| -Caveat Lector-
The 72 vehicles operated by the 428th are not designed for battle. They have thin metal floorboards and, in some cases, a canvas covering for doors. Iraqi guerrilla groups have been targeting all types of military vehicles with homemade bombs and small-caliber weapons. Then why are they put in harms way in a deadly battle zone? - JR
washingtonpost.com
www.ctrl.org
DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER
==========
CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic
screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are
sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis-
directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with
major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought.
That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and
always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no
credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply.
Army Thin-Skinned Over Homemade Armor
By David A. Lieb JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Fearing roadside bombs and sniper bullets, members of
the U.S. Army Reserve's 428th Transportation Company turned to a local steel
fabricator to fashion extra armor for their five-ton trucks and Humvees before
beginning their journey to Iraq earlier this month. But their armor might not make it into the war, because the soldiers did not
obtain Pentagon approval for their homemade protection. The Army, which is still developing its own add-on armor kits for vehicles,
does not typically allow any equipment that is not tested and approved by the
Army, Maj. Gary Tallman, a Pentagon spokesman for Army weapons and technology
issues, said last week. "It's important that other units out there that are getting ready to mobilize
understand that we are doing things" to protect them, Tallman said, "but there's
policy you have to consider before you go out on your own and try to do
something." The possibility that soldiers could be denied extra protection because of an
Army policy has outraged some of the friends and neighbors who helped the
Jefferson City-based unit. "I think it's the stupidest thing I ever heard of," said Virgil Kirkweg,
owner of a Jefferson City steel company, which rushed to meet the reserve unit's
armor request. "I just hope the government is not dumb enough to make them go
out there without something that's going to protect them somewhat." The 72 vehicles operated by the 428th are not designed for battle. They have
thin metal floorboards and, in some cases, a canvas covering for doors. Iraqi
guerrilla groups have been targeting all types of military vehicles with
homemade bombs and small-caliber weapons. E-mails from soldiers already deployed in Iraq urged the Missouri reservists
to get extra armor if possible, said 1st Sgt. Tim Beydler, a member of the
428th. The soldiers persuaded a local funeral home director who is active in
community affairs to pay the $4,000 tab for 13,000 pounds of quarter-inch steel.
Industrial Enterprises Inc. donated the fabricating work, also valued at about
$4,000, so the steel could be fitted under vehicle floorboards and on the inside
of doors. The soldiers drove off Dec. 12 for Fort Riley, Kan., planning to fasten the
specially made steel to their vehicles when they arrived in Iraq. "We're doing what we can to protect our soldiers. That's the bottom line,"
Beydler said last week as news of the donated steel was being praised locally as
an example of grass-roots support for the troops. "It not only boosts morale of
the soldiers, but also of the soldiers' family members, who know their soldiers
will be afforded some extra protection." Fort Riley spokeswoman Deb Skidmore said the reserve unit will be allowed to
take the steel to Iraq, but U.S. Central Command will decide later whether the
troops will be permitted to use it. The Army's concern, Tallman said, is that unapproved steel-plating could
somehow cripple the vehicles or cause them not to perform the way they were
designed. For example, a Humvee armor kit recently tested at the Army's Aberdeen
Proving Ground was so heavy that it caused the vehicle to break, he said. Tallman and spokesmen at several Army bases said they were unaware of any
other units trying to craft their own armor before leaving for Iraq. But Tallman
said the Army had discouraged several families of individual soldiers from
trying to obtain their own bulletproof vests, citing the same reason for Army
testing of equipment. Kirkweg said the Missouri soldiers did not have time to wait weeks, months or
years for the Army to test and approve a steel-plating project that he could
complete in three days. "We thought, this is a very important project here -- we're talking about the
possibility of saving people's lives," he said. "So without hesitation we went
ahead and proceeded with the thing."
Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="">ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om |
uc.GIF?1.13&wpost&wpost&noscript
Description: Binary data
