Latest news with #JointLightTacticalVehicles
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump admin in early stages of planning a June military parade in Washington, DC
The Trump administration is in the early stages of planning for a military parade to take place in Washington, DC, in June to commemorate the Army's 250th anniversary, two defense officials told CNN on Monday. Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser on Monday also confirmed that the city is having discussions with the administration about it, a day after the Washington City Paper reported on the plans for a military parade to be held on June 14. That date is both the 250th anniversary of the establishment of the US Army and President Donald Trump's 79th birthday. Preliminary plans call for the parade to stretch from the Pentagon in Arlington to the White House, defense officials told CNN. Asked about the parade on Monday, Bowser told reporters that the administration had reached out to DC city officials recently to discuss the idea. 'I haven't been directly involved in it yet,' she said. 'I understand that – I think it was Homeland Security, maybe the White House – reached out to our special events task force, which is what most people wanting to do a parade do in the district. So, I would say it's at its early stages. Yes, they have reached out. I don't know if it's being characterized as a military parade.' A defense official told CNN on Monday that plans for a big celebration for the Army's 250th birthday have been under consideration for roughly a year and began before the election in November. But the idea of adding a parade to the celebration came up more recently in conversations between the Army and the White House, which has been leading on the parade effort and planning in recent weeks, another defense official said. Trump has not yet signed off on final plans for the parade, however, the officials said. Army spokesperson Col. Dave Butler told CNN that 'any discussion of the parade is pre-decisional at this point. We are intending to have a national level celebration to help build pride in America's army and increase pride in America.' Given the significant milestone of 250 years, the officials said the Army has been looking over options to make its annual celebration far bigger, with more capability demonstrations, static displays of equipment, and more engagement with the community. The event will likely involve the Army's demonstration parachute team, the Golden Knights, armored Bradley Fighting Vehicles and Joint Light Tactical Vehicles, the officials said, though it would likely not include M-1 Abrams tanks due to their size and weight. Bowser on Monday expressed concern over the possibility that tanks could damage DC streets, but one of the defense officials emphasized that the Army is working in coordination with civil engineers to ensure there is no damage to roadways if there is a parade. The parade planning harkens back to Trump's first term, when he hoped to host a military-style parade but called it off after the city said it would cost tens of millions of dollars, CNN previously reported. It is not clear how much the parade is estimated to cost this time around. A spokesperson for the mayor did not immediately respond to a question asking for more details about the administration's coordination with the city to plan a parade. CNN has reached out to the White House and DHS for comment. Arlington County Chair Takis Karantonis said in a statement on Monday that the county was contacted by the Secret Service on Friday 'regarding the possibility of a military parade to celebrate the 250th Anniversary of the U.S. Army, but no further details were offered.' The county, which is home to the Pentagon and many active and retired military personnel, has not received a formal request from the federal government for any assistance for the parade, he added. 'At this time, it is not clear to me what the scope of the parade would … be,' Karantonis said, 'but I would hope the Federal Government remains sensitive to the pain and concerns of numerous active military and veteran residents, who have lost or might lose their jobs in recent federal decisions, as they reflect on how best to celebrate the Army's anniversary.'
CNN
07-04-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Trump admin in early stages of planning a June military parade in Washington, DC
The Trump administration is in the early stages of planning for a military parade to take place in Washington, DC, in June to commemorate the Army's 250th anniversary, two defense officials told CNN on Monday. Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser on Monday also confirmed that the city is having discussions with the administration about it, a day after the Washington City Paper reported on the plans for a military parade to be held on June 14. That date is both the 250th anniversary of the establishment of the US Army and President Donald Trump's 79th birthday. Preliminary plans call for the parade to stretch from the Pentagon in Arlington to the White House, defense officials told CNN. Asked about the parade on Monday, Bowser told reporters that the administration had reached out to DC city officials recently to discuss the idea. 'I haven't been directly involved in it yet,' she said. 'I understand that – I think it was Homeland Security, maybe the White House – reached out to our special events task force, which is what most people wanting to do a parade do in the district. So, I would say it's at its early stages. Yes, they have reached out. I don't know if it's being characterized as a military parade.' A defense official told CNN on Monday that plans for a big celebration for the Army's 250th birthday have been under consideration for roughly a year and began before the election in November. But the idea of adding a parade to the celebration came up more recently in conversations between the Army and the White House, which has been leading on the parade effort and planning in recent weeks, another defense official said. Trump has not yet signed off on final plans for the parade, however, the officials said. Army spokesperson Col. Dave Butler told CNN that 'any discussion of the parade is pre-decisional at this point. We are intending to have a national level celebration to help build pride in America's army and increase pride in America.' Given the significant milestone of 250 years, the officials said the Army has been looking over options to make its annual celebration far bigger, with more capability demonstrations, static displays of equipment, and more engagement with the community. The event will likely involve the Army's demonstration parachute team, the Golden Knights, armored Bradley Fighting Vehicles and Joint Light Tactical Vehicles, the officials said, though it would likely not include M-1 Abrams tanks due to their size and weight. Bowser on Monday expressed concern over the possibility that tanks could damage DC streets, but one of the defense officials emphasized that the Army is working in coordination with civil engineers to ensure there is no damage to roadways if there is a parade. The parade planning harkens back to Trump's first term, when he hoped to host a military-style parade but called it off after the city said it would cost tens of millions of dollars, CNN previously reported. It is not clear how much the parade is estimated to cost this time around. A spokesperson for the mayor did not immediately respond to a question asking for more details about the administration's coordination with the city to plan a parade. CNN has reached out to the White House and DHS for comment. Arlington County Chair Takis Karantonis said in a statement on Monday that the county was contacted by the Secret Service on Friday 'regarding the possibility of a military parade to celebrate the 250th Anniversary of the U.S. Army, but no further details were offered.' The county, which is home to the Pentagon and many active and retired military personnel, has not received a formal request from the federal government for any assistance for the parade, he added. 'At this time, it is not clear to me what the scope of the parade would … be,' Karantonis said, 'but I would hope the Federal Government remains sensitive to the pain and concerns of numerous active military and veteran residents, who have lost or might lose their jobs in recent federal decisions, as they reflect on how best to celebrate the Army's anniversary.'
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Armor plates for U.S. military vehicles produced in Russian-owned plant never passed inspection: Report
Employees at a Russian-owned steel plant operator in Oregon falsified inspection results on armored plating, including some used for U.S. Army vehicles, according to a new report. An internal investigation, whose results were obtained by Bloomberg, detailed how workers at the steel plant operator Evraz North America bypassed mandatory hardness tests and inserted fake results for about 12,800 armor plates during incidents spanning from 2017 through 2019 at a facility in Portland. The plates were then labeled as tested and approved. Evraz launched its internal probe following allegations of bypassed requirements in the quality control procedures, . The Independent has reached out to Evraz for comment. Oshkosh Defense, a 'primary customer' of the plates, according to Bloomberg, has been awarded contracts by the U.S. Army for Joint Light Tactical Vehicles. The United Kingdom, Israel, Romania and other countries also use the vehicles. Oshkosh has built more than 22,000 of the vehicles as of 2024, and each are supposed to last about 20 years, according to Bloomberg. The Joint Light Tactical Vehicle has 'consistently demonstrated its ability to fill critical capability gaps for U.S. and international militaries,' Oshkosh Defense's website states. Evraz's 2019 internal findings found that beginning in November 2017, some employees failed to consistently use a machine to measure the hardness of the armored plates, circumventing a requirement, and then inputted fake results manually, Bloomberg reported. 'Armor plate does require 100% hardness testing,' the internal report noted. Still, falsifying data was a 'widespread' practice, the company investigation concluded. Four employees admitted to falsifying hardness ratings; some even said there wasn't enough time to complete the test for each plate due to the demands to keep the process moving, Bloomberg reported. 'That's how I was trained,' one employee said in the report. Even though his supervisors denied knowing he was doing this, the report determined it was 'highly likely' that they all 'were aware of the practice.' One manager admitted that he understood false data was sometimes recorded. 'When you're thrown in the fire, you gotta do what you gotta do to keep the line rolling,' he was quoted in the internal report. It's not immediately clear how many Joint Light Tactical Vehicles were equipped with untested plates. The Independent has contacted the U.S. Army for more information. An Evraz official, however, identified the untested plates as part of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicles program, as well as bing used on another armored vehicle produced by Oshkosh, Bloomberg reported. The steel operator stopped deliveries of armored plating for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicles program once management was made aware of the situation, according to Bloomberg. Evraz told Bloomberg that the company follows 'strict compliance with all industry standards,' adding that its armored plates passed 'independent testing by a government approved facility.' The steel operator said it has not received complaints from customers about its products. The alleged problems at the facility arose two years after the U.S. Army awarded Oshkosh a $6.7 billion contract to procure nearly 17,000 vehicles for the Army and the Marines. It's not immediately clear if Oshkosh was aware of the falsified data or of the internal report. Evraz says Oshkosh was aware of its findings. The Independent has reached out to Oshkosh Defense for comment. Law enforcement is now investigating the falsified tests, Bloomberg reported. FBI agents were visiting several of the steel operator's facilities, Fox 21 noted last July. Evraz said it was fully cooperating with the agency's requests. Evraz North America is a subsidiary of Evraz Plc. No evidence obtained by Bloomberg suggested that the skipped tests, false data or Evraz's Russian ownership were related to the U.S. efforts to fight Russia in its war against Ukraine.
The Independent
11-03-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Armor plates for U.S. military vehicles produced in Russian-owned plant never passed inspection: Report
Employees at a Russian-owned steel plant operator in Oregon falsified inspection results on armored plating, including some used for U.S. Army vehicles, according to a new report. An internal investigation, whose results were obtained by Bloomberg, detailed how workers at the steel plant operator Evraz North America bypassed mandatory hardness tests and inserted fake results for about 12,800 armor plates during incidents spanning from 2017 through 2019 at a facility in Portland. The plates were then labeled as tested and approved. Evraz launched its internal probe following allegations of bypassed requirements in the quality control procedures, . The Independent has reached out to Evraz for comment. Oshkosh Defense, a 'primary customer' of the plates, according to Bloomberg, has been awarded contracts by the U.S. Army for Joint Light Tactical Vehicles. The United Kingdom, Israel, Romania and other countries also use the vehicles. Oshkosh has built more than 22,000 of the vehicles as of 2024, and each are supposed to last about 20 years, according to Bloomberg. The Joint Light Tactical Vehicle has 'consistently demonstrated its ability to fill critical capability gaps for U.S. and international militaries,' Oshkosh Defense's website states. Evraz's 2019 internal findings found that beginning in November 2017, some employees failed to consistently use a machine to measure the hardness of the armored plates, circumventing a requirement, and then inputted fake results manually, Bloomberg reported. 'Armor plate does require 100% hardness testing,' the internal report noted. Still, falsifying data was a 'widespread' practice, the company investigation concluded. Four employees admitted to falsifying hardness ratings; some even said there wasn't enough time to complete the test for each plate due to the demands to keep the process moving, Bloomberg reported. 'That's how I was trained,' one employee said in the report. Even though his supervisors denied knowing he was doing this, the report determined it was 'highly likely' that they all 'were aware of the practice.' One manager admitted that he understood false data was sometimes recorded. 'When you're thrown in the fire, you gotta do what you gotta do to keep the line rolling,' he was quoted in the internal report. It's not immediately clear how many Joint Light Tactical Vehicles were equipped with untested plates. The Independent has contacted the U.S. Army for more information. An Evraz official, however, identified the untested plates as part of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicles program, as well as bing used on another armored vehicle produced by Oshkosh, Bloomberg reported. The steel operator stopped deliveries of armored plating for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicles program once management was made aware of the situation, according to Bloomberg. Evraz told Bloomberg that the company follows 'strict compliance with all industry standards,' adding that its armored plates passed 'independent testing by a government approved facility.' The steel operator said it has not received complaints from customers about its products. The alleged problems at the facility arose two years after the U.S. Army awarded Oshkosh a $6.7 billion contract to procure nearly 17,000 vehicles for the Army and the Marines. It's not immediately clear if Oshkosh was aware of the falsified data or of the internal report. Evraz says Oshkosh was aware of its findings. The Independent has reached out to Oshkosh Defense for comment. Law enforcement is now investigating the falsified tests, Bloomberg reported. FBI agents were visiting several of the steel operator's facilities, Fox 21 noted last July. Evraz said it was fully cooperating with the agency's requests. Evraz North America is a subsidiary of Evraz Plc. No evidence obtained by Bloomberg suggested that the skipped tests, false data or Evraz's Russian ownership were related to the U.S. efforts to fight Russia in its war against Ukraine.
Yahoo
07-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
US Army upgrades Strykers, inducts next-gen combat vehicles to replace Humvees
The US Army's Pennsylvania-based 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team (SBCT) has commenced the receipt of more than 600 new or upgraded vehicles as part of a comprehensive modernization initiative. The brigade will integrate 324 upgraded Stryker armored vehicles and 300 Joint Light Tactical Vehicles (JLTVs), enhancing its operational capabilities in contemporary conflict environments. The upgraded Strykers feature a double-V hull (DVH) design, replacing the legacy flat-bottom-hull Strykers currently in use. This structural enhancement was initiated in response to vulnerabilities identified during operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, where improvised explosive devices (IEDs) posed significant threats to vehicle survivability. According to Col. Christopher Costello, commander of the 56th SBCT, the DVH configuration has demonstrated superior blast-deflection properties, significantly reducing casualties and injury severity compared to flat-bottom-hull models. "Combat experience in Afghanistan validated the effectiveness of the double-V hull design," Costello stated. "Analysis of IED incidents indicated a marked improvement in crew survivability, with personnel often able to return to duty following an attack—an outcome far less common with the legacy flat-bottom hull." In parallel, the brigade's transition to JLTVs represents a substantial upgrade over its current inventory of M1097 HMMWVs. Costello emphasized the operational advantages of the JLTV platform, citing increased protection, mobility, and payload capacity as key enhancements over the older Humvee. Initial fielding efforts will see at least 25 upgraded Strykers arrive at Fort Indiantown Gap for training. Col. Jeremy Coleman, Pennsylvania Army National Guard deputy chief of staff for logistics (G4), confirmed that all JLTVs will be staged at Fort Indiantown Gap before unit-level distribution. The final disposition of the remaining Strykers has yet to be determined, with options including direct fielding to unit locations or initial consolidation at Fort Indiantown Gap. The 56th SBCT will conduct structured "train-the-trainer" programs in March to facilitate the transition. Maj. Sean Brown, brigade operations officer, detailed that personnel currently qualified on flat-bottom Strykers will receive specialized instruction on the operational nuances of the DVH variant. These newly certified trainers will disseminate knowledge across their formations during scheduled drills and annual training cycles. Concurrently, brigade-level maintenance personnel will undergo a five-day field-level sustainment course to familiarize themselves with the technical aspects of DVH Stryker upkeep. Brown underscored the necessity of ensuring a seamless logistical transition given the deployment of several hundred 56th SBCT personnel to Africa and Germany. Currently stationed in Germany in support of the Joint Multinational Training Group-Ukraine mission, Costello acknowledged the inherent challenges posed by ongoing overseas commitments but emphasized the brigade's capacity to adapt and execute its modernization objectives. Coleman concurred, noting that successful implementation will require coordination among all stakeholders. "This modernization effort represents a critical opportunity for the 28th Infantry Division and the 56th SBCT to replace legacy equipment with platforms better suited to contemporary and future conflict environments," he said. The Stryker is an eight-wheeled, armored combat vehicle forming the backbone of Army Stryker Brigade Combat Teams (SBCTs). Available in multiple configurations—including infantry carrier, reconnaissance, mortar carrier, command and control, and medical evacuation—Strykers offer mobility, firepower, and modular adaptability. The platform can carry up to 11 occupants and achieves speeds of up to 60 mph. The U.S. Army currently fields nine SBCTs, seven within the active-duty force and two in the National Guard. The 56th SBCT, headquartered at Biddle Air National Guard Base in Horsham with units dispersed across Pennsylvania, was the first reserve-component brigade to transition to the Stryker platform in 2004. Costello emphasized that this modernization program enhances the brigade's overall combat readiness. "Despite the logistical challenges associated with concurrent deployments, the performance of 56th SBCT Soldiers in recent operations affirms my confidence in a successful transition," he stated. "The high level of pre-deployment training reinforces our ability to integrate this new equipment while remaining fully prepared for both civil support operations and wartime contingencies."
