Okay, I was prematurely vocal about my take on the MRAP, but I am wrapping up this current deployment, and have spent enough time in the back of both 4x4 and 6x6 models to make the following statement...they suck, and are a detriment to our combat capability. Sure, they can keep a guy ensconced in a blanket, but they are only effective as a mobility platform on hard-surfaced roads. Even then, the errant pothole could leave a axle in ruins if it is hit at the right speed and angle."There is no failsafe measure that can prevent all loss of life and limb on this or any other battlefield. That is the brutal reality of war. But vehicles like MRAP, combined with the right tactics, techniques, and procedures, provide the best protection available against these attacks."'
Secretary Gates, Jan 18, 2008
Cross-country mobility is so atrocious that just about every time I had to move cross-country, I've ended the movemnt fatigued and that is not the way to go into a fight (of which we have had none here thus far).
When our task force first arrived at its current operating location, we put these vehicles through paces that probably haven't been attempted before, and the maintenance status told the tale of a vehicle that simple could not withstand the slightest bit of rough terrain without crawling at 0-5 mph, and had to be gingerly maneuvered through chokepoint after chokepoint in order to get anywhere. We learned over time and stopped destroying them, but that time occured in a relatively benign environment. Secretary Gates is right on the notion of utilizing the appropriate TTPs, but the problem that we face, at least in the Corps, is that you don't get TTPs added in when drivers go to get their license and road time. We tried to employ them like other wheeled assets, and just simply failed. It's better now, but only because we have to baby the vehicles to excess.
I am hearing that the Corp's is looking for money to upgrade the suspension systems from a solid-axle so that these vehs can be made to operate in a wider range of environments. I hope that is possible, because the platform has a ton of potential, but until that suspension gets unscrewed, it won't be capable across the range that we need.
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