Govt wants to look into selling damaged conflict equipment

[qdbrown]

I would think there are plenty of HMMWVs still in this country that could be sold but aren't. If they were, the price would drop.

And it might be a money making control event, but to think that these trucks are simply given away for Iraqi's benefit, instead of being resold to a paying American(who help pay for these trucks in the first place)--I really have a trouble understanding why our government (which is suppose to be us) is just handing them away to Iraq. There is just something really bad about that, even if they want to make them hard to get for us regular ole Americans. Most of these trucks are a notch above srap piles. They are no longer needed for what they were intended, and if some silly American wants to mess with fixing them up, it should be made available, no questions asked (seeing that they actually belong to us all ready) though an auction to recoup some of the cost.

I know that's not how things work, but it should. I have all ready written my congresswoman and senator my thoughts on this.

It really upset me when my brother told me when they were evucating from Vietnam, they would literally land the Huey's on the aircraft carrier, and push practically new helicopters off the deck while still running. It was easier, and cheaper, but at the same time a big waste of taxpayers dollars to make it easier on the government on the evucation. I have heard of planes being treated the same way when they get too expensive to fix. Sure, make room, no time to mess with busy stuff like this when at war, or doing something important, but this kind of reasoning is why we our going further into debt as a country. Build more, charge the taxpayers, and don't worry about the cost.

Now we have a field of broken down Hummers in Kuwait (not the war zone) of all places, and they want to give them away? There is just something really wrong with that.

 

[sirmrtow]

Man those lines of hummers looks like there at the plant,which is 3 miles from my house

 

[Numbers]

It is a feasible project to bring back vehicles/equipment. Ships that I was on and/or near and/or had friends on sometimes came back all the way across the ditch with no load. I believe truckers call it dead heading. Not all ships were RORO's but cargo containers will fill up nicely and stack pretty good too. Selling the merchandise that comes back would offfset the cost of transporting it back and prevent loss of items into foreign hands.

 

[avengeusa]

It is a feasible project to bring back vehicles/equipment. Ships that I was on and/or near and/or had friends on sometimes came back all the way across the ditch with no load. I believe truckers call it dead heading. Not all ships were RORO's but cargo containers will fill up nicely and stack pretty good too. Selling the merchandise that comes back would offfset the cost of transporting it back and prevent loss of items into foreign hands.

I am i 100% agreement here

 

[Jones]

All great points about chemical contamination, unexploded ordnance, remains being associated with battle damaged equipment and vehicles.
It gripes me too that the foreign nationals doing the demil work on the equipment are having a field day going through and reclaiming all manner of gear, weapons and personal effects.
Still; after they're deconned, checked and cleared of restricted items, stuffed into containers so that tie-down and shipping aren't a problem and sent stateside; are we going to be able to do anything with them or are we going to get the "must be de-milled" clause in every item description (remember the M151s and Gama Goats)?

If getting battle damaged equipment stateside keeps the possibility of equipment being turned against our own soldiers, and enables us folks with an interset in the MV hobby to put this equipment to good use, then I'm all for it-- but if they're going to be abandoned there, then as a last resort, a fleet of industrial high order incinerator plants might be the way to go.
Everything reduced to puddles of aluminum, and any and all steel and brass annealed to dead-soft might be cheaper in the long run.
IF we're going to be generous to our enemies, we can always leave that scrap behind.

 

[emmado22]

The actual transpo of items is easy. it's the planning and execution of actually getting vehicles that dont move under thier own power on to the ship, down into the "parking garage", tying them down, dealing with the leaks, then getting them off the ship. I've loaded and unloaded ships, and it's a huge PITA with working trucks. I wouldnt want to imagine towing EVERY truck on and off..

It's a HUGE undertaking, and who's gonna do and pay for all the work?