Headed to Afghanistan: mine-resistant ambush-protected (MRAP) all-terrain vehicles (M-ATVs)

[Nikki Stone1]

Clearly, there is no question of leaving.

http://www.janes.com/news/defence/jdw/jdw091002_1_n.shtml

US airlifts first M-ATVs to Afghanistan

By Daniel Wasserbly

02 October 2009



The US Department of Defense (DoD) has begun deploying mine-resistant ambush-protected (MRAP) all-terrain vehicles (M-ATVs) to Afghanistan and now expects to order more systems beyond its recent 5,244 requirement.

These armoured trucks are urgently needed to provide troops in Afghanistan with the same blast protection as heavier MRAPs but with increased mobility to handle the difficult terrain there.

Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) spokesperson Cheryl Irwin told Jane's that seven M-ATVs departed for Afghanistan on strategic transport aircraft – three on a C-17 and four on a C-5 – on 29 September from Charleston Air Force Base in South Carolina.

This first deployment comes only three months after Oshkosh Defense announced it had won the highly coveted M-ATV production contract, which was expected to send at least 5,244 of the vehicles to theatre.

[bridgit]

1. Mm-hm, let's see who gets the refurbishment contract...

this stuff always eats it's own tail

[Nikki Stone1]

3. Yup.

SSDS

[The_Casual_Observer]

2. Reminds me of how the martian invaders were going to "win" the earth

in "The War of the Worlds"

[Stinky The Clown]

4. Why are we sending WAR MATERIÉL there instead of troops coming home????

THIS FUCKING WAR NEEDS TO BE OVER ...... not made more high tech.

EIGHT FUCKING YEARS. How much is enough?

Oh boy. Kewl new War Toys. Hubba Hubba.

Fuck that ......

[Nikki Stone1]

5. Exactly.

This is going on despite what the people want.

[Stinky The Clown]

7. With whom should we be angry?

[Nikki Stone1]

9. That I am not totally sure of.

What I can say is that Obama seems to have no real power to stop it. The talk of stopping either Afghanistan or Iraq wars and bringing the troops home is belied by the evidence.

[Nikki Stone1]

13. This is why:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091005/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_us_afghanistan

WH says Obama won't pull US out of Afghanistan

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama won't walk away from the flagging war in Afghanistan, the White House declared Monday as Obama faced tough decisions — and intense administration debate — over choices that could help define his presidency in his first year as commander in chief.
The fierce Taliban attack that killed eight American soldiers over the weekend added to the pressure. The assault overwhelmed a remote U.S. outpost where American forces have been stretched thin in battling insurgents, underscoring an appeal from Obama's top Afghanistan commander for as many as 40,000 additional forces — and at the same time reminding the nation of the costs of war.
Obama's defense secretary, Robert Gates, appealed Monday for calm — and for time and privacy for the president to come to a decision.
Last week the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, called publicly for the administration to add more resources, which prompted a mild rebuke from Obama's national security adviser, James Jones, for lobbying in public.
Obama may take weeks to decide whether to add more troops, but the idea of pulling out isn't on the table as a way to deal with a war nearing its ninth year, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said.....

[Nikki Stone1]

6. I can see my fan club has started unrec'ing.

LOL!

:D

[Stinky The Clown]

8. It seems to be S.O.P. for Afghanistan/antiwar threads.

Way too many people don't want to do anything but wear their cheerleader suits and stick their fingers in their ears when inconvenient truths pop up.

Here's another unrec festival.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x6702805

[Nikki Stone1]

10. I wonder if it's that or if they are trolls.

I just don't know.

I K& R'd you BTW.

[Arctic Dave]

11. If IED's can take out an M1 what makes them think these will be any better.

Large bulky troop carriers in poorly developed terrain sounds like an excellent place to get stuck and become a sitting target.

[Nikki Stone1]

12. I don't have a subscription to Jane's or I'd have better detail.

A subscription is over $1,000.

[Arctic Dave]

15. Heres a wiki link

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MRAP_(armored_vehicle)

Check out highlight(13)

Not exactly a nimble looking chunk of metal.

[Nikki Stone1]

16. It looks like TPTB are expecting roadside bombs in Afghanistan to be a more

frequent occurrence. Nimble may not be as important as the protection of these vehicles. Perhaps for use in Kabul?

[Arctic Dave]

18. Most likely used to ferry soldiers from point A to point B.

Even in Kabul the roads aren't exactly user friendly. Think of old European roads and construction.
Edit: Yeah, I'd say the weapon of choice for this occupation will be IEDs. You can't ask for a bigger bang for buck(no pun intended).

[Nikki Stone1]

19. I think so too

And it looks like the army thinks so.

[spanone]

14. .

[Nikki Stone1]

17. LOL!!

See the wiki link above