U.S. Army Vehicles Lost in Iraq

Comments (0) By Christine Pelisek Thursday, May 20 2004

We asked the Army, the Marines and the Air Force for information on vehicles destroyed in the Iraq conflict. The Marines and Air Force ignored our request, but the Army, via a lieutenant colonel, provided the following battle damage info (from May 1, 2003 through April 3, 2004). When we called him back this week for an update, another spokesperson said the lieutenant colonel was no longer there and that he should not have given us the information. It was classified, she explained, and the Army doesn’t want the enemy to know its successes, or which vehicles are most susceptible to attack. We, however, figure the enemy can see the damage with their own eyes.

Type Number Cause Cost M1 Abrams Tanks 3 Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs)/Rocket Propelled Grenades (RPGs) $5.4 million M2/3 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle 6 IEDs/RPGs $9 million Stryker Armored Vehicle 3 IEDs/RPGs $6.9 million AH-64 Attack Helicopter 7 Mechanical failure/hard landing/enemy fire $168.7 million UH-60 Utility Helicopter 4 Mechanical failure/hard landing/enemy fire $38.4 million OH-58 Observation Helicopter 9 Mechanical failure/hard landing/enemy fire $72.9 million CH-47 Cargo Helicopter 2 Mechanical failure/hard landing/enemy fire $84.2 million Humvees, Small Trucks 54 Accidents/IEDs/RPGs $7.9 million

Approximate total cost: $393.4 million