Lighter body armor issued for Afghanistan

[unhappycamper]

Lighter body armor issued for Afghanistan
By Dan Lamothe - Staff writer
Posted : Saturday Sep 6, 2008 7:23:09 EDT

The Corps has introduced a new alternative to the body armor Marines wear in combat.

Scalable plate carriers, which allow leathernecks to adjust the amount of protection they carry, are lighter than the modular tactical vests, or MTVs, being used now. They have been issued across the Corps and are intended primarily for use in Afghanistan, where the rocky terrain can make carrying the bulky, but more protective, MTV prohibitive, said Capt. Geraldine Carey, a spokeswoman for Marine Corps Systems Command.

“The resultant benefits of lighter weight and decreased heat retention are best suited for operating environments characterized by high elevations, thick vegetation or tropical climates,” Carey said. “The reduced bulk of the vest is also well-suited for the confined spaces combat vehicle crewmen typically operate in.”

The manufacturer, Eagle Industries Unlimited, is under contract to produce 9,483 SPCs, at a cost of about $410 each, with about 5,500 fielded so far, Carey said. She did not say when the rest of the order must be delivered.

SPCs were first fielded in 2007 by the Okinawa, Japan-based 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, which submitted an “urgent universal needs statement” asking for body armor more suitable to tropical environments and mountains, Carey said.


Rest of article at: http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/2008/09/marine_vest_090508w/%2e

[Fabio]

1. This is a good move

Although I work with a competitor of Eagle's, they are a great name in the industry and build a very good product. The use of a plate carrier is appropriate in many AO's -- particularly when the primary threat is ballistic and not fragmentation.