thedrifter
12-19-07, 07:38 PM
Wednesday, Dec 19, 2007
Posted on Wed, Dec. 19, 2007
Pentagon delivering more MRAP vehicles
By LOLITA C. BALDOR
The Defense Department will meet its goal to deliver at least 1,500 bomb-resistent vehicles to troops in Iraq by the end of this year and also is considering the military's request to send more of them to Afghanistan, a Pentagon official said Wednesday.
While both the Army and the Marines have been re-evaluating how many of the mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles they need, press secretary Geoff Morrell said it was unlikely that the final, overall requirement would be reduced.
"Our objective is to build at least 15,374," Morrell said. "We do not believe that the joint requirement, even if those needs are adjusted, would have to be adjusted downward. If anything, at this point, the thinking is that the joint requirements may increase."
Morrell said commanders in Afghanistan have asked U.S. Central Command for nearly 70 more of the so-called MRAPs, and that request has been forwarded to the Pentagon. There currently are about 40 of them in Afghanistan.
He added that the department was on track to exceed its goal of sending 1,500 of the vehicles to Iraq by the end of the year, but that it likely would take a bit longer to get them fully equipped and operating in the field.
Right now, he said, 1,330 have been delivered to Iraq, while another 180 are en route by ship and 15 are being flown over this week. That would bring the total deliveries to 1,525.
The Marines recently proposed buying fewer of the heavy vehicles than initially planned - 2,300 instead of 3,700 - largely because the need for extra protection in western Iraq has declined dramatically with the drop in insurgent violence in recent months.
The trucks, which weigh between 20 tons and 40 tons, also are viewed as too heavy by the Marine Corps, which is a rapid reaction force and prefers the lighter Humvee.
Army officials are also reviewing their needs as violence in Iraq declines, but they have not yet made a formal decision to buy less than the 10,000 they planned.
On Tuesday the Pentagon announced new orders for the bomb-resistent vehicles. But the order for this round is fewer than initially expected. The order for 3,216 additional MRAPs will cost $2.6 billion, but in October military officials said they expected the December order to be for around 6,500 vehicles.
The latest purchase brings the total number of vehicles on order to just over 11,900.
BAE Systems of York, Pa., Force Protection Industries of Ladson, S.C., and International Military and Government LLC of Warrenville, Ill., received the latest MRAP contracts.
Overall, Congress has provided $21 billion to build as many as 15,000 MRAPs.
Ellie
Posted on Wed, Dec. 19, 2007
Pentagon delivering more MRAP vehicles
By LOLITA C. BALDOR
The Defense Department will meet its goal to deliver at least 1,500 bomb-resistent vehicles to troops in Iraq by the end of this year and also is considering the military's request to send more of them to Afghanistan, a Pentagon official said Wednesday.
While both the Army and the Marines have been re-evaluating how many of the mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles they need, press secretary Geoff Morrell said it was unlikely that the final, overall requirement would be reduced.
"Our objective is to build at least 15,374," Morrell said. "We do not believe that the joint requirement, even if those needs are adjusted, would have to be adjusted downward. If anything, at this point, the thinking is that the joint requirements may increase."
Morrell said commanders in Afghanistan have asked U.S. Central Command for nearly 70 more of the so-called MRAPs, and that request has been forwarded to the Pentagon. There currently are about 40 of them in Afghanistan.
He added that the department was on track to exceed its goal of sending 1,500 of the vehicles to Iraq by the end of the year, but that it likely would take a bit longer to get them fully equipped and operating in the field.
Right now, he said, 1,330 have been delivered to Iraq, while another 180 are en route by ship and 15 are being flown over this week. That would bring the total deliveries to 1,525.
The Marines recently proposed buying fewer of the heavy vehicles than initially planned - 2,300 instead of 3,700 - largely because the need for extra protection in western Iraq has declined dramatically with the drop in insurgent violence in recent months.
The trucks, which weigh between 20 tons and 40 tons, also are viewed as too heavy by the Marine Corps, which is a rapid reaction force and prefers the lighter Humvee.
Army officials are also reviewing their needs as violence in Iraq declines, but they have not yet made a formal decision to buy less than the 10,000 they planned.
On Tuesday the Pentagon announced new orders for the bomb-resistent vehicles. But the order for this round is fewer than initially expected. The order for 3,216 additional MRAPs will cost $2.6 billion, but in October military officials said they expected the December order to be for around 6,500 vehicles.
The latest purchase brings the total number of vehicles on order to just over 11,900.
BAE Systems of York, Pa., Force Protection Industries of Ladson, S.C., and International Military and Government LLC of Warrenville, Ill., received the latest MRAP contracts.
Overall, Congress has provided $21 billion to build as many as 15,000 MRAPs.
Ellie