WASHINGTON, June 16, 2006 – Ongoing efforts to provide better protective gear for soldiers also benefits other servicemembers, a senior Army officer said at a House Armed Services Committee hearing here yesterday. "The Army's Number One concern is force protection," the service's chief force-development official Maj. Gen. Stephen M. Speakes told Capitol Hill legislators. In fact, Army research teams, he said, have developed and fielded better body armor, improved helmets and enhanced vehicle protection systems. Yet, "we're a member of a joint team," Speakes said. For example, Army efforts to develop better body and wheeled vehicle armor, he said, benefits...