Army looks to technology changes to lighten load soldiers must carry

WASHINGTON — The Army wants to lighten the load it asks soldiers to carry in the battlefield but already is stretching the technology available to help meet that goal, Army leaders said Wednesday.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. George M. Casey told a House Appropriations subcommittee that the Army needs better ceramics for body armor, a major piece of the 100-pound package of gear soldiers sometimes are forced to wear.

"It's a challenge. It's something we work very hard," Gen. Casey said.

In addition to better ceramics, he said, the Army needs lighter batteries for various equipment, another big contributor to heavy loads.

"Both of these areas are pushing the limits of technology," Gen. Casey said.

His comments followed a report in the Seattle Post Intelligencer, which said that despite the Army's stated goal to cut loads to 50 pounds, soldiers are carrying about the same or more than in recent years, up to 100 pounds.

The Army suffers more injuries — usually muscular and skeletal — from those heavy loads than from battle, the newspaper reported. Injuries may be contributing to a surge in soldiers' use of prescription pain killers, said Rep. Norman Dicks, D-Wash., the panel's top Democrat.

"We're seeing a number of injuries," Mr. Dicks said.

Army Secretary John M. McHugh told the panel the problem is especially true for soldiers serving at higher altitudes, where thinner air makes big loads tougher to carry.

"We're trying to take this in the most serious way possible," Mr. McHugh said. Already, he said, the Army has fielded lighter helmets.

The Army Science Board has set a goal of 50 pounds per soldier, but its recommendation to meet that goal last year missed by a long shot.

The Army has studied the issue in some detail. A recent report by the Army's Borden Institute found that foot injuries and blisters are the most common complaint. And history is full of examples of the risks posed by heavy loads in warfare: The report cited soldiers who died in the surge toward Omaha Beach in World War II in 1944 because their packs were loaded down with cartons of cigarettes; some drowned.

Lately, the Army had planned a vehicle to carry some of the gear, through the Future Combat System, but the Pentagon abandoned that program last year — still a sore point with some members of Congress who supported its continuation.