A Very British (Labour) Failure

Navistar MXT-MVA w RWS lg

The Navistar Husky was designed as a “statement SUV”, for wealthy drivers who want something different to drive around California, that has had some armour bolted on to it to make it an armoured car

In one more example of how not to manage public funds, the British Labour Government has finally dithered its way to a decision on buying a mine resistant vehicle to protect British troops in Afghanistan. Having only taken seven years to stumble to the decision point, the eventual order was for a small and probably inadequate fleet of vehicles that cost twice the amount paid by the US Department of Defence for vehicles to protect US troops. Not only will the US taxpayer be getting twice as many vehicles for their tax dollars as the British taxpayer, but US troops will also be riding in a vehicle that has passed all of the US Army tests for explosion resistance. The British soldier will have to ride in a vehicle rejected by the US Army, allegedly because it suffered a hull breach after the detonation of a small test explosive. Navistar claim that the British will be receiving a vehicle that is not exactly the same as the vehicle rejected by the US Army – presumably that may mean the British vehicles will be supplied with right hand drive.


The Oshkosh vehicle being supplied to US troops has been designed and built by a company with very wide experience of designing military freight and personnel vehicles for Army use and where the armour is part of the original design.

The much cheaper and more effective Oshkosh MATV is a rugged vehicle designed specifically to protect troops from IED explosives. Most importantly, it has a ‘V’ shapped underside that deflects blast outwards away from the troop compartment. The Husky simply has a flat armour plate bolted onto the underside of a civilian SUV which is significantly less effective than a ‘V’ underside.

The conclusion has to be that British soldiers will be receiving little more protection than they already have with the ‘snatch’ LandRovers they currently depend on. The LandRover was designed for use in Northern Ireland where it had to provide protection from pistol and rifle rounds, petrol bombs and stones, while not looking too military.

Thus far, more than half of the British deaths in Afghanistan can be directly laid at the door of Gordon Brown who was recently outed as having consistently refused to adequately equip British troops in war zones when Chancellor and having continued his policies as Prime Minister.

Final conclusion – if you are trying to find staff to run a whelk stall at Southend, dont waste time looking to recruit from Brown’s Government.


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