(Or Not Your Daddy’s Hummer)
They are popping up all over the place here in Iraq. The MRAP Vehicles have been long anticipated by those driving on Iraqi roadways and the procurement guys back in Washington have done a good job of getting them into theater.
“These armored trucks… have been the military’s top acquisition priority for months now, and with good reason,” Morrell said. “They have proven to be true lifesavers for our warfighters in Iraq and Afghanistan.”
As of Dec. 17, 1,300 MRAPs were in the theater, Morrell reported. Another 180 are en route by sea aboard USNS Pililaau, a large, medium-speed, roll-on/roll-off ship operated by Military Sealift Command that left Charleston, S.C., Dec. 13. In addition, another 15 MRAPs are in the air headed to Iraq.
The other day I was talking with a pilot who told me that he was flying the night previously and did a double take when he saw the odd looking vehicle driving up the MSR in a CLP of about six. As the pilot brought his Kiowa Warrior around for a better look at the colossal truck his night vision devices momentarily suffered a white out from the blinding flash of an explosion. An IED had detonated just as the lead MRAP drove across it.
The pilot immediately began the process of calling in a 9-line MEDEVAC request for the injured occupants while his wingman began searching for signs of insurgents in case it was a command detonated device. The MRAP was propelled into the air from the blast, turned 360 degrees while momentum kept it moving forward, and landed on its side, sliding to a stop on the shoulder of the road. The pilot on the radio could not believe his eyes when he watched all of the occupants climb out of the vehicle seemingly unharmed. It’s good to see more of these mammoths on the roads over here. Sgt Hook out.
Posted by Hook @ 0857 zulu | | Permalink
This post is filed under: Army Times & GWOT & Iraq
