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| Iraq-Jordan | |
| Gen.: Troops in Iraq Now Have Body Armor | |
| 2004-06-08 | |
| Now? Why were these not supplied long before?? So many of our boys could have been saved. Something is wrong here. The Army’s top supply commander said Monday that all American troops in Iraq are now equipped with bullet-resistant vests, after a shortage that led many soldiers to pay for costly body armor themselves. As late as March, some soldiers headed for Iraq were still buying their own body armor, despite assurances from the military that the equipment would be available before they were in harm’s way. Gen. Paul Kern, commander of the Army Material Command, said the shortage eased after manufacturers stepped up production of the lifesaving vests. Kern spoke at a news conference where Honeywell Specialty Materials announced it would increase production of Spectra fiber, a key component of the vests. He said the vests had saved dozens of soldiers who were shot at close range. Kern recalled that troops in Vietnam had to be ordered to wear cumbersome flak jackets. "You don’t have to discipline them to put on protective gear today," he said. "They are looking for it." Last October, it was reported that nearly one-quarter of American troops serving in Iraq did not have ceramic-plated body armor, which uses four-pound armor plates to stop bullets and shrapnel. The vests can cost several thousand dollars each. (How much is the life of an American serving in Iraq?)
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| Posted by:Mark Espinola |
| #10 Ptah--so blame the gov't-- which is run by the GOP and George Bush--logic sez they killed our soldiers since they were too busy cutting taxs for the rich while denying our soldiers body armor |
| Posted by: Not Mike Moore 2004-06-09 12:42:37 AM |
| #9 Guess Halliburton didn't get their payoff soon enough |
| Posted by: Not Mike Moore 2004-06-09 12:38:41 AM |
| #8 Bodyguard: Thanks for the info, and especially for your service and sacrifice. We are all in your debt, and all the more so to Matt and David. May God Bless them and give peace to you and to their families. |
| Posted by: cingold 2004-06-08 7:42:23 PM |
| #7 All hail Vidalia, home of what we are fighting for. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-06-08 6:11:19 PM |
| #6 The problem with the vests is that the Government would not guarantee a large enough order for the manufacturer to justify hiring extra help. I know this, because the ballistic armor is being made in my town, Vidalia Georgia, and this was news in the local paper. |
| Posted by: Ptah 2004-06-08 1:41:43 PM |
| #5 The Interceptor vests we wore over there had extra pieces that covered our neck and groin, but we never wore them for mobilities' sake. The new vests work great with the plates in them, I never heard of any troops getting did by direct fire whilst wearing them. I did lose 2 good friends to the old style flak jacket, though. (God Bless you Matt and David) |
| Posted by: Bodyguard 2004-06-08 1:27:43 PM |
| #4 I wonder if they're still modifying the vests to have Shoulder Pads? There was a doctor in the field that noticed several of the injuries were in the shoulder/neck area and jimmy-rigged some vests to have armored shoulder pads. Anybody else hear about this? |
| Posted by: Anonymous4021 2004-06-08 11:35:02 AM |
| #3 It also has to do with a change in procedure. At first, only infantry and combat troops were slated for the vests. A change was made that would give all troops the vests, but that effectively (what?) tripled or more the demand. In addition, the light weight ceramic plates require a more extensive QA process, as you might expect, than the older, heavier plates. Ballistic ceramics are not easy to manufacture as compare to dinner plates or toilets. |
| Posted by: Chuck Simmins 2004-06-08 11:05:48 AM |
| #2 It had nothing to do with cost. It was a pure supply problem. The company producing them could not produce them fast enough. By the way, we have our Congress to thank for this cluster-fuck. They always put these stupid little riders in legislation that go something like military must buy XXX product from YYY producer (always in the state of the senator writing the rider), oh and YYY producer maintains no liability for quality or schedule. Congress sucks. Now I don't know if this particular case was caused by a rider in legislation, but I would be suprised if it was not. |
| Posted by: AllahHateMe 2004-06-08 10:56:53 AM |
| #1 I think a number of troops who were designated for admin and medical work were provided with alternate equipment. Some of those troops were then rotated into combat support and provided the vests but until they had the vests they were nervous about it. |
| Posted by: mhw 2004-06-08 10:50:52 AM |