The M730 carrier vehicle was part of the M48 Chaparral anti-aircraft missile system, and was based on the M548 cargo carrier variant of the M113A1 APC. The missile system was placed in the cargo compartment, and a cover which was held up by six bows could be erected over it for travel. When not in use, the bows were stowed on the bow of the vehicle. A blast shield protected the engine, and blast shields were also able to be folded over the folding crew cab for launching.

The MIM-72 Chaparral missile was based on the infrared homing Sidewinder 1C aerial missile. The gunner was provided with an optical sight, and the missile homed to the target autonomously once launched. The range of the MIM-72 was around 11 miles (18km).

M730A1 included the improved engine cooling and suspension modifications of the M548A1, which were similar to those implemented in M113A2.

M730A2 included the M548A3's and M113A3's RISE improvements, and also added an NBC protection system. The M730A2 was the first of the M113 family of vehicles to be given the RISE upgrade. The 20,000lb (9000kg) winch that had been on the bow of previous M730s was deleted with M730A2.

Later improvements to the Chaparral system included the introduction of the M121 smokeless rocket motor, and the replacement of the missile's expanding-rod warhead with the M250 blast-fragmentation warhead. A FLIR sight pod was also introduced on the left side of the missile mount to enhance night operations. These improvements were dubbed I-Chap, for Improved Chaparral.