UK Troops risk their lives in Land Rovers while MoD sells off armoured veh

[Robbien]

A FLEET of armoured vehicles has been sold abroad for just £44,000 despite the ongoing scandal of British troops forced to patrol war zones in thin-skinned Land Rovers.

The MoD sanctioned the sale of 14 mine-protected Mamba vehicles, which originally cost £4.5m, after an expensive revamp left them "too heavy" to go on patrol.

The financial loss to taxpayers is another embarrassment for the MoD but far more serious is the suggestion it could have put the lives of British troops at even greater risk.

At least 20 soldiers have been killed in attacks on lightly protected Land Rover patrol vehicles in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and there have been widespread complaints that UK forces are not getting enough protection.

Opposition parties last night raged that it was "unforgivable" for the government to dispose of a fleet of heavily armed vehicles so cheaply when British troops were facing such dangers.

http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/uk.cfm?id=1263052006

[RamboLiberal]

1. Sounds like the MoD is just as FUBARed as DOD here

Read a report a couple of weeks ago that I posted at DU that troops in Afghanistan are still not getting up-armored Humvees in numbers they need.

http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=38256&archive=true

A top Central Command adviser promised troops here Sunday that he would work to put more armored vehicles in Afghanistan, but said that the roadside bomb threat in Iraq still outweighs the needs in this country.

The comments of Command Chief Master Sgt. Curtis Brownhill, adviser to CENTCOM commander Gen. John Abizaid on sustainment issues, came in response to a question from 1st Sgt. Jeff Gray of the 755th Mission Support Group during a question-and-answer session.

Gray said airmen and soldiers in his unit routinely rely on “soft-shelled” SUVs when they travel off base, because of the lack of fully up-armored Humvees for the number of missions in country.

Brownhill said commanders are aware of the problem and are working to get better protected vehicles to troops in country. But the insurgency in Iraq and its reliance on roadside bombs are still considered larger threats than Afghanistan’s militants.