KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan - Soldiers of the 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division Stryker Brigade Combat Team equip their Common Remotely Operated Weapon Station II with an M2 .50 Caliber Machine Gun as they familiar themselves with the new weapon system during their training." Photo credit Spc. Elisebet Freeburg, Joint Sustainment Command - AfghanistanFrom New Wars:
Don’t Blame the Strykers
The Stryker armored vehicles, made popular in Iraq and wildly successful there, are getting a bad rap in Afghanistan due to mounting casualties. Here is Robert Haddick at Foreign Policy.com with “Why Don’t Stryker Brigades Work in Afghanistan?”:
Read more ....On July 5, the U.S. Army’s 5th Stryker Brigade arrived in Kandahar province for a year-long tour of duty. The brigade was equipped with 350 Stryker combat vehicles, an eight-wheeled armored infantry carrier that has proven successful in Iraq and is popular with soldiers. It was the first time the Army had deployed Strykers to Afghanistan, but the country has proven unforgiving to the brigade. Thus far they have lost 21 of their Strykers to improvised explosive devices (IEDs), at a cost of two dozen killed and more than 70 wounded. On Oct. 27, seven soldiers died during the bombing of a single Stryker vehicle.
Update: Riding in the kevlar coffins -- ELP Defens(c)e Blog
My Comment: Afghanistan is an "on the foot" and helicopter type of campaign. Armor vehicles will not be cut out for this type of terrain .... especially in the middle of winter.
This is another reason why a different strategy is required in Afghanistan .... the Iraq template has limits when applied to the geography of Afghanistan.