The United States military runs on oil–300,000 barrels a day to be precise. But transformation, which uses technology as a “force multiplier,” has made the military increasingly reliant on electricity. The “digital soldier” relies on electrical devices for communications, for electronic warfare, for night vision, and a while host of other needs. Unfortunately, as much oil as the military burns, electricity remains in short supply–when soldiers are mounted on vehicles and when they dismount and rely on battery power. A couple of weeks ago, I posted on the particularly troublesome shortage of electrical power in the Humvee. The ultimate solution to that will come in the form of JLTV, which will rely on a diesel-electric hybrid engine to improve the range of the vehicle, reduce overall fuel costs (which can be as much as $400 a gallon for troops operating in Afghanistan), and increase electrical output. In the short-term, BAE’s Advanced Power Management System may provide the Humvee with greater flexibility–turning it into As David Axe wrote this week, “operations in Iraq and Afghanistan have revealed serious shortcomings, including inadequate power generation, And energy has been described as the “Achilles heel” of the U.S. military–without the But as the military goes hi-tech, it has become ever more reliant on electricity. The typical American soldier deploys to Iraq with more than $17,000 worth of gear–body armor, weapons, electronics, etc. National Defense magazine’s April issue carries an fascinating article on the
