Nickdfresh
04-02-2006, 01:41 PM
Army blocks soldiers from using own body armor
Fri Mar 31, 2006 6:12 PM ET
By Will Dunham
WASHINGTON (Reuters) (http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=domesticNews&storyID=2006-03-31T221128Z_01_N31202027_RTRUKOC_0_US-IRAQ-USA-ARMOR.xml&archived=False) - The Army said on Friday U.S. soldiers in Iraq and elsewhere can use only body armor provided by the Pentagon even though some have bought their own because they felt what the military provided was insufficient.
Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Sorenson, the Army's deputy chief for acquisition, acknowledged during a Pentagon briefing there were shortfalls in body armor earlier in the 3-year-old Iraq war, but said U.S. soldiers currently deployed have all the military-issued armor they need.
The Army, which provides most of the U.S. ground troops fighting in Iraq, released a directive dated March 17 prohibiting the use of commercial body armor. It specifically mentioned a type called "Dragon Skin," made by Pinnacle Armor, based in Fresno, California.
The document contained a warning that "death or serious injury to soldiers ... will occur" if the prohibition is not followed.
Sorenson said soldiers who continue to use body armor not issued to them by the Army face possible disciplinary action.
"I think the mothers and the fathers that are currently having soldiers deployed, whether they're female or male (soldiers), ought to feel comfortable with the fact ... that we have provided the best body armor that is available anywhere in the world," Sorenson said.
Body armor, intended to guard against injury from threats like bullets, shrapnel and blasts, includes items such as outer tactical vests and ballistic plates to guard the torso, as well as throat, shoulder, side and groin protectors.
Some troops and their families have purchased their own body armor and other equipment from private companies after the Pentagon failed to provide the gear they felt was necessary. Critics of the Bush administration have periodically seized on this as an illustration of what they see as poor planning for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
'SOME EMBARRASSMENT'
Murray Neal, Pinnacle Armor's chief executive officer, defended his company's body armor, saying the fact it may surpass the Army equipment's quality is "causing them some embarrassment."
"I'll take my vest and day of the week, put it next to their vest on a (shooting) range. Let's do an equivalent shoot on each, and then whichever one does not have the holes in it, let that one be fielded on our soldiers without any backlash. And I will tell you, it won't be what's being issued today," Neal said in an interview.
The Army directive stated that "media releases and related advertising imply that Dragon Skin is superior in performance to IBA (Interceptor Body Armor, issued by the Army). The Army has been unable to determine the veracity of these claims."
It said Dragon Skin capabilities do not meet Army requirements and it has not been certified by the Army for protection against certain small-arms threats seen in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Interceptor Body Armor is made by Point Blank Body Armor Inc. of Pompano Beach, Florida.
Sen. Christopher Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat, questioned why U.S. soldiers were still feeling the need to purchase equipment to keep them safe, saying, "The Bush administration, to put it mildly, has a poor record of ensuring our troops are getting what they need."
Sorenson said the body armor currently fielded has undergone seven different improvements, with more than 200,000 in theater.
President George W. Bush last October signed legislation requiring the Pentagon to set rules for reimbursing U.S. troops, their families and charities up to $1,100 for the purchase of protective, health and safety gear to use in those war zones.
Fri Mar 31, 2006 6:12 PM ET
By Will Dunham
WASHINGTON (Reuters) (http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=domesticNews&storyID=2006-03-31T221128Z_01_N31202027_RTRUKOC_0_US-IRAQ-USA-ARMOR.xml&archived=False) - The Army said on Friday U.S. soldiers in Iraq and elsewhere can use only body armor provided by the Pentagon even though some have bought their own because they felt what the military provided was insufficient.
Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Sorenson, the Army's deputy chief for acquisition, acknowledged during a Pentagon briefing there were shortfalls in body armor earlier in the 3-year-old Iraq war, but said U.S. soldiers currently deployed have all the military-issued armor they need.
The Army, which provides most of the U.S. ground troops fighting in Iraq, released a directive dated March 17 prohibiting the use of commercial body armor. It specifically mentioned a type called "Dragon Skin," made by Pinnacle Armor, based in Fresno, California.
The document contained a warning that "death or serious injury to soldiers ... will occur" if the prohibition is not followed.
Sorenson said soldiers who continue to use body armor not issued to them by the Army face possible disciplinary action.
"I think the mothers and the fathers that are currently having soldiers deployed, whether they're female or male (soldiers), ought to feel comfortable with the fact ... that we have provided the best body armor that is available anywhere in the world," Sorenson said.
Body armor, intended to guard against injury from threats like bullets, shrapnel and blasts, includes items such as outer tactical vests and ballistic plates to guard the torso, as well as throat, shoulder, side and groin protectors.
Some troops and their families have purchased their own body armor and other equipment from private companies after the Pentagon failed to provide the gear they felt was necessary. Critics of the Bush administration have periodically seized on this as an illustration of what they see as poor planning for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
'SOME EMBARRASSMENT'
Murray Neal, Pinnacle Armor's chief executive officer, defended his company's body armor, saying the fact it may surpass the Army equipment's quality is "causing them some embarrassment."
"I'll take my vest and day of the week, put it next to their vest on a (shooting) range. Let's do an equivalent shoot on each, and then whichever one does not have the holes in it, let that one be fielded on our soldiers without any backlash. And I will tell you, it won't be what's being issued today," Neal said in an interview.
The Army directive stated that "media releases and related advertising imply that Dragon Skin is superior in performance to IBA (Interceptor Body Armor, issued by the Army). The Army has been unable to determine the veracity of these claims."
It said Dragon Skin capabilities do not meet Army requirements and it has not been certified by the Army for protection against certain small-arms threats seen in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Interceptor Body Armor is made by Point Blank Body Armor Inc. of Pompano Beach, Florida.
Sen. Christopher Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat, questioned why U.S. soldiers were still feeling the need to purchase equipment to keep them safe, saying, "The Bush administration, to put it mildly, has a poor record of ensuring our troops are getting what they need."
Sorenson said the body armor currently fielded has undergone seven different improvements, with more than 200,000 in theater.
President George W. Bush last October signed legislation requiring the Pentagon to set rules for reimbursing U.S. troops, their families and charities up to $1,100 for the purchase of protective, health and safety gear to use in those war zones.