Boy, with this mad dash to produce a product, I think it would be fun to see one of the shows on Horse Power TV(Spike Network) produce a prototype. Blackwater has a vehicle that they are going to throw into the ring, and this should be interesting to see who wins this. –Head Jundi
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Army Eyes 100 Mile-Per-Hour Battle-Buggies
By Noah Shachtman May 05, 2008 | 1:35:00
PMCategories: Ground Vehicles
The U.S. military is looking for light, high-speed four-wheelers that can zip troops around battlezones. And just about every major player in the defense industry — including Blackwater — is lining up to supply the vehicles.
Military vehicles have generally gotten heavier in recent years, to protect troops from roadside bombs and other threats. “The latest Humvee model, the M1151, weighs in at more than 5 tons, twice the weight of the original, unarmored M998,” GovExec.com notes. “The military’s new ‘Mine-Resistant Ambush-Protected’ vehicle program is awarding contracts to build wheeled transports as heavy as 40 tons.”
Dean Lockwood, a Forecast International analyst, tells Defense News, “With the way they have up-armored the Humvees, they are too heavy to do many of the missions they were originally intended to do.” Moreover, he said, up-armored Humvees strain Army helicopters.
So “the U.S. Army, Marine Corps and Special Operations Command may order thousands of rugged, high-tech, high-speed vehicles that can climb mountains, rescue fallen comrades and lead quick-strike assault teams in combat,” Defense News’ Kris Osborn reports. “Service officials are eyeing prototypes and early versions of several existing vehicles, including ones that can hit 100 mph on roads. [Army] engineers are also exploring individual technologies that may give vehicles the suspension to handle rigorous terrain at high speed.” (more…)
