Senators want investigation into combat gear delays

Senators want investigation into combat gear delays
By Leo Shane III, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Friday, February 29, 2008

WASHINGTON — Four senators want a Defense Department investigation into why military officials aren’t getting much needed equipment to combat troops more quickly, specifically citing delays in getting Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles to Iraq.

But the Commandant of the Marine Corps on Thursday rebutted accusations that service officials botched requests for the heavily armored trucks.

“To say we knew at the time that this vehicle, which had far from proven itself, was needed to combat a threat that had not presented itself, that’s 20/20 hindsight,” Gen. James Conway told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday.

At issue are requests for better armored vehicles made by Marine commanders in February 2005. A recent report by a Corps civilian employee said that battlefield need was lost in the service’s “Byzantine” procurement system, likely costing troops’ lives.

But Conway disputed that requests for MRAPs were ignored, saying that the larger vehicles simply were not appropriate at the time.


Rest of article at: http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=52937