Schumitz said 10 years of continuous evo- lution and improvement within the Stryker program has resulted in the successful ful- fillment of the original vision for the vehicle.
“In October 1999, a challenge was laid out to the Army which stated we must provide early-entry forces that can operate jointly without access to fixed forward bases, but we still need the power to slug it out and win decisively,” Schumitz said. The Army’s heavy forces were too heavy, and our light forces lacked staying power, he said. “The Stryker Brigade—a dynamic, agile, lethal force structure—proved to be the solution to those mismatches.”
CONTINUOUS UPGRADES Throughout its years in service, the Stryker has undergone various surviv- ability upgrades and “kit” applications designed to improve the vehicle’s ability to withstand attacks.
“There has been a constant evolution of survivability kits applied to the platform, either in anticipation of a threat or in response to a threat,” Schumitz said.
In total, 40,000 kits have been applied during the last eight years of combat oper- ations, he said. The various survivability enhancement kits include blast-attenuated seats, additional underbelly armor, slat armor, and extra ballistic shields for gun- ner protection, among other things.
For example, Driver’s Enhancement Kits were put on Stryker vehicles at a for- ward location in Afghanistan, said MAJ Michael Zaharanic, Assistant Program Manager Stryker Modernization.
“Right after we put those kits on, a Stryker was hit with an IED on the driver’s side, and the driver walked away. It was a great day for that driver, for GD [Gen- eral Dynamics], and the PM [program
TOW ON TARGET
A Stryker vehicle crew from 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division fires a Tube-launched, Optically tracked, Wire command-link guided (TOW) missile during the brigade’s rotation through the Joint Readiness Training Center, Fort Polk, LA. (U.S. Army photo.)
manager] who put that kit together,” Zaharanic said.
RAPID RESPONSE The Stryker DVH vehicles were also developed on a rapid-turnaround basis, said Schumitz.
“The rapid turnaround of the DVH is responsiveness at its best,” he said. “Soldier survivability is the Army’s number-one priority. Once we determined that the DVH effort was an achievable and accept- able risk, we swiftly engaged in executing the robust program,” he said.
Engineers at General Dynamics Land Sys- tems conceived the double-V-hull design and tested it at Yuma Proving Ground, AZ, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD, and the U.S. Army National Training Center at Fort Irwin, CA.
Vehicles went through live-fire, devel- opmental, and operational testing that concentrated on force protection, safety, performance, reliability, and durability.
There are 140 Stryker DVHs in the Army supply chain, with plans to field a total of 450 vehicles to Operation Enduring Freedom.
LTC Joseph Davidson, Deputy Com- manding Officer for the 2nd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, has deployed three times with Stryker units. “The Stryker is unique,” Davidson said. “It is a great vehi- cle that gives us the operational freedom to move time and time again. Certainly in Iraq and now in Afghanistan, a unit can be retasked virtually on the go and sup- port a different mission.
“When you get down to it, it is about the Soldiers,” Davidson said.
KRIS OSBORN is a Highly Qualified Expert for the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology Office of Strategic Communications. He holds a B.A. in English and political science from Kenyon College and an M.A. in comparative literature from Columbia University.
LORI A. GREIN is the Public Affairs Officer for the Program Executive Office Ground Combat Systems. She holds a B.S. degree and is a graduate of the Defense Information School. Grein has seven years of government experience in leadership and public relations roles and is an experienced correspondent for Army publications.
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