Xenophon,
What I finally got smart enough to do was to have each team member put an Assault bag full of "might need" stuff in the truck. Many were the times where opportunity knocked and you wound up somewhere different then you intended - and as such th threat conditions changed based on either what you were doing, or what the enemy was doing - or if it went from night to day to night. It was easy just to keep the stuff in the trucks & do the PCIs an hour or so out from movment. Evrything from M67s to red smokes, extra 240 ammo, NVD batteries etc. If you lose your truck, or have to go where the truck can't you can make a decision about what goes and what stays.Guys like me, on a MTT team where I do both, may need both. What I wouldn't give to be able to wear a plate carrier on a patrol.
Side SAPIs usually stayed in the truck - the result of realizing my 40 year old body could not jump as far as my 20 year old pride said it could - that one almost got me in 3 stories worth of hurt. On the other hand, I always tried to ensure my gunner (often a logisitics LTCor a FSNCO augmentee) had not only the best turret upgrades we could get on the truck, but also that the driver (an ADA 03 serving as an Intel type) understood where to halt so as to put the gunner in the best position and minimize the gunner's exposure / blind spots. This was often tough because when I was moving dismounted I always wanted the comms relay capability to raise air or communicate higher that I could not get on a MBITR - since that was a part of our mission.
All of that goes to force protection - the choices the driver makes, to the direction the gunner covers, to the ability to leverage good comms and bring in RW or other assets to a decision how to enter a house, etc. Do I believe in body armor - yes (I've seen it save quite a few lives) - but not to the point where it decides my actions for me.
Best, Rob
Bookmarks