MRAP - A Correction is needed apparently

On January 22, 2008 we posted 1st US fatality in MRAP in Iraq - Force Protection slides

Badgers Forward (An Army Officer in Iraq commanding an Engineer Company according to his blogger profile - see pic ) corrects the record - (his wife is a self confessed sassy girl, also corrects his posts and listens to NPR) and somewhat testily

The New York Times gets it wrong.

Corporal Stephen Shannon of Company C, 397th Engineer (Task Force Pathfinder) was killed in Ramadi in January 2007 while riding in an RG-31.

Sergeant James Holtom, Sergeant Ross Clevenger, and Private First Class Ray Werner of Company A, 321st Engineer (Task Force Pathfinder) were killed 8 February 2007 while riding in an RG31.

A Soldier from the unit we replaced had a Soldier killed while riding in an RG31 in July of 2006 and there have been several incidents of Soldiers getting killed while riding in Buffaloes.

This is not a point of mere semantics.

As a Commander I told my Soldiers they had MRAPs and the very few in theater were dedicated to Route Clearance operations. When I wrote letters home I told the family members that their loved ones were in MRAPs and they had the very best protection available. None of that has changed except now with DoD stating the first MRAP deaths have occurred, many people have a question in their head. That is unfair to those families and the Soldiers that road in those vehicles.

I think the NY Times could certainly have asked more questions. It is true they accurately quoted the Department of Defense press conference; I can't fault them there, however, if they really knew what was going on here, they would have known that there have have been some MRAPs in country for quite a while.

There is a great deal more, well worth reading for aficionados of MRAP's. Wired have also updated their report " " ...the MRAP hit yesterday was not a Force Protection Cougar (as originally pictured) but a Navistar Maxxpro. These e-mailers note that the 1st Battalion of the 30th Infantry Regiment uses Maxxpros, not Cougars. " Which is good news for seekers of the Truth but not for Navistar shares.

Full taxonomy of all the US MRAP vehicles here, with details of vehicle, manufacturer, orders placed and pictures.