Posted on 01/17/2006 4:06:13 PM PST by Cannoneer No. 4
Canada's soldiers in Afghanistan are getting 43 new armoured patrol vehicles with improved protection from ground-level mine blasts but they may not be a panacea for the type of suicide attack that killed a Canadian diplomat and injured three soldiers in Kandahar.
The new armoured patrol vehicles (APVs), based on the South African Nyala anti-mine vehicle, will be used mainly for patrols and route reconnaissance.
They are designed to "resist under-wheel and under-belly mine strikes to enhance crew survivability" and to protect occupants "from small arms, hand grenades and anti-tank mines."
That description comes from a Canadian Forces background and fact sheet issued last November to announce that the government was buying 50 APVs at a cost of $60.3-million. However, the overall cost is double that because it includes not only the vehicles but also the spare parts, contingencies and two years of maintenance support by the manufacturer.
The four-wheel drive APVs are operated by a two-person crew and can carry four passengers. They can be outfitted with machine guns or a grenade launcher. They are powered by six-cylinder diesel engines.
"It's impossible to be ready for all attacks," said Lieutenant-General Marc Dumais, the deputy chief of defence staff. "With an explosion of that magnitude, it's not clear that any vehicle would survive or that there wouldn't be any casualties."
Scott Taylor, editor-in-chief of Esprit de Corps military magazine, agreed.
"If these guys stack enough explosives, they can blow a tank off its tracks," he said yesterday, adding there is no preliminary indication that the fatality and injuries could have been prevented by better equipment.
A suicide-bomb attack on the weekend killed Glyn Berry, 59, director of Canada's Provincial Reconstruction Team, and the senior Canadian diplomat in Afghanistan, and injured Private William Edward Salikin, 22, Corporal Jeffrey Bailey, 26, and Master Corporal Paul Franklin, 38.
They were travelling in light utility jeeps known as G-Wagons that had been specially modified with armour kits designed to protect occupants against "small arms, hand grenades and anti-personnel mines."
A suicide bomber pulled alongside in a vehicle laden with explosives and crashed into one of the G-Wagons.
Canada's troops in Afghanistan already have three reconditioned Nyalas used as reconnaissance vehicles to check routes for mines. According to army statements, the vehicle's "v-shaped hull and high suspension are designed to resist a blast equivalent to two . . . anti-tank mines detonating simultaneously."
Major Luc Gaudet said yesterday that the 43 new APVs arriving in Afghanistan next month will also be used to do "route reconnaissance on new ground."
Major Gaudet said he would not speculate about whether the new APVs would have made a difference in the outcome of the weekend attack. But he noted that the road where the attack took place is a well-travelled main road "used every day."
Blast busters
While the G-Wagon has shock-resistant windows and light armour plating, passengers in a Nyala are better protected by bullet-proof glass and an undercarriage designed to withstand the force of two simultaneous anti-tank mine blasts.
RG-31 Nyala
Nyala armoured patrol vehicle is designed to provide a high level of protection for troops while they conduct a patrol
Seating: 2 crew + 4
Length: 6.4 m
Width: 2.47 m
Height: 2.63 m
Max speed: approx 105 km/h
Max load: 2,100 kg
Range: 600 km
Ground clearance: 0.4 m
G-Wagon
Armoured G-Wagons provide protection from small-arms fire, hand grenades and anti-personnel mines while on patrol.
Seating: 1 driver + 3
Length: 4.2 m
Width: 1.7 m
Height: 2.005 m
Max speed: approx 138 km/h
Max load: 1,500 kg
Fuel capacity: 96 litres
Ground clearance: 0.439 m
A few pictures were posted a while back about the line of armored vehicles from SA.
Nasty looking brutes one and all. Would love to have any one of them in my driveway.
Well, if a vehicle isn't invincible, then there's no sense going to war with it, is there?
Whoa, Black Mamba(Bam-ba-Lam)
Whoa, Black Mamba(Bam-ba-Lam)
Black Mamba had a child (Bam-ba-Lam)
The damn thing gone wild (Bam-ba-Lam)
She said, "I'm worryin' outta mind" (Bam-ba-Lam)
The damn thing gone blind (Bam-ba-Lam)
I said Oh, Black Mamba(Bam-ba-Lam)
Whoa, Black Mamba (Bam-ba-Lam)
Oh, Black Mamba (Bam-ba-Lam)
Whoa, Black Mamba (Bam-ba-Lam)
She really gets me high (Bam-ba-Lam)
You know that's no lie (Bam-ba-Lam)
She's so rock steady (Bam-ba-Lam)
And she's always ready (Bam-ba-Lam)
Whoa, Black Mamba (Bam-ba-Lam)
Whoa, Black Mamba (Bam-ba-Lam)
Whoa, Black Mamba (Bam-ba-Lam)
Whoa, Black Mamba (Bam-ba-Lam)
She's from Africa(Bam-ba-Lam)
Way down in Africa (Bam-ba-Lam)
Well, she's shakin' that thing (Bam-ba-Lam)
Boy, she makes me sing (Bam-ba-Lam)
Whoa, Black Mamba (Bam-ba-Lam)
Whoa, Black Mamba
BAM-BA-LAM
ping
Canada Ping!
Please FReepmail me to get on or off this Canada ping list.
Thanks for the ping. We're finally getting some new hardware for our soldiers. It's only arriving though because the libs have no choice and they know it. Combine the fact that they have decimated our military via their budget cuts with the upcoming election. They (the libs) are not doing it for the good of our people ... they are doing it because it's in their own self interest.
-
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.