Replies

However, you can bet your bottom dollar that in the general case, the airbridge for combat-ready Stryker BNs to austere LZs is a pipedream.

That's my understanding too. I'm just another DAT, but I can't figure out why all those incredibly bright people in the Pentagon have decided to "transform" the Army to fit an "airbridge" that does not really exist, and in the process to throw away the most powerful armored force in the world.

Does anyone have an example of a battle we've lost because we didn't ship our armor fast enough to the theater???

You make some good points, but remember there is NO push to take the armor force out. There are NO plans to replace any Armor or Bradley units, nor Armored Cavalry Squadrons or Regiments, with Strykers. The only one mentioned was the 2CR, which currently has no armored vehicles.

Everyone thinks the M1 tanks are great. The guidance has been to NOT even plan on removing tanks or Brads until the day comes along (many years from now) that new technology permits us to make a lighter armored vehicle that is just as survivable and just as lethal. Most of us think that will be a long time from now.

There are 30+ combat brigades in the army, and 3 or 4 of them (most of us don't think we will field 6 Stryker Bdes)will eventually become Stryker Bdes to give the Combatant Commanders some additional force mix choices. Those Stryker Bdes will eventually go away when the future combat system is finally fielded. They are a relatively short term fix to what the CSA thought was a gap in our current force capabilites...a quickly deployable medium armor force.

Everyone should legitimately argue if the Stryker vehicle is the right vehicle for this very small interum force, or if the SBCT is organized correctly, or if we should spend the few billion dollars required to field this force, especially considering it is a short term fix. But that argument should not be confused with any non-existent plans to get rid of tanks anytime soon. The heavy force will always be around. The only hope is that some day technology will permit us to make it not quite so heavy. Right now the technology does not exist, so we are keeping the heavy force just as it is.

---Does anyone have an example of a battle we've lost because we didn't ship our armor fast enough to the theater???--

Good point. Keeping in mind that you have never been in such battles.
Other point - it's not so difficult to shoot down C-130 with Stryker inside (for those "bad guys" who is capable to do this). For other "bad guys" just good old ships are fast enough to move troops.