[Cannoneer No. 4]

ping

[baltoga]

An excellent article on the impact of IEDs. There is no easy solution.

- If we up our armor, they up their ordinance.

- If we jam their signal, they switch to a different frequency

Now I did find it interesting that switching patrol tactics met resistance from within, so that I find troubling.

[Cannoneer No. 4]

Defense Tech: Bomb Squad

[Cannoneer No. 4]

US Spends $50.9M for 79 More Cougar JERRV Mine-Resistant Vehicles

Posted 04-May-2006 06:16

Cougar-H & EOD Team
(click to view full)

Force Protection Industries, Inc. in Ladson, SC received a $50.9 million firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract with a maximum ordering quantity of 79 Joint Explosive Ordnance Disposal Rapid Response Vehicles (JERRV) and associated manuals, spares, field support, and training. Work will be performed in Ladson, SC (60%) and Charlotte, MI (40%), and work is expected to be complete by May 2007. This contract is a sole source award to Force Protection Industries, Inc. as they are the sole manufacturer. The Marine Corps Systems Command in Quantico, VA issued the contract (M67854-06-D-5042).

DID has covered the Cougar HEV/JERRV in-depth before, and the article includes very positive field reports re: its performance with engineer and Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) units. This contract is in addition to the 27 Cougars purchased by the Marines for use in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the 122-vehicle all-services order DID covered in May 2005.

[TXnMA]

This officer described to me a military that has been ineffective in confronting the IED threat for three reasons: (1) overdependence on technology-based solutions; (2) a stifling culture of bureaucracy; and (3) a failure to compile accurate information on each IED attack.

• (1) overdependence on technology-based solutions; That's the good ol' "American Way" -- especially in the military -- where there is seldom sufficient commonsense to apply the "KISS" principle. (Besides, there is lots more glory for the 'brass hat' bozos in throwing money at a "Star Trek" program than there is in doing on-the-ground work in the hot desert...) OTOH, if (3) below had been done, the data could be used to task FLIR-equipped UAVs to scan "IED corridors" for the heat signatures of pavement-softening fires...

• (2) a stifling culture of bureaucracy; It's the U.S. military, folks -- landlords of the world's largest "cubile drone" building (the Pentagon). FWIW, that bureaucracy is the main reason I left the military for private industry; at least losers can sometimes be fired "out here in the world"...

• (3) a failure to compile accurate information on each IED attack. Un-be-lievable! With all the stat-counting and computer use in the (2) bureaucracy, it is amazing that there is not a cubbyhole full of drones somewhere in the bowels of the Pentagon with this specific mission. IMHO, the field troops should be able to pull up a zoomable, date-filterable, clickable map -- showing the UTM coordinatess (GPS location) of every IED attack -- on their laptops... :-(

[TXnMA]

The [GPS] location reported may be several hundred meters from the site of the actual blast.

Moo-sake! My $200 hand-held civilian GPS consistently (verified by repeated-over-time readings of benchmark locations) provides UTM coordinates with accuracy of less than five meters. This can be improved considerably by averaging coordinates from multiple readings...

[Steel Wolf]

The coalition maintains a database of IED attacks, but it seems insufficient for the task at hand. For example, the current database does not track the type of vehicles that were in the movement that was attacked, how many vehicles there were, or whether they were on patrol or part of a convoy. It does not track whether casualties were the result of a single IED or a subsequent IED targeting troops responding to the initial blast--a tactic frequently employed by the insurgents. Additional information, such as how many personnel were in the targeted vehicle and what part of the vehicle was targeted (right, left, front, underside, or roof) is critical, but also isn't tracked.

This is simply not true. I've read dozens and dozens of forensic reports on IEDs by EOD cells who respond to the scene and evaluate the damage. Those reports are so in depth they make an episode of CSI look like Scooby Doo.

[U S Army EOD]

While it is true IED's are causing us problems, the main problem is the media hype over this. In Vietnam, these were called booby traps. The term IED was coined in the early 70's for the term home made bomb we were getting from the radical left and peace groups during Vietnam. But these were going off here in the States.

They came from such organizations as SDS, Black Panthers, SLA, Baader-Mienhoff Gang, etc. Included in this group was the anti-American, terrorist group, known as VVAW or Vietnam Veterans Against the War. Leaders of this group was a deserter from the USNR, with the name of "Hanoi John" Kerry.