of optional D-Day US Infantry!

Model Statistics:

Designed by Daniel Siskind
513 LEGO®, Brickmania® & BrickArms® elements
3x custom minifig
Custom printed elements
Full-color printed building instructions
1/35th scale to match other Brickmania kits
Intermediate Skill Level (4-6 years building experience recommended)

All Brickmania® model kits are made of new-condition LEGO® bricks. This model comes disassembled and includes complete printed building instructions. This is a limited-edition kit and production may be discontinued at any time.

This is not a LEGO® Product. LEGO and the LEGO minifigure are trademarks of the LEGO Group, which does not sponsor, authorize, or endorse this product. The LEGO Group is not liable for any loss, injury or damage arising from the use or misuse of this product.