Editor's corner.

• Position: Editorial

As the United States rotates 250,000 troops in and out of Iraq, military planners continue to devise new "force-protection" plans to defend truck convoys against rocket-propelled grenade attacks and roadside bombs. Miles-long convoys of Humvees, wreckers and medium trucks--moving both troops and supplies--have become targets of choice in Iraq, forcing the Army to quickly crone up with new tactics and, when possible, new technologies to counter these threats. Soldiers, meanwhile, have created their own "skunk works" outfits in the field, strictly focused on hardening vehicles. They bolt armor plates and install machine guns on trucks, among other things. Proposed ways to improve vehicle survivability as well as the challenges of maintaining logistics vehicles in the desert, are some of the topics covered in a story package beginning on page 21.

The Army, meanwhile, has kicked off a new training program aimed at convoy operators. Using digital simulations and other training devices, the Army hopes to better prepare truck drivers and crews to deal with the hostile environment in Iraq. That story starts on page 32.

Since the onset of U.S. military operations in Afghanistan and later Iraq, the Defense Department has touted the close cooperation between Special Operations Forces and conventional units as a linchpin in the Pentagon's strategy to wage...