As a nation, let's not forget our responsibility

On Jan 6 the New York Times ran an article on whether or not better body armor for soldiers could save more lives.

The article was controversial, but there was a short passage in the article on Humvees, and the efforts to obtain fighting vehicles that are better suited for today's combat environments.

The production of a new armored truck called the Cougar, which military officials said has thus far withstood every insurgent attack, has fallen three months behind schedule. The small company making the truck has been beset by a host of production and legal problems.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon is still relying on another small factory in Ohio to armor all of the military's principal transport truck, the Humvee, and it remains backlogged with orders. The facility, owned by Armor Holdings, increased production in December after reports in The Times about delays drew criticism from Congress. But the Marine Corps said it is still waiting for about 2,000 of these vehicles to replace other Humvees in Iraq that are more lightly armored, and does not expect final delivery until June.

An initiative begun by the Pentagon nearly two years ago to speed up production by having additional firms armor new Humvees remains incomplete, Army officials said.

Again, I just want to ask the question, are we doing all we can to find a replacement for the inadequate Humvee? Is this nation, with its vast industrial might, doing the right thing by relying on small private companies?

The AP had a story on the Humvee today that underscored lack of total commitment on this issue.

Nearly three years after rolling into Iraq in trucks covered in many instances only by canvas roofs, the 101st Airborne Division's 3rd Brigade is adding extra layers of armor to its Humvees.
....
Commanders in Iraq and at the Pentagon have debated how to further improve the Humvee. The Army also has tested several vehicles to replace it, but a successor has not been developed.

Three years and vehicles are still being improved? Three years and we're relying on small private companies to develop successors?

My correspondent (now home) had some thoughts on this article.

let me be frank/blunt; any model of the humvee is TOTALLY inadaquate on the modern battlefield. is that clear enough?

In my previous post on this particular topic, I included casualties involving Humvess from Dec 19 through Jan 1. Here are casualties since then, where Humvees were specified as being involved.

Date	Name	Assigned To	Circumstances
Jan 5	Sgt. Jason Lopezreyes Spc. Ryan Walker	3rd ID	IED detonated near their HMMWV
Jan 5	Maj. William Hecker Capt. Christopher Petty Sgt. 1st Class Stephen White Sgt. Johnny Peralez Pvt. Robbie Mariano	4th ID	IED detonated near their HMMWV
Jan 7	Spc. Clinton Upchurch	101st AD	IED detonated near his HMMWV

Just as one example from WWII, at the beginning of that war, among other aircraft, the US Army Air Force was flying the P-39, hardly the top performing plane of the war.

By 1944, the USAAF had the P-51, one of the best fighters of the war.

This country has had three years to develop a new fighting vehicle. Why do we not yet have the P-51 equivalent of the Humvee? Are we content to lose soldiers 2 and 3 and 4 and even 5 at a time?

We have a responsibility to equip our fighting forces with the best we can achieve. Let's not shirk that responsibility.

Previous Posts

Can't we do better?
The Rock
It is still an inadequate vehicle
More on the Humvee
We can play a role in the war effort