Out With the Old, In With the New: Soldiers trade humvees for more armor

Photo By Staff Sgt. Eric Rutherford | A new Mine resistant ambush protected vehicle assigned to 2nd Platoon, Supply and Transportation Troop, Regimental Support Squadron, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment waits to roll out on its first mission with the unit on Forward Operating Base Marez, Iraq, Feb. 22. The vehicle is used as a convoy support gun-truck and replaced an M1114 up-armored humvee. The 3rd ACR will be receiving about 300 of the new MRAPs by mid-May.  

MOSUL, IRAQ

02.24.2008

Story by Sgt. Eric Rutherford 

115th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

Multi-National Division – North PAO
By Spc. Eric A. Rutherford, 115th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

MOSUL, Iraq – Soldiers ignored the light rain that pattered on them in the new motor pool as they carefully and eagerly inspected their new vehicles as an M1114 up-armored humvee sat empty and dirty on the sidelines -- already forgotten by the men who used the vehicle just days ago.

Soldiers of 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment received some of their first Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles on Forward Operating Base Marez, Feb. 15.

"We have been waiting a long time to get these," said 1st Lt. Jeffrey Boch. "They are brand new and we will be taking care of them. We are looking forward to running in them and seeing what they can do."

Boch, a platoon leader for Supply and Transport Platoon, Regimental Support Squadron, 3rd ACR, said the vehicle will put fewer Soldiers' lives at risk, by allowing them to take fewer vehicles onto the battlefield because of their larger troop capacity.

The MRAP weighs three times as much as the 1114 humvee, holds more personnel, has more power, can travel farther and has more armor. The MRAP also has a V-shaped hull for blast deflection.

"It is pretty common knowledge that the biggest threat our Soldiers face over here is the improvised explosive device," said Maj. Parker Frawley, regimental plans officer. "They are the biggest casualty-causers on the battlefield, so there was a push to get the MRAP fielded to all the units across Iraq and Afghanistan."

The push began in May 2007, when the Secretary of Defense established the MRAP program as the highest priority to DoD acquisition, prompting accelerated development and fielding of the new system. The program was designed to get the MRAP to units with the highest operational tempo.

"As the threat situation in other areas of the country has decreased, it has maintained fairly steady or increased a little in Mosul," said Frawley. "There has been a renewed thrust to get us the new MRAP a little more quickly."

After the week-long training course, 3rd ACR troops took delivery of 40 MRAPs. Soon, they will get 50 more. By mid-May the final number should be around 300 vehicles, said Frawley.

The basic platform of the new MRAP features upgraded fire suppression systems, basic light packages, and communication equipment. As each unit uses the vehicle for different missions they may need to modify the vehicle as they see fit, much like they did with humvees.

"No one like the American Soldier is quite as adept at putting some innovative thought into how best to use these vehicles, from putting light bars on them to how to route them because of power lines in the city," said Frawley. "We are talking about potentially using them as ambulances. There is a lot of innovation going on with the vehicle to see what we can do with it to use it."

Soldiers from S&T Troop, RSS, 3rd ACR, have already made some improvements, such as modifying the MRAP with gunner restraint systems. S&T Troop completed their first combat mission with the MRAP Feb. 21. Where normally they would have used the M1114 to provide gun-truck security for a Combat Logistical Patrol, they rolled the MRAP to remote areas of Iraq's Ninevah province to deliver food and supplies to small outposts that don't have a continuous supply chain.

Boch said the MRAP's ability to handle the adverse conditions of Iraq are going to make it easier for his Soldiers to complete their mission safely.

The mission wasn't without a few problems, but on this mission, the MRAP was the solution to the problems. During the patrol, a recovery vehicle went down with a broken throttle cable. To remove the vehicle from the road where it was susceptible to ambush, S&T Soldiers quickly hooked the recovery vehicle to their MRAP and towed it out of harm's way.

"There are a few minor adjustments we need to make, but it went pretty well," said Spc. Trevor Owen, a driver of the new MRAP with S&T Troop. "You can see more. I couldn't see out the passenger side of the Humvee, but now I can see higher through the windshield, all around, visibility is just better. We are making adjustments as we go."

Owen said he believes the MRAP is going to save lives with its advanced armor system and better visibility.

Another driver of the MRAP in S&T is Pfc. Daisha McGruter, who said she feels that Soldiers will better be able to perform missions from this vehicle due to the added protection that will allow the Soldiers to worry less about their personal safety and more about the mission at hand.

For 3rd ACR, the MRAP is proving itself to be the answer to the Humvee's shortcomings and as an asset to Soldiers on Iraqi roads.

• Date Taken: 02.24.2008
• Date Posted: 02.24.2008 12:47
• Story ID: 16652
• Location: MOSUL, IQ