Hawai'i unit will get armored Humvees
By Frank Oliveri and William Cole
Advertiser Staff Writers
Hawai'i National Guard troops will get modern combat vehicles from the unit they're replacing in Iraq, the state's top National Guard officer says.
Officials added that the "vast majority" of Humvees the 29th Separate Infantry Brigade takes from Kuwait into Iraq in February and March will be "up-armored" with plating and thick glass that provides extra protection on the sides, top and bottom.
Maj. Gen. Robert Lee said Friday that the unit's older 2 1/2-ton and 5-ton trucks will remain stateside and will be replaced by newer Light Medium Tactical Vehicles.
He also said Hawai'i units would soon begin to receive top of the line cold-weather gear, including heavy parkas and long underwear.
Lee said he has spoken with several relatives of Guard members who have raised concerns about the training and equipment Hawai'i troops are getting in Texas and New Mexico as they prepare for their deployment to the Balad area north of Baghdad.
The Defense Department also came under fire last week after tough questions were posed to Secretary Donald Rumsfeld by troops near the front lines who are concerned that they are driving vehicles with makeshift armor.
Approximately 2,000 Hawai'i Guard soldiers and about 700 reservists from the 100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry make up the 29th Brigade, along with units from California, Oregon and Minnesota.
Lee said all Hawai'i Guard soldiers also would get modern body armor before crossing into Iraq. Each will be equipped with the chest and back "Small Arms Protective Insert'' plates and a host of other new gear. The plates can stop an AK-47 round.
The Guard in September said all soldiers had the armor, but spokesman Maj. Chuck Anthony had acknowledged there apparently are a "handful" of soldiers still wearing old Kevlar vests without plates.
"Everyone's going to have the latest (body armor) before they get into theater," Anthony said. The new vests may arrive after a two-week Christmas break that ends Jan. 2. Shortly after that, the soldiers will fly to Fort Polk, La., for combat certification at the Army's Joint Readiness Training Center.
Between now and Sunday, additional new gear is expected to arrive, including knee and elbow pads and modular load-carrying systems.
Lee said the complaints about training and equipment are coming from a small group of soldiers and may be the result of some commanders failing to communicate the unit's training goals.
The troops will replace the 81st Brigade Combat Team, a National Guard unit out of Washington state. The Hawai'i Guard soldiers are expected to inherit that unit's modern combat vehicles, Lee said.
Master Sgt. Jeff Clayton, spokesman for the 81st, said "the vast majority" of Humvees the Hawai'i Guard soldiers will inherit will be the most heavily protected variants.
An Army specialist with a Tennessee National Guard unit preparing to convoy from Kuwait into Iraq garnered national attention on Wednesday — and cheers from other soldiers — when he asked Rumsfeld why some Guard soldiers had to dig for scrap metal to outfit their vehicles.
"We do not have proper ... vehicles to carry with us north," said Spc. Thomas Wilson.
In about August 2003, the U.S. military started to see an increase in roadside bomb attacks — often in the form of artillery shells buried in the ground — against convoys.
In a follow-up Defense Department briefing, Army Lt. Gen. Steven Whitcomb said there are 6,000 factory-built "Level 1" up-armored Humvees for Iraq, 10,000 vehicles with armor kits, and 4,500 vehicles with bolted on or locally fabricated steel plating.
The requirement in Iraq is for 8,100 Level 1 Humvees.
"With the production we have today, we will get there soon," Whitcomb said.
The approximately three-day convoy trip from Kuwait will take 29th soldiers through the deserts of southern Iraq, through or near Baghdad, and for some of the soldiers, 50 miles farther north to Logistical Supply Area Anaconda.
In response to concerns raised by some parents about the exhaustive training the troops are undergoing in Texas and New Mexico, Lee said Hawai'i Guard soldiers should expect their training to get even tougher.
"They need to forget about their past civilian life," Lee said. "You have to think about combat and making sure you and your buddies come back home.
"This one will be a stressful mission.''
Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-5459.
