Chris' Deployment Journal

In this photo, three Humvees clear weapons after entering the KRAB (Kirkuk Regional Airbase). Note the 'Avalanche' style Humvee in the center.

A Humvee is, to quote one Staff Sgt from our time down south at Camp Scunion, "one tough truck." They are big, beefy, and drive over just about anything. It's actually sort of an adjustment when you start driving them (compared to civilian cars), having to change the way you think about what obstacles to avoid and what to just drive over. We routinely hop curbs, bounce through ditches, and scale berms that would stymie a regular car or even many trucks. They are fifteen feet long and just over seven feet wide. They can climb slopes up to 60% grade and ford five-feet deep water (with a kit).

One day we were in the foothills outside of the city, searching for old ammo caches, when we came upon a dirt road that wasn't much more than a Billy goat trail. It must have been over a 50-degree incline. While our Iraqi police (IP) escort's Nissan SUV's slipped and skidded on up, we powered up without a problem. On the way down, the IP's SUV followed on our bumper, in case their brakes gave away (ours certainly wouldn't have).

However, there are many different variations of Humvees. (Warning, you are about to enter a military jargon zone!!! Please remain calm.) The base unit is the M998 and that's a stripped down, no frills, no armor, plain Jane vehicle. When you add an armored kit to that vehicle, including armored doors, floor, 'transparent armor' (aka bullet-proof glass), it becomes an M1025. If you add a winch to that, you get an M1026. There are versions that look like pick-up trucks, with a cab for two people and a flat cargo bed in the back, what we call 'Avalanche' versions with seating for four and a very small cargo bed in the back (sort of like the Chevy Avalanche truck), versions that look like they have camper shells on the back, and then numerous specialized versions outfitted to be ambulances (M997), psychological operations trucks (outfitted with big giant speakers), TOW missile carriers (M1045), and many more. You get the idea.

The original Humvee was not armored at all, because it was supposed to be in the rear while armored vehicles like tanks would be up front. During peacekeeping missions in Bosnia, armored kits were added (creating the M1025 version) to help against landmines and small arms fire. The problem with these kits is that they add about 2000 extra pounds to the vehicle, straining its suspension and its engine. While traveling behind a fully-loaded M1025, you can actually see the rear wheels slant out at the bottom due to all the extra weight. And this makes them pretty sluggish when you try to hit the gas.