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Unnecessary Danger: Humvees and Their Role in the Iraq War
The Humvee has played a crucial role in both the Gulf War and the Iraqi war. The Humvee was never intended for combat and offers very little protection for those inside. It was made to replace the U.S. Army trucks used for transportation and recognizance missions in wartime. Despite this, the Humvee was tossed in to a wide range of other situations during the Iraqi wars and proved its diversity and durability over and over again. It also became painfully clear to the U.S. Army that modern warfare called for safer Humvees, and you can today obtain special Humvee armor kits that make the Humvee more capable of withstanding hand-held unguided anti-tank weapons, such as handheld anti-tank grenade-launches, and the extremely widespread AK-47 (AKM).
Humvee – how it all began
During the late 1970’s, the US Army decided that their jeeps and trucks needed to be replaced by a more modern vehicle – a High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle. This new vehicle should be fast, easy to load and offload, capable of transporting troops as well as equipment, and last but not least, be able to traverse the most inhospitable landscapes on the planet, from flooded regions to barren, mountainous stone desserts. It should also be capable of carrying mounted weapons and tow light artillery and surface-to-air missiles.
High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle is not really practical to pronounce, so the troops soon nicknamed their new means of transportation after the acronym HMMWV. Humvee is simply the sound you get if you try to pronounce H-M-M-W-V.
Humvee – the Gulf War era
The first time the Humvee was put to test in the Middle East was during the Gulf War. It functioned as a scout vehicle, supported weapon platforms and transported troops and weaponry. Due to the extensive media coverage, the Humvee turned into one of the most well know and celebrated army vehicles and its popularity reach extremes – especially in the United States. Civilian reporters naturally encountered the non-combat Humvee more often than combat vehicles such as tanks, and the Humvee was therefore featured in countless film clips and still photos by news media.
The media attention soon spread into fiction, and it wasn’t long before the Humvee began to appear in films and TV series. One of the earliest productions was the Arnold Schwarzenegger comedy “Kindergarten Cop” where the famous Austrian-American actor was seen chasing criminals and driving cool Humvees.
The success of the Gulf War turned the Humvee into a patriotic symbol and the civilian market craved its own version of the Army vehicle. Eventually, the first civilian Humvee was released – the Hummer H1.
Humvee – the Iraqi War era
When American troops returned to the Middle East to fight in the Iraqi war, they naturally brought their Humvees along for a second engagement. The Humvees that already proven durable in the sandy deserts and could withstand strong heat as well as rapidly sinking night temperatures. This war did however differ considerably from the Gulf War, and Humvee drivers kept finding themselves in situations where a heavily armored tank would have been more appropriate. This led to the invention of the Humvee armor kits. With a Humvee armor kit, an ordinary Humvee can be turned into a much more resilient vehicle. Even an armored Humvee will however be vulnerable to land mines and other roadside explosive.
Follow the links the learn more about the military hummer, the predecessor to the private Hummer H1 and the Hummer Limousine.
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