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Despite budget cuts, Land Warrior not dead yet

Despite the Army’s plans to pull the plug on Land Warrior, program officials say the high-tech digital ensemble isn’t dead yet.

Army budget officials announced the service’s intention to cut $300 million in funding for the program as part of the Army’s proposed fiscal 2008 budget.

“We have pretty much removed most of the funding for the Land Warrior program,” said Lt. Gen. David Melcher, military deputy for budget for the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Financial Management and Comptroller, at a Pentagon budget briefing Monday.

Land Warrior officials, however, are still continuing to tweak the system for soldiers of the Army’s 4th Stryker brigade combat team, who are preparing to deploy to Iraq with Land Warrior this spring. Soldiers from the 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, recently completed a successful test of the ensemble of digital communications and navigation equipment at Fort Lewis, Wash.

“It’s going to be over in theater, and we anticipate that soldiers are going to continue to like the capability,” said Col. Richard Hansen, project manager for Soldier Warrior.

Land Warrior is a wearable system that includes a miniaturized radio for voice communications and text messages; a helmet-mounted display with a miniature computer screen for viewing digital maps, reading text messages and target identification; a Global Positioning System for precise navigation; and weapons optics for engaging the enemy day and night.

All of Land Warrior’s components are wired to a small computer processor through a series of cables.

When used together, Army officials say, these systems will give soldiers an unmatchable edge in battle.

“Sometimes the Army will reverse its position if a system performs well in theater,” Hansen said.

360-degree flash presentation: See what Land Warrior offers

Related reading:

Funds cut for Land Warrior

Land Warrior use in Iraq to proceed as planned