When I asked Senator McCain about MRAP on Monday, some folks seemed confused. But there’s no doubt that the MRAP program, which seeks to replace up-armored Humvees in Iraq with sturdier, mine resistant and ambush protected (MRAP) vehicles, has risen to the level of presidential politics. In fact, Joe Biden’s whole campaign for president looks to be built around this one issue.
Screen shot of MRAP on the homepage of Biden’s campaign website.
On Monday, McCain said that MRAP is “kind of a reversal from the usual DoD procedure where they get a good idea and it takes them an inordinate length of time to get it into practice and into operational capability.” But, on Tuesday we learned that the program has, in fact, taken an “inordinate length of time” to get going. Biden’s response to that news: “It’s easy to throw around words like outrageous and shocking, but this is both.” Maybe. But there are some legitimate reasons for that delay. The Armchair Generalist offers this snarky take on Biden’s comments:
It’s going to take a while to get these vehicles fielded no matter what Congress does. The largest producer of MRAP vehicles, Force Protection, can produce roughly 200 vehicles a month, but hopes to have that number closer to 300 by early next year. The Army is requesting 17,700 MRAP vehicles, and the Marine Corps is in the market for maybe 5,000 more. Meanwhile, there’s another Humvee-replacement program–the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV)–that risks being marginalized. JLTV offers much of the protection of MRAP–a v-shaped hull and substantial armor protection–at far less cost and in a far more deployable package. Because of its weight and size, MRAP may be ideal for Iraq, but it won’t make the military any lighter, faster, or more mobile–it’s not a ‘transformational’ technology. As Robot Economist points out:
If the C-130 can carry the Cougar, it may not be able to carry other, heavier MRAP variants now under consideration, I’m thinking specifically of BAE’s massive RG-33–the 6×6 version of the Nyala. On the other hand, the Pentagon recently released an updated matrix for JLTV that requires that two of the vehicles be able to fit on a C-130 even in their heaviest configuration. MRAP may save American lives in Iraq, but it really shouldn’t be ‘shocking’ that the program has taken so long to get moving–troubling and typical might be a better description. Industry is just now mobilizing to meet demand, and the Pentagon has also been working on JLTV, which appears to be a better long-term investment. Whatever the outcome, MRAP is only going to become more visible in Congress and in the race for the White House.
