Logistics and wrangling mire MRAPs

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17 (UPI) -- The U.S. military's new Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles prove effective at deterring improvised explosives but political wrangling delays deployment.

MRAPs, with their high chassis and V-shaped hulls, were designed to replace the Humvees deployed in Iraq since the 2003 invasion that are susceptible to improvised explosive devices.

The MRAPs limited deployment in Iraq helped save the lives of several U.S. troops in Iraq as IEDs account for at least 60 percent of all combat fatalities, USA Today reported Monday.

The military ordered nearly 9,000 MRAPs from four companies but supply chains, shipping logistics and military perceptions could diminish the number of vehicles actually deployed.

Military officials discussed cutting the projected MRAP order to 2,300 from 3,700 and others said the Army's requirements are down in the wake of relative calm in Iraq, the newspaper said.

That reflection isn't echoed by troops deployed in Iraq, however, as many expressed a new sense of safety in the newly designed vehicles.

"I wish we'd had the MRAP a lot sooner," U.S. Army Col. Ricky Gibbs told USA Today. "The MRAP gives confidence to your soldiers."