Four-day goal for Strykers unrealistic, study finds
| • | House approves money for Hawai'i brigade |
By Derrick DePledge
Advertiser Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON — The Army cannot yet meet its goal of sending new Stryker brigades anywhere in the world within four days and should set more realistic time lines, a government report has concluded.
The General Accounting Office, the investigative arm of Congress, estimated that it would take five to 14 days and about one-third of the Air Force's C-17 and C-5 aircraft to transport a Stryker brigade by air. A Rand study came to a similar conclusion, provided that some equipment was positioned in advance in Germany, Guam and Diego Garcia.
The Department of Defense could decide this month whether to go forward with six Stryker brigades, including one expected at Schofield Barracks in Hawai'i, or limit the number or shape of the brigades. Each brigade, centered on 300 of the eight-wheeled, 19-ton Strykers, has about 1,000 vehicles and 3,600 people.
Sen. Dan Inouye, D-Hawai'i, has said that he has been assured a brigade will be assigned to Hawai'i. The senator's staff said yesterday that Inouye is reviewing the GAO report and would discuss the findings with Army officials.
The Stryker brigades are being designed as an interim step in the Army's transformation to a more flexible fighting force. The Stryker vehicles have more combat power than Humvees and are lighter than Bradley fighting vehicles.
The Army has acknowledged that it intends to transport Stryker brigades into battle by air and sea, but the GAO recommended more specific time lines so Army commanders can begin to integrate the brigades into war planning.
The Defense Department has asked the Army to consider adding more combat capability to the brigades, such as air power, and extending the time the brigades can remain in battle independently. The Army has sought to keep the brigades light, with a support structure about one-third the size of a heavy armored brigade, according to the GAO.
Expanding the brigades would increase the amount of time needed for deployment, the GAO found.
The first two brigades are scheduled for Fort Lewis, Wash., followed by brigades at Fort Richardson, Alaska; Fort Polk, La.; Schofield Barracks; and the Pennsylvania Army National Guard. The Army envisions that one of the brigades would eventually be stationed in Europe.
The GAO found that even a five-to 14-day air deployment estimate may be difficult to achieve because it would require about one-third of the Air Force's C-17s and C-5s. The Army told the GAO that about a third of the brigade would be deployed by air while the rest of the materiel would be moved by sea.
The GAO projected that it would take 5.6 days to deploy a brigade from Schofield Barracks and Hickam Air Force Base by air to South America, 6.9 days to Europe and the South Pacific, 7.5 days to South Asia, 13.7 days to West Africa and 14 days to sub-Saharan Africa. By sea, it would take a brigade from Hawai'i 10.7 days to reach South America, 22.7 days to Europe, 8.2 days to the South Pacific, 15.8 days to South Asia, 18.5 days to West Africa and 21.5 days to sub-Saharan Africa.
The Defense Department generally agreed with the GAO's findings but said the Army would keep its four-day worldwide deployment goal for the Stryker brigades. The goal, the Defense Department said, is a target rather than a standard, and the Army is working with the U.S. Transportation Command to improve deployment times.
