Photo By Kimberly Hackbarth | Soldiers with 1st Battalion, 44th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 69th Air Defense...... read more read more
FORT HOOD, Texas – In air defense artillery, when the equipment that is used to transport Patriot launchers and radars breaks down, the ADA mission suffers.
When Soldiers of 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade noticed that the time they spent troubleshooting deficiencies with their vehicles began interrupting training, they put in a request for new equipment.
Soldiers of 1st Battalion, 44th ADA Regiment, 69th ADA Bde., received 11 heavy expanded mobility tactical truck (HEMTT) A4 models October 23, here.
The upgraded models costed $286,431 each and included approximately 247 updates from the A2 models that the brigade currently owns, according to Sgt. 1st Class Alan Rains, the senior maintenance supervisor for 1st Bn., 44th ADA Regt., who oversaw the fielding of the new vehicles.
“(The new vehicles) are able to pull more weight longer distances,” explained Rains.
Along with the increased weight load capabilities, the A4 model has additional safety features.
“It’s the little safety precautions that are very beneficial because you’re dealing with a lot of weight and a large length,” said Rains.
The vehicles 1st Bn., 44th ADA Regt., received were built within this year and arrived at Fort Hood last month, said Allen Peterson, a heavy tactical vehicles team lead for the Materiel Fielding Team.
In order to sign for the vehicles from Fort Hood’s Materiel Management Team, 16 Soldiers had to take a 20-hour course on the updates to the vehicle in order to drive them and eight mechanics took a 26-hour course on how to troubleshoot any deficiencies with the new equipment.
“It is such a completely different truck,” explained Peterson. “The drivetrain, new suspension, upgraded lights, gauges, and switches are all different from the A2 model.”
The Soldiers who attended the training will then train the other members of the unit, ensuring everyone is capable of operating or troubleshooting the new vehicles.
In an effort to upgrade the vehicles for all three battalions in 69th ADA Bde., 4th Battalion, 5th ADA Regt. is slated to receive the new HEMTT A4 models in December.
| Date Taken: | 10.23.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 11.02.2015 16:55 |
| Story ID: | 180674 |
| Location: | FORT HOOD, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 114 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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