Stryker Brigade Receives Vote of Confidence from Chairman

DoD - American Forces Press Service ^ | Oct. 22, 2003 | Jim Garamone

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Stryker Brigade Receives Vote of Confidence from Chairman

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

FORT LEWIS, Wash., Oct. 22, 2003 – The Stryker Infantry Carrier Vehicle system received high praise from Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force Gen. Richard B. Myers following a test drive here Oct. 21.

Mary Jo Myers, wife of Air Force Gen. Richard B. Myers, gets a briefing on the Stryker Infantry Carrier Vehicle at Fort Lewis, Wash., Oct 21. Photo by Jim Garamone
(Click photo for screen-resolution image); high-resolution image available.

Myers plowed through standing water and mud and drove on taxiways at the Army airfield here for about 20 minutes before holding a press conference.

"They had to tell me to get back here so I could meet up with you," Myers told reporters following the drive. "I was prepared to drive it all the way back to Washington, D.C."

The chairman said he was impressed with how smoothly the Stryker rides in contrast to other vehicles designed to carry people into battle. The basic vehicle carries nine soldiers with a vehicle commander and driver. "Nine folks get out and they won't be fatigued from just getting there," Myers said.

The vehicle also has the latest technology built in. The Army situational awareness system is integral to the system. Soldiers know where they are, where their friends are and whenever possible where the enemy is. "Plus, with the hatches down, it can defend itself with 50-cals on top, grenade launchers and so on," Myers said. "I think it's a terrific vehicle. I know the infantry folks (who) are going to ride in it think so as well. The smoothness of the ride over rough terrain and the stability and the responsiveness was quite striking to me."

The 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division will deploy the Stryker Brigade to Iraq soon. The first elements of the brigade will deploy to the U.S. Central Command area next month. Myers said the soldiers are ready. He said they have trained with the equipment, modified it as needed and know how to fight using it. Brigade officials said they have taken all the lessons-learned reports to heart and incorporated them into the training regimen.

"I think what we'll see in Iraq is that this system, while not built for that contingency, is going to fit into the needs over there just perfectly," Myers said. "The Stryker system can deliver more infantry, faster over a wider area than any previous system."

But making the infantrymen even more powerful are the other assets accompanying the brigade: the mortar platoons, the towed artillery, the Air Force ground controllers, the four unmanned aerial vehicles. All these and more give the brigade much more combat power than any comparable unit.

Myers said the deployment will teach the Army much that it can use in developing its Future Combat System.

Myers thanked the soldiers for their service, and he asked them to thank their families for the sacrifices that those staying home are also making for the county. A reporter asked what he would tell the families if he could.

"I'd say that what their soldier is doing is really important work," Myers said. "The values that we hold dear are being challenged as they never have been before. We're all in this together: the military member, their families. We appreciate those sacrifices and I hope they understand this is really important work. We've got to get this right."

~~~

	Air Force Gen. Richard B. Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, receives a briefing on the Stryker Infantry Carrier Vehicle from a noncommissioned officer at Fort Lewis, Wash., Oct. 21. Photo by Jim Garamone
	~~~   Also from DoD today:  M-113 Driver Examines the Stryker

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

 Thanks, Tonkin!

[FreedomPoster]

Ping list holder pings.

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

"Plus, with the hatches down, it can defend itself with 50-cals on top, grenade launchers and so on," Myers said. "I think it's a terrific vehicle. I know the infantry folks (who) are going to ride in it think so as well. The smoothness of the ride over rough terrain and the stability and the responsiveness was quite striking to me."

~~~
FYI. Pinging for comments from military Freepers*.
~~~

If you want on or off my Pro-Coalition ping list, please Freepmail me. Warning: it is a high volume ping list on good days. (Most days are good days).

*Other side of the coin won't get someone in trouble for disagreeing with a superior officer on a public forum, I hope.

[Cannoneer No. 4]

PING!

Stryker Brigade Combat Team Tactical Studies Group (Chairborne)

[Alamo-Girl]

Bump!

[SJSAMPLE]

Well, as long as it's "smooth ride".

[Cannoneer No. 4]

The Stryker cannot defend itself. Like any other combat vehicle, all it can do is sit there like an inanimate chunk of steel and rubber until the driver or the vehicle commander become aware of a threat. Much is made of situational awareness, and all the high-tech, gee-whiz, Buck Rogers War Machine gear 3/2 has, but I have my doubts whether the vehicle commander will know when somebody jumps out of a spider hole behind him and throws a satchel charge under him until it goes off, unless he has his head up out of the hatch and his neck on a swivel. He can't do that and monitor the optics on his Remote Weapons Station at the same time. As I understand it the RWS is not stabilized and the gun cannot be properly aimed when the vehicle is moving. I see that as a major problem. A 40-year old 5-ton truck with a ring mount on the roof can do better than that.

I am glad General Myers is impressed, but I wouldn't have expected him to tell those guys their taxi sucks and they're all going to die. He probably knows as much about armored vehicles as General Schoonover knows about fighter planes.

[archy]

One of these things...is not like the other ones. One of these things...is not the same.

[Cannoneer No. 4]

Click here for high-res pics of the RWS.

[Cannoneer No. 4]

Pointing out to the motorized infantrymen how much their Stryker looks like a Syrian BTR-60 is unkind. Doing so while uploading main gun ammo is just plain mean.

[TADSLOS]

The smoothness of the ride over rough terrain and the stability and the responsiveness was quite striking to me."

[ASA Vet]

Three look like BTR's

[Cannoneer No. 4]

2. Kongsberg RWS: The Kongsberg Remote Weapons Station mounts either a .50-caliber machine gun or MK19 40 mm grenade launcher. Both are operated by remote control from inside of the vehicle. The RWS has a camera with a zoom lens that can spot distant enemy forces.

[ASA Vet]

I keep telling myself, "read the whole thread before posting."
I don't seem to learn. Sheesh.

[Southron Patriot]

As I said before in annother Posting, the Stryker is a BOONDOGLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

A total waste of Taxpayer's money. It cannot be deployed on a C-130 in less than 6-8 hours not counting airtime (1 vehicle only). A C-17 or C-5 can carry 2 vehicles only but not there ammo or crews.

I said it before the U.S. Army would have been better off buying into the U.S. Marines LAV program. It can be loaded on any transport aircraft currently in the U.S. arsenal(2-3 on a C-130, 4-6 on a C-17/C-5, 1 in a large Helio). It is versatile, sturdy, dependable and can be configured in over a dozen ways. It is small enough to go through any street/alley in the world(Stryker can't get through most streets in the 3rd. world).

The only reason we have the Stryker program is that the Chairman of the JCS under Clinton whanted to leave his mark on the Military. And the U.S. Army has never saw a spending program it did'nt like!

Southron Patriot
(US Army Space & Missile Defense Command in Huntsville, Al)

[Cannoneer No. 4]

Some performance shortfalls in the Infantry Carrier Vehicles surfaced last year, during the Millennium Challenge exercise at the NTC. Campbell said several problems have been fixed, while some still need attention, such as the Remote Weapons Station. The RWS operates the .50 caliber weapon.

“We have got three improvements already on Remote Weapons System from different variations of software they have put in it,” said Noel. He was a squad leader at the NTC exercise last year.

“We had a lot of problems last year. The heat would freeze up the RWS,” he said. “When they revised it, they had another problem with it. It was freezing to the rear. [Now], with the third version, we had no problems at NTC this year.”

He said that the RWS has been reinforced with extra beams, “so that it does not come down on its own,” he said.

Despite the extra hold, “the RWS has not been stabilized enough,” said Spc. Scott Borowski. “Every movement the vehicle makes, it makes as well, so you can’t really effectively shoot on the run and the picture isn’t that good.”

He said that he was not impressed by the images from the thermal sight. And he complained the vehicle lacks a range finder. Several soldiers interviewed at the NTC last year had complained about the thermal sights in the RWS (National Defense July 2002). However, according to Noel, changes have not been made to the sight.

“Some of the changes come sooner, some are later,” he said. “Thermal and stabilization are very expensive, so whether that ever happens I do not know.”

[archy]

As I understand it the RWS is not stabilized and the gun cannot be properly aimed when the vehicle is moving. I see that as a major problem. A 40-year old 5-ton truck with a ring mount on the roof can do better than that.

The soft-mount XM151 Kongsberg Remote Weapon Station is made to be adaptable to either the M2 .50 caliber, the M 40MM automatic grenade launcher or the M240 7,62mm MG, so adapting a 3-axis stabilized mount adaptable to weapons of varying weights is a difficult trick; add in the possible XM312 .50 caliber/25mm weapon considered as an M2 .50 replacement and the problem gets worse.

During live-fire testing with the .50 the Stryker repeatedly failed to deliver bursts in excess of 45 rounds, due to the feed chute's hanging up while having to both elevate and traverse with the mount, as well as recoil with the various guns fitted.

Additionally the Stryker's *television screen* electronic sighting system, similar to that of the Bradley and combining thermal viewers, night scopes and a day-optic television screen likely mean that like the Bradley with IGS, the Stryker can't be airdropped or LAPES-ed in to troops in trouble. Not that the version with *just* a .50 would necessarily be in much of a position to help.

A soldier’s view: the Striker sight picture

[Cannoneer No. 4]

The Protector Weapons Station

Norwegian technology on top of Canadian/Swiss technology running on French tires.

[McGavin999]

That thing needs more armor. I don't like the fact that it's going to be used in Iraq, it's not suited for Iraq.

[Travis McGee]

The Stryker may suck in Iraq, where it will be an urban warfare death trap, but it will be perfect for suburban America in five or ten years, sending troops out of firearms confiscation raids.