Editorial: The MRAP solution

[CommunityEditor]

The tradeoff for the superior blast protection provided by Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles is that they are top-heavy and prone to rollover, too tall and too heavy for much of the roadways and infrastructure in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Field commanders want the protection, but they’re asking for better mobility and more stability as the Defense Department sets the requirements for the last 1,600 of some 15,000 MRAPs that were rush-ordered for the Army and Marine Corps. The rest already have been built and fielded to the war zones.

Significant risk remains in operating those vehicles and the services seek to mitigate that through improved operator training and better mission planning.

Still, the MRAP represents an effective response to urgent battlefield requests issued in late 2006. Despite its flaws, the vehicle has proven safer against IEDs than any other combat vehicle.

But this is certain: The enemy is working with zeal to develop explosives capable of penetrating the special V-shaped hull and armor of the MRAP.

One potent threat is the explosively formed penetrator, a sophisticated and powerful bomb that blasts molten metal through armor. From mid April through mid June, EFP bombings in Iraq increased 40 percent. The growing threat of EFPs led to the up-armoring of MRAPs, which added some 5,000 pounds to the vehicles.

Sound familiar? Humvees were up-armored when they proved inadequate to the insurgents’ bomb-making innovations.

The real solution to ending the escalating power of roadside bombs is to harness intelligence and technology to outsmart the cells that manufacture and plant them.

Redesigning vehicles and adding layers of armor are defensive maneuvers and this is a battle that can only be won on the offensive.


Article: http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/comm...l_mrap_072108/

[CommunityEditor]

The Pentagon’s rush to field thousands of Mine Resistant Ambush Protective vehicles in Iraq may result in lower performance and higher costs in the long-run, according to a Government Accountability Office report.

The Defense Department launched its high-priority MRAP program in early 2007 to counter enemy homemade bombs responsible for roughly 75 percent of the casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan. The $22 billion effort was designed to purchase and field up to 15,000 MRAPs as quickly as possible.

Since then, DoD’s “tailored acquisition approach” has fielded more than 6,600 MRAP vehicles, but “it has also increased performance, sustainability, and cost risks,” the GAO’s July 15 report states.

“Safety and performance testing is not yet complete, and any shortcomings revealed may require design changes or post manufacturing fixes, the report states. The three phases of developmental tests, which began in March 2007, are not scheduled to be completed until August.

Awarding contracts to five difference companies — Navistar Defense, Force Protection Industries, BAE Tactical Vehicle Systems, BAE Ground Systems and General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada Corporation — will likely result in future challenges as well, the GAO maintains.

“Operating, maintaining, and sustaining a fleet of more than 15,000 fielded vehicles manufactured by at least five different vendors could also present significant challenges—especially for the Army, whose fleet will include more than 10,000 vehicles from five manufacturers” the report states. “Future budgets could be significantly affected by these challenges, particularly since the department is still determining its cost estimate to operate and sustain the current MRAP quantities.”

The GAO also pointed out that the future of MRAP may be short-lived, which could make things worse.

“As threats change, performance requirements — and MRAP’s role in DOD’s overall tactical wheeled vehicle strategy — could change, further exacerbating these challenges,” the report states.


Article: http://www.militarytimes.com/news/20...lding_071608w/

[Zwerge]

Great: First the weren't producing fast enough and now they are saying they were rushed out too fast and will have all kinds of life cycle problems. Go figure!