Initial Stryker deployment deemed a success (GNFI)

Army Times ^ | 5 Jan 04

[xzins]

TACOMA, Wash.

[ConservativeMan55]

Bump for interest!

[xzins]

Stryker troops in Samarra captured at least seven so-called “high-value targets” - insurgents on the 4th Infantry Division’s list of suspected planners, financiers and organizers in the areas north of Baghdad up to Tikrit. They detained another 50 or so men for possession of weapons and bomb-making equipment, according to a brigade press release, and discovered at least 26 weapons caches. Stryker troops hauled away more than 500 mortars, six mortar tubes, 200 155-mm artillery shells, nearly 200 rocket warheads, 53 rocket-propelled grenade launchers with 143 RPGs, 228 AK-47 assault rifles and thousands of rounds of ammunition. Most of the seized weaponry was later destroyed.

GNFI PING!

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[Pro-Bush]

I am for the Stryker since it provides better protection against ied's than the Hummer.

[xzins]

It is better than the Hummer.

RPGs seem to be getting more and more scarce.

[Darksheare]

Okay, as long as they don't suddenly decide it's success is enough to have it go toe to toe with stuff it cannot handle.
I know, I'm not transitional enough.

[Ranger]

I totally agree

[Cannoneer No. 4]

Stryker Brigade Combat Team Tactical Studies Group (Chairborne)

[Cannoneer No. 4]

ping

[montaine]

The Stryker is vunerable tp RPG fire. This was found out rather quickly, apparently. So now it is deployed with a scrabbled-together anti-RPG armor which, guess what, makes it too heavy to be air-transportable,which was the whole point in the first place. Maybe I'm not smart enough to understand the brilliance of this concept...

[xzins]

Me neither, but like pro-Bush says above, "it's better than the hummer." And he means safer, more firepower, etc.

I'm thinking that the rpg attacks have really died down recently. Any idea why? Are we confiscating all of them?

[Pro-Bush]

I think we are getting a lot of local Iraqi's support since we got Saddam, not to mention not many dead enders left to kill.

[Ranger]

Washington Post did a survey of attacks and showed the number had roughly fallen in half over the last 4 months but that they effectiveness was about twice as high. The actual article was in the WP the Sunday before last. Bottomline, its still better than the 8300 unarmored hummers in Iraq.

[squidly]

I'm thinking (hoping) that we're over the hump now. It wasn't until after Hitler's death was confirmed that the werewolves started petering out. Wouldn't surprise me if the same thing is happening here.

[Alamo-Girl]

Bump!

[windchime]

Bump!

[muleskinner]

If a Stryker is too heavy with the anti-RPG package bolted on, the armor package(s) will be flown in on another plane.

If you can lift 1 Stryker (38,000 lbs) with a C-130 (payload weight 42,000 lbs), you can carry 8 armor packages (5,000 lbs) on another C-130. Even if the combined weight of a Stryker and the up-armor package was less than 42K lbs., the total width probably exceeds the 119 inch width limit of the C-130 cargo bay. Actually, when a vehicle is shipped in a C-130, there should be enough space between the side of the vehicle and inside of the C-130 for the crew to get by. Most big vehicles are around 8' wide (96") that leaves a 2 foot wide gap. The armor prolly extends out around 12" on all sides, so no go.

[Ranger]

I hope you are right. His capture if nothing else indicates that the financial incentives for attacking US troops may be disrupted or reduced. I would not be too optimistic about reduced casualties however as we are unable to close of Iraq's borders and there seems to be an infinite supply of fanatics looking to take a cheap shot at our convoys which remain largely unprotected by armor. Of note are 8400 unarmored humvees, the fact that the national guard units are bringing less not more vehicular protection to the fight on the next rotation and that 1/3 of the Bradley's in Iraq are reportedly down due to a lack of tracks. Given that uparmored vehicles aren't going to be available in sufficient numbers to meet today's needs until the Summer of 05, I'd guess we will take approximately 1000 more KIAs before this situation winds down.

[blackie]

Initial Stryker deployment deemed a success ~ Bump!