Mules are robust - yes they smell but are much quieter than those headless robots. And if you get stuck you can eat them. Those robots are yukky.
............would have got a lot more Nam Vets killed because patrols demanded absolute silence, in some cases hand signals. Plus, it could not have made it through the jungles.
I’n Afghanistan too, I think “silence” and “stealth” are much in demand. I’m no expert. Maybe we have a vet with some combat experience that is?
I’d go with mules as well.
My grandfather used mules to pull logs for his mills.
I’m used to them and they are easy to work.
That robot thing is pretty creepy!
I remember seeing movies of Merrill’s Marauders trekking through the jungles, swamps and over mountains in Burma.
The things the mules and men had to contend with would short out that robot mule in a heartbeat.
I think a big problem with these things is going to be noise.