The Marines do it again…
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is funding the research and development of a four-legged “walker” vehicle known as the Boston Dynamics BigDog. A marvel of modern robotics technology, it has demonstrated incredible stability and maneuverability on steep, snow-covered slopes and even on ice. In many ways, it resembles a miniature version of the four-legged AT-AT Walkers from The Empire Strikes Back, although it appears to be far more stable (then again, I haven’t seen anyone tie its legs up with a tow cable, so the jury is still out).
As we discovered in Iraq, an effective counterinsurgency strategy requires a significant number of infantry maneuvering about the battlefield on foot, as opposed to hunkered down in their vehicles. Although the forthcoming All-Terrain Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle (in keeping with the Star Wars theme, AT-MRAP) might have its use in a number of areas, nothing will be able to replace the effectiveness of the infantryman patrolling on the ground. Indeed, during the Iraq War, the use of dismounted patrols as opposed to the “commute to work” philosophy which dominated American strategy during the early half of the Iraq War seems to have contributed, at least in part, to the decrease in violence.
No matter how far we advance in manufacturing technology, we increasingly seem to load our infantrymen down with more and more weight. In Afghanistan, where NATO troops are conducting dismounted patrols over steep, rocky mountains, a simple patrol requires immense physical effort, particularly at the higher altitudes, where the air is thin. Surely, a vehicle like the BigDog would be of use in Afghanistan to carry the bulkiest portions of combat equipment.
But leave it to the US Marines—always short of money and coming up with new ways to stretch their dollars—to come up with a much cheaper alternative to the BigDog, using mules as pack animals, just as the Taliban do. It may not be as sexy as the new BigDog, and they may be temperamenta at times, but they have gotten the job done for centuries. While the BigDog represents incredible technology which will undoubtedly be used in a number of different applications–military and civil–did we really need a mega-expensive walker to carry a few rucksacks when a mule would have done just as well?
The terrain in Afghanistan brings up a number of interesting issues. In order to get off the mega-FOBs and patrol the countryside, troops will need some sort of ground transportation. HMMWVs and MRAPs are, as of now, somewhat restricted in the terrain of Afghanistan. With foot marches being slow and tiring, why not outfit a good number of our troops with Four-Wheeled All-Terrain Vehicles? ATVs have been used in small numbers by the US military for quite some time. They would provide a level of mobility that our troops currently do not possess, and they would certainly not be as expensive as the million-dollar-a-pop MRAP, and considerably more mobile. In fact, an earlier SWJ article which laid out the capabilities of the now-cancelled Future Combat System included a description of a vehicle which was dubbed the “M-5 Tactical Segway” (based on an off-road four-wheeled Segway variant). I will be the first to admit that this project suffers from poor advertising (The words “Tactical Segway” give me the image of a platoon full of socially awkward losers whirring down the street on the two-wheel variant). However, a four-wheeled vehicle certainly looks as if it has many supporters within the military establishment.
Focus question for the SWJ crowd: What sorts of transportation systems would you want to see in Afghanistan?
