Truck armor testing at Aberdeen saving soldiers in combat zones.

AuthorCast, Mike

Before new vehicle armor systems are deployed to soldiers in the field, they must first graduate from the Army's test center at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md. Conditions on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan have kept engineers at the test center busy is the demands of battle drive rapid equipment testing.

Staff at Aberdeen began testing the up-armored Humvee and armor-protection kits in August 2003. In addition to testing against the range of ballistic threats tactical vehicles could encounter on the battlefield, Aberdeen technicians bare examined the consequences of the added weight of armor on automotive performance.

Engineers at the Army's Research Development and Engineering Command and the Army Research Laboratory created the "expedient armor survivability kit," and sent it to Aberdeen for testing in mid-October 2003.

In charge of the tests was Col. John Rooney, chief of staff of the Army Developmental Test Command. Ballistic tests began Oct. 15, and by Oct. 27 the first kits had arrived in Iraq. DTC issued a safety confirmation several days later.

Testing took place seven days a week, 24 hours a day when test items were available.

The Army started adding armor to its Humvee trucks years before Operation Iraqi Freedom. The land-mine hazards in Bosnia led the Army Tank-Automotive and Armaments Command to contract with O'Gara-Hess & Eisenhardt, in Fairfield, Ohio, to produce armor for the "up-armored" M1114 Humvee variant.

But attacks from small arms, rocket-propelled grenades and improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, prompted the Army to place priority on shortening production schedules and beefing up protection for vehicles already in the field.

The M1114 weighs about 2,000 pounds more than the standard Humvee and includes 200-pound steel-plated doors, steel plating under the cab and several layers of bonded, ballistic-resistant glass to replace zip-up plastic windows. The first up-armored Humvees rolled off production lines in 1996.

O'Gara also developed armor for the M1116 and M1145 Air Force variants of the Humvee, as well as an armor kit that can be installed on the newer M998A2 Humvee.

As of mid-June, at least 6,900 armor kits had been shipped to Iraq, and about 6,500 had been installed in theater. About 123 potential armor solutions have been tested, Rooney said.

By November, 2003, testers at Aberdeen turned their attention to the armor protection kits designed for the heavy expanded mobility tactical truck (HEMTT), the family of...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT