Comments for Army Partially Terminates Future Combat Systems Manned Ground Vehicle

Army Partially Terminates Future Combat Systems Manned Ground Vehicle

2009-07-21T11:56:14Z

The Department of the Army announced today that it will partially terminate the Manned Ground Vehicle (MGV) development effort under the Future Combat Systems (FCS) Brigade Combat Team (BCT) System Development and Demonstration (SDD) contract with the Boeing Company. The partial termination is for the convenience of the government.

The Army is taking this action to comply with both the Secretary of Defense's recommendation to cancel the FCS BCT program as well as the June 23 FCS BCT acquisition decision memorandum. The Army issued a stop work order for MGV and Non-Line of Sight Cannon (NLOS-C) efforts on June 24, in preparation for the partial termination.

The termination of the MGV effort will also negatively impact the development of the NLOS-C, which remains under a stop work directive. The Army, in conjunction with the Department of Defense (DoD), is working with the Congress to determine a viable path forward for the NLOS-C related efforts.

In coordination with the DoD, the Army is conducting a 120-day requirements analysis for a new ground combat vehicle (GCV) program. Incorporating lessons learned and threats encountered from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Army will continue to leverage the work accomplished during the FCS MGV development efforts into the new GCV.

As the Army transitions to a holistic BCT modernization plan, the Boeing Company will continue to perform as a prime contractor on the Early-Infantry BCT (E-IBCT) spin out effort. The first increment of this plan (insertion of FCS technology to the E-IBCTs) will provide the Infantry Brigade Combat Teams an enhanced network capability, improved situational awareness and a remote indirect fire capability.

For more information please contact Lt. Col. Martin Downie, martin.downie@us.army.mil or (703) 697-7591.

Here at Casle Argghhh! our Sekrit Skwirrels have sussed out the prime candidate to replace FCS.

Behold ye terrorist scum around the world - the newly-greened United States Army and Corpus Marinus will grind your bones to powder and make pork feed of your soft parts as they storm into your safe havens astride... the Paramouse! Eminently strategically deployable, you can fit 30 of 'em into a C17 and they sip fuel by the thimbleful, while having a pedestrian-friendly top speed of 40 mph when fully loaded with coolers, solar panels and solar still. The two-man crew reduces manning requirements significantly, thus saving scarce budget dollars.

H/t the United States Government for creating the situation that makes this remotely believable and therefore funny - and to Boquisucio for the pic and link! Mind you, I don't mind that FCS is getting the ax that much - but as an artilleryman I kinda resent the fact that my trade has lost 20 years of development and investment and don't have anything to show for it but the M777 at the moment, while the 1950's era M109 shuffles along using a walker. Of course, the Air Force is living with the B52, which has to use a wheelchair to get around when it's not flying.

Kinda like Bill.

Comment from emdfl on 2009-07-22

2009-07-22T08:57:46Z

Not to mention killing the F-22. I suspect the death of the F-35 will be close behind. The only hope I have left is that when the country falls to its foreign enemies(having already done so to its domestic enemies) said foreigners will operate the way they always have. Which is to say delete their in-country collaboraters before they start on the rest of us.

Comment from MAJ Mike on 2009-07-21

2009-07-22T01:10:04Z

I still fit into my 1995-model dress blues. Wore them to my school's JROTC military ball in February.

Many of my U.S. History students are JROTC. Gives me hope and they like to see Mr. McClain supporting their program. Not many guys with the "crossed sewer pipes" who have their regimental affiliation with the infantry (Captain of Infantry/Major of Field Artillery).

Comment from BillT on 2009-07-21

2009-07-21T22:03:59Z

According to FuzzyBee, they're what let's 'em walk on water...

Comment from Boquisucio on 2009-07-21

2009-07-21T20:44:07Z

...but they will be for the other twelve clowns who come tumbling out of it.

A whole squad of Marines loaded for bear, tumbling out of that clown-car - That would be a sight to behold, UnkaBill. But what about their floppy shoes?

Comment from BillT on 2009-07-21

2009-07-21T20:25:12Z

I went over to RVN at 210 pounds, right off my collitch athletic days.

I came back weighing 135.

Took me 30 years to work my way past 165...

Comment from John of Argghhh! on 2009-07-21

2009-07-21T20:11:47Z

Yeah - what makes it work is that you care about stuff like that.

I didn't fit into my 1975 greens by, oh, 1985. But that was because my 1975 greens were my football playing days, and in 1985 they hung on me loosely.

Then, by 1995, I couldn't button 'em anymore. Sigh.

Comment from BillT on 2009-07-21

2009-07-21T20:11:43Z

will Digi-Cammo Colored Ruber [sic] Noses ~~will~~ be standard issue for the Paramouse's two man crew?

No, but they will be for the other twelve clowns who come tumbling out of it.

Comment from BillT on 2009-07-21

2009-07-21T20:05:40Z

"Dissing" me, indeed.

*I* still fit into my dress greens.

The ones from 1975...

Comment from Boquisucio on 2009-07-21

2009-07-21T20:01:17Z

Question will Digi-Cammo Colored Ruber Noses will be standard issue for the Paramouse's two man crew?

Comment from ry on 2009-07-21

2009-07-21T19:16:09Z

But, but, but, but... how ever will Big Army put Arquilla's Swarming into practice without all those networked together platfroms? Huh, huh, huh?(Sorry, just had about half a gallon of pink lemonade)

Comment from Kirk on 2009-07-21

2009-07-21T19:08:13Z

There is no doubt the Iraqis feared the B-52...along with the A-10 and Apache. I'm also guessing they weren't to happy to see Abrams and Brads headed their way, once the ground campaign had begun (along with streams of rockets inbound from MLRS battalions). Having said that, I am a fan of the B-52s (plane and rock group), especially when Major Kong is flying one straight to Laputa.

Comment from Grumpy on 2009-07-21

2009-07-21T18:38:39Z

Armorer,

It surely appears that some vehicles were into some serious "Fraternizing" and this is the result of such behavior. Give it a chance to grow up! If it stays like this, some poor soldier will be backpacking it in to operations. :- ) Grumpy

Comment from John of Argghhh! on 2009-07-21

2009-07-21T18:38:28Z

I wasn't dissing the B52, Loadr. I was dissing Bill.

Comment from Oldloadr on 2009-07-21

2009-07-21T18:25:25Z

John, I never worked the B-52 (known to us Zoomies as BUFF (Big Ugly Fat F******) nor have I ever worked the C-130 (in any variant, although I once dreamed of being a gunner on the AC-130, that never happened). Therefore, I think I can say, without too much parochialism, that sometimes a design comes around that transcends its moment in history. The B-52 and the C-130 are examples of this. In the early 90s, the AF put out an RFP for a replacement for the C-130. After all the bids came in; the winner was an updated C-130.

The B-52 prototype 1st flew in 1952, and it was supposed to be a stop-gap until something better for strategic air warfare came along. Finally, in the 1980s President Reagan bought the B-1. Interestingly, several years ago the BUFF crews started joking that the last B-1 crew to fly the last B-1 to AMARC will hitch a ride back to their base on... a BUFF. You see, the B-1 has a worse MC rate than the B-52 with a higher maintenance man-hour to flying hour ratio. Then, there is the B-2, which is really nice, but it cost as much as a Navy capital ship, so it could not be built in numbers to replace either the B-52 or the B-1. It's true that if an old-fashioned general war broke out, the BUFF would be somewhat vulnerable, but so was the B-17 in WWII, that's why we developed drop tanks for the P-51. Now, our fighter have both drop tanks and in flight refueling.
My favorite AF TINS from the 1st gulf war was when intel guys debriefed an Iraqi battalion commander. They asked him why he surrendered his entire command. His answer was, the B-52s. The intel guy looked at his data and told the commander that we see no record that your unit was ever bombed by B-52s. He said, "That is correct, but the battalion next to us was..." The BUFF has proven to be the Timex watch of aerial bombardment.