Are military truckers expendable in the war in Iraq?

[shraby]

DAVID H. HACKWORTH
The brave soldiers of the 89th Company, 57th Transportation Battalion -- out of Fort Eustis, Va. -- lay their lives on the line just keeping the beans and bullets moving on the highways of death in Iraq. But on the double-jeopardy downside, they're driving thin-skinned truc ks that wouldn't stop a heavy-duty spitball. Fiber doors don't come close to stopping AK-47 slugs, and a rocket-propelled grenade round rips through a truck like a paratroop boot through a barracks window.

To make matters worse -- according to reports I've received from Fort Eustis and Iraq -- these heroes have a battalion commander (BC) who's blocking them from getting the right armor protection to survive their dangerous job. And without armor upgrades to their trucks, the 89th troopers are easy pickings.

So far during the past 30 days, the 89th's convoys have been in the thick of it 11 times. On Aug. 5, an 89th soldier was killed and five were wounded. But while these daring truckers took their lumps, they still accomplished the assigned mission -- drivin g through a hail of enemy fire and killing seven ambushers along the way.

When the 89th left Fort Eustis, Lt. Col. Jeffrey Helmick, the unit's former battalion commander, said they'd be issued up-armored trucks in Kuwait. The troops are still waiting. And their new commander, Lt. Col. Myrna Merced, doesn't seem to care if the soldiers are protected as long as the convoys run on time.

(more)

<http://www.dominionpost.com/a/edit/2004/08/26/ac/>