The boats used by US forces prior to the Aircat's 1964 introduction relied on screw-propellers, which would become fouled by aquatic plants and thus rendered useless.

Because US boats had trouble navigating the waters of the Mekong Delta, the region quickly became home to many Viet Cong strongholds and logistics bases.

[8] In 1961, the US Navy brought airboats and pump-jet boats, neither of which rely on propellers in the water, to Vietnam at the behest of ARVN for testing.

[8] In response, the Commander of the Military Assistance Command in Vietnam, (COMUSMACV) stated an operational requirement in June 1964 for shallow-draft boats capable of carrying 4-5 troops plus crew-served weapons that could negotiate aquatic plants and other obstacles abundant in marshes and rice paddies at speeds of at least 20 miles per hour (32 km/h).

While the gunner fired, the pilot had to pull forward to offset the gun's recoil or risk the boat being blown about or even capsized.

[23] The 57mm M18 recoilless rifle was test fired from an Aircat and proved impractical owing to its extensive back blast.

[4] The 106mm M40 recoilless rifle was used on airboats “frequently” by the 7th Armored Squadron, 1st Air Cavalry Division, who and “proven very valuable”.

The AN/PRC-25 posed challenges because of the difficulty hearing the radio over the engine noise and the fragility long antennas, which took a beating from bushes, trees, and other obstacles.

[24]: 81 [26] During the Vietnam War the Hurricane Aircat was used by US Special Forces and ARVN to patrol and attack in riverine and marshy areas where larger boats could not go.

[4] Aircats were used primarily in the 15,000 square miles (39,000 km2) of the Mekong Delta and Plain of Reeds though they also saw action in the Bảy Núi mountains near the Cambodian border.

[4] Its speed made it ideal for reconnaissance, providing flank security for riverine assault boats, and special forces use.

[28] As such, the craft was used widely by special forces for pursuing and assaulting Viet Cong units in flooded areas in the Mekong Delta.

[25][26]: 42  The 5th Special Forces Group was especially noteworthy for its use of Aircats, operating 84 of the vessels in the Mekong Delta beginning in early 1967.

[32] It also helped the 5th Special Forces Group mount operations and establish CIDG bases deep into territory previously under the control of the Viet Cong.

[25] The Aircat was also valuable to special forces because it could be easily transported by Chinook helicopter, allowing for flexible operations across southern Vietnam.

[36] Crew sizes were reduced to an average of 5–6 in response to a December 1964 accident in which an airboat carrying 11 ARVN soldiers sank in the Mekong River, drowning five.

Their dominance of the Mekong Delta led the Viet Cong to develop dedicated anti-airboat tactics and introduce several dedicated anti-airboat traps, including a light naval mine mounted on the end of a bamboo pole[25][39] and piano wire strung between wooden poles that held fishing traps, used to decapitate or injure airboat drivers and gunners.

[40] The change in VC tactics exposed a major weakness of the Aircat: the fiberglass hull offered no protection against gunfire or shrapnel.

[41] Standard defensive tactics for the Aircat were to "avoid becoming decisively engaged," i.e. to dodge enemy fire and perform offensive actions.

In one November 1965 battle involving three Aircats battling a VC platoon embarked on sampans in Kien Tuong province, considered "a classic instance of successful employment of an airboat unit" by the Army Concept Team in Vietnam (ACTIV), ramming attacks were responsible for about half of VC casualties and sampan losses.

Learning the basics of operating an Aircat took two weeks, although ARVN troops often took longer to reach the desired level of competence.

[61] Many Aircats returned to the United States, where they became widely used by civilians for recreation, commercial jobs, and environmental conservation.

[16] Outside the United States, Aircats have been used by civilians to transport lumberjacks in Pakistan, bring sick people to missionary clinics in East Pakistan (modern Bangladesh), control weeds on the Panama Canal, herd livestock in Venezuela, and transport animal specimens in Colombia.