U.S. Marines with Marine Rotational Force-Europe conduct a live-fire range in preparation for Exercise Joint Viking, in Porsangmoen, Norway, on March 1, 2017. Many Marines found their cold-weather gear coming up short during the deployment. Sgt. Patricia A. Morris/Marine Corps
But that’s what happened to many troops from Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines, as they completed an extended stretch of cold-weather training in Porsangermoen, nearly 1,000 miles north of their headquarters position here at Vaernes.
During this first deployment for Marine Rotational Force-Europe, troops spent weeks training and operating in gear they described as badly in need of an overhaul: inflexible zippers, seams that separated and tore, pack frames that snapped, and boots that pulled loose from ski fastenings over and over.
While none of this gear is new — it’s routinely used by Marines during mountain warfare training at Bridgeport, California, and in previous shorter cold weather exercises — it faces perhaps its most difficult test during this deployment.
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10 comments:
Our Military must have the best equipment available! The government's #1 priority must be the defense of our country! We the people will not tolerate any thing less!
Hey 6:20
Correct , just another reminder , Korea has very cold weather also , Korea
is a nation of monsoon and extreme cold . Maybe these exercises are needed
to ready ourselves for the inevitable. Been there done that 1967-1968 .
Hell i could get better gear at Kmart.
But what about people who need obama phones, EBT cards and section 8 housing?
Gov't bid process priority - take the CHEAPEST bid.
That 1900's mindset needs to END!
Maybe we can win round 2 against N. Korea. 0 for 2 in SE Asia.
My friend told me that he got frostbite while wearing military issued gloves, while his SF team, - who bought their own- didn't.
It's a shame that we put these guys in harms way and give them subpar equipment.
Marines take pride in accomplishing more with less, but it is past time to make sure superior fighting forces of all branches have superior equipment!
Anything would beat the "Mickey Mouse" boots that we were issued in the Army for cold-weather training. Time to update the military with 21st-century apparel that I am sure is lighter weight, warmer and has better moisture wicking capability than the old stuff. Ask any Korean War vet about the quality of the old winter warfare gear and you'll get an earful.
The military has tons and tons of gear predeployed around the world in warehouses, ships and even caves. Some of the stuff isn't reinspected often enough and when the crates are opened, what's inside might be worthless.
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