When it comes to the military and its many past vehicles, most people are quick to point at things like the Willys Jeep, M4 Sherman tank and the P-38 lightning. But recently, a new vehicle has begun to be added to this list. Since 1985, the U.S. Army has utilized the High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle, or as it’s more commonly referred to as: the Humvee. These vehicles have been utilized in every major conflict from shore to shore and sea to shining sea. And they are now going to get the rest that each one of them deserves.
The Humvee was primarily produced by AM General as a four-wheel-drive light utility vehicle. Produced in many variations and setups, this basic shell went on to become one of the most utilized vehicles that the U.S. Army ever owned. From Red Cross ambulances to an up-armored and bulletproof armament carrier, this basic framework did solve all the problems that arose.
The first generation of the Humvee (M998) was delivered to the U.S. Army in October 1985, replacing the type M151 Jeep. The Humvee didn’t have to wait long for the call to duty however, because the M998 first saw action in Operation Just Cause in 1989. The operation was focused on the capture of the military dictator of Panama, Manuel Antonio Noriega Moreno, who took power through a military coup and began to traffic drugs through the country. The M998 was utilized to rapidly deploy U.S. troops and to transport cargo from point to point (food, water, munitions). One of the most important missions the M998 Humvee faced in the operation was the carrying of 450-watt loudspeakers to be utilized in Psychological Operations (PSYOP) missions. General Maxwell Thurman on Christmas morning “ordered that a music barrier be set up around the Nunciatura [a church sheltering Manuel Noriega]. Later, as hard rock music blared around the clock, a psychological operations specialist claimed it was part of a campaign to harass Noriega,” according to Ronald H. Cole, Office of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The operation was seen as a great success with President Guillermo Endara being sworn into office soon after.
After that operation, the U.S. Army began to put funding into improving the Humvee into many different models, each specializing in different jobs and fulfilling a different need on and off the battlefield. This became apparent in 1992, when the United States, led by President George H.W. Bush, ordered the U.S. military to aid the United Nations (UN) in Operation Restore Hope. The operation focused on helping the nation of Somalia with its severe famine following a civil war in 1991. Things quickly went wrong, however.
Shortly after troops arrived, both sides of the civil war met and began negotiations. The Somali National Alliance (the leading anti-UN aid party) remilitarized and began a series of ambushes on the UN forces. The first of these attacks came to fruition on June 5, 1993. The first attack that targeted U.S. troops in particular was on Aug. 8, 1993, when the Somali National Alliance detonated a bomb, killing four. Following this, on Aug. 19, 1993, a second attack with the same plan injured four more soldiers driving a Humvee. The final straw for the United States came on Aug. 22, when a remotely detonated bomb would injure another six. President Bill Clinton then assembled a task force for Operation Gothic Serpent. There was one mission for this operation: finding the head of the Somali National Alliance and capturing him. The mission had 441 men supplied with the best of equipment, including (but not limited to) eight MH-60 Black Hawk helicopters, four AH-6 support helicopters and nine Humvees in one of 15 different setups and modifications.
These history-rich operations were among the first military efforts in which the Humvee was utilized, and it revealed to the Army that this vehicle platform could be used for much more. The time that the U.S. Army utilized more Humvees than any other major operation was in the Global War on Terror. This conflict lasted from Sept. 14, 2001, to Aug. 30, 2021. The war was first approved by President George W. Bush and lasted through the following three presidents: Barack Obama, Donald Trump and Joe Biden. The Global War on Terror began following the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, in New York and Washington, D.C., where Al-Qaeda jihadists targeted many national landmarks in the United States.
The main goals of the conflict were many and varied, ranging from putting an end to many countries’ support of these terrorist organizations to locating and capturing the leaders of these organizations, such as Osama bin Laden, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Saddam Hussein and Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. By the four-year point of the War on Terror, AM General had produced an estimated range of 100,000 – 175,000 Humvees to support the many branches of the U.S. forces as well as its allies. Throughout the war, the United States commissioned another five different setups and variants for the Humvee (taking the total to 20), ranging from Expanded Carrying Capacity Vehicles (ECV, M1097 Heavy) to the up-armored Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) resistant M1151 / M1152. These vehicles specialized in rapid mobility and deployment of needed troops and ammunition to the places where they would be needed most.
This was most apparent in the second battle of Fallujah. This was one of the longest battles of the Iraq War, spanning from Nov. 7, 2004, to Dec. 24, 2004 (making it 46 days of non-stop warfare). Although unknown and undocumented for the number Humvees used in the operation, the number of American troops exceeded the range of 10,000. Officially called Operation Phantom Fury, the up-armored Humvee (M1114), along with other upgraded older models, were used as the primary light armored vehicles in the battle.
With a blank slate vehicle frame so synonymous with the military as the Humvee, it is easy to tell why its history is so deeply rooted into the country’s history. But many are left with the question of, “If the Humvee is on its way out, what’s next?” It takes a long time before a decision of this magnitude is decided upon and the military has been looking into it for years. The replacement for the Humvee is officially the Infantry Squad Vehicle or ISV.
The ISV was chosen for a multitude of reasons, all stemming from the shortcomings of its predecessor. The vehicle also has a price tag $80,000 cheaper than the Humvee’s base model. It comes equipped with a GM Duramax 2.8L Turbo Diesel L4 engine, producing 186 horsepower. The angle of approach for the vehicle is a staggering 45.2 degrees, allowing for a better defense against IEDs and mines placed in the path of travel, and the base model allows for nine seats for more troop and equipment transport. All these things are a drop in the bucket for the positives of adopting this new vehicle into the Armed Forces, but it’s important to remember all the things that the Humvee did for this country. Its rich history proves the record of its service and the victories that were achieved that otherwise wouldn’t have been without the Humvee.
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